Good morning, convener, and thank you for the opportunity to make an opening statement on the three topics that the committee has requested to discuss today—the Scottish national standardised assessments, the 2019 exam diet and the senior phase curriculum.
On standardised assessments, I am happy to provide an update on the progress that we have made in taking forward the recommendations in the committee’s report, as well as those of the independent review of primary 1 assessments and the P1 practitioner forum. In August we provided schools, local authorities and other stakeholders with a clear and definitive statement on the purpose and use of P1 standardised assessments. That was a central recommendation in a number of the reports. Work is well under way with key stakeholders on the development of a practical framework on the use of data and enhanced communication materials. I am happy to discuss in more detail the full range of activity that we are taking forward if that would be helpful.
I welcome the review of the P1 assessments and the thorough and detailed report by David Reedy. I welcome Mr Reedy’s conclusion that P1 assessments had valuable potential and should be continued. I also welcome the recommendations that he made for improvements to the assessments, and that work is well on the way to completion.
On the 2019 exam diet, there was a strong set of exam results, with three quarters of candidates attaining a pass at higher grades A to C and over one quarter of candidates achieving grade A at higher—the figure was 28.3 per cent in 2019 compared with 28.4 per cent in 2018. We have seen an increase in entries and pass rates across national 5, including a rise in passes for English. At higher level, there was an overall fall in pass rates, but if the exam pass rate only ever went up, people would rightly question the credibility of our system and we have always acknowledged that, in a highly performing education system, there will be fluctuations from year to year.
It is also important to highlight the broad range of successes beyond national qualifications. Since 2014, rates of attainment and awards have been increasing, with a 38.1 per cent increase in the number of level 5 awards and a 26.5 per cent increase in the number of level 6 awards. We have also seen a sizeable increase in national progression awards, many of which are taken at school. The reality is that our young people are achieving a breadth of awards, giving them the best chance of success in further learning, life, and work, with over 54,000 skills-based qualifications achieved in 2019, which is more than double the figure attained in 2012.
As the committee is aware, following publication of the 2019 Scottish Qualifications Authority results, I commissioned my officials to work with national partners to conduct further analysis. From that analysis, I have asked partners to carry out further collaborative work to ensure that there is alignment of the curriculum and assessment journey from secondary 1 to secondary 6 and to consider how we can better support professional learning and development.
On the senior phase curriculum, the committee’s report on the senior phase inquiry has provided a range of perspectives, which, alongside other national evidence, has been helpful in informing further work in this area. In order to better understand the issues emerging from that evidence, it is important that we draw on the broadest possible range of evidence and data in a systematic and considered approach. That is why the Government has commissioned an independent review of our senior phase. The purpose of the review is to explore further how curriculum for excellence is being implemented for young people in S4 to S6 across the country and to identify any improvements that might be made. We are mindful of the need for stability in the system after several years of change, and the national qualifications are not the focus of the review. It is appropriate that the leadership of the review comes from outwith the system. That is why we have asked the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development to provide it. The OECD has agreed to lead the review, which will follow on from the very successful review that it conducted of the broad general education within curriculum for excellence in 2015.
It is also important that we have close involvement from the education sector. In line with the empowerment of the teaching profession, education practitioners will work alongside the OECD team. This will be led by a local authority director of education, who has now been confirmed by the Association of Directors of Education in Scotland.
The review will explore many of the themes that emerged throughout the committee inquiry around the senior phase curriculum offer across S4 to S6, the impact of curriculum design decisions at local authority and school level and the impact of approaches to learning and teaching. The review will start in December and I would expect an interim report in June, with a final report in August 2020. We are currently developing the terms of reference for the review and I wrote to the committee on 8 November seeking its views on the broad parameters. We will be working on this with our local and national partners through the curriculum and assessment board, which will meet next week.
In all this work, we need to be mindful of the original aspirations of CFE and of the actual experience of young people learning in our schools. One of the core principles of the CFE is personalisation and choice. That means identifying and planning for opportunities for personal achievement in a range of different contexts. It implies taking an interest in learners as individuals with their own talents and interests. We can, therefore, expect a greater variety of pathways and course choices to emerge for this and for it to look different in different localities as teachers work with partners to meet the personal choices, needs and aspirations of young people. In my view, we need to listen to teachers in schools, who I believe are delivering this and other key principles of CFE successfully.
I look forward to discussing those issues with the committee this morning.