Education and Lifelong Learning
Commission on the Delivery of Rural Education
The commission on the delivery of rural education is expected to report to the Scottish Government and the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities in August 2012.
The cabinet secretary will be aware that Aberdeenshire Council is in the process of consulting widely on the future of its school estate. Does he anticipate that the commission will publish interim findings, which might provide a helpful indication to policy makers, practitioners and parents of its likely final recommendations?
In establishing the commission, the Government and COSLA were conscious that the process was complex. We were also aware that it needed to be done in a reasonable timeframe. I would advise local authorities to bear in mind that the commission will report, and that they should therefore wait for its conclusions. The public meetings that the commission has held have been very successful. Indeed there was a meeting in Lochgilphead on Tuesday with the council, which indicated that parents and others are having a strong say.
Young Unemployed People
I discussed the work experience element of the United Kingdom Government’s youth contract during the Economy, Energy and Tourism Committee meeting on 29 February. I do not think that all unpaid work experience is bad or negative, but I am clear that young people should not be exploited.
Clearly, the details of those schemes originate with the UK Government and not the Scottish Government, but I was a little disturbed at the Economy, Energy and Tourism Committee the other week by the minister’s reluctance to condemn some aspects of the schemes.
I think that Mr Harvie has misunderstood my contribution to the debate last week. Mr Harvie asked me to duplicate or replicate the scheme that the UK has on offer through the work experience programme part of the youth contract, to which I replied that it would be living in la-la land to expect me as a minister in a devolved Government to do so.
It would be helpful if the minister defined what she means by work experience. In particular, at what point does she think that work experience becomes an unpaid job?
Another point that I made very clearly at the Economy, Energy and Tourism Committee meeting last week was that the Government’s position is that employers should not in any circumstances take young people on work experience at the expense of recruiting young people. I could not have been clearer about that. That is one of the reasons why I said at the meeting that it would certainly be in the interests of the United Kingdom Government and young people in Scotland if the UK Government had fruitful dialogue with employers and trade unions to ensure that there is no displacement in the labour market.
Green Energy and Climate Change Studies
The policy of successive Administrations has been that universities and colleges should be free to take their own decisions about the curriculum that they offer. Where they do so under the terms of grant in aid from the Scottish Further and Higher Education Funding Council, it of course makes clear its expectations on the quality and efficiency of provision. I have therefore asked the chief executive of the funding council to write to the member with further, full information.
I am sure that the cabinet secretary will be glad to note that North Highland College of the University of the Highlands and Islands has an engineering, technology and energy centre and an environmental research institute to train students from apprenticeship to PhD level in green energy and climate change studies. Should we have a national plan to ensure that enough engineers are trained in those relevant skills?
One of the great benefits of the college reform programme lies in ensuring that there is a closer focus on the outcomes from colleges. As the member said, there should be a regional and national understanding of what is required and how that will equip young people and others for work. The nature of the question illustrates the need for college reform, and college reform will provide the answer to the question.
Given the Scottish Government’s admirable commitment to creating 60,000 green jobs by 2020, what assessment have the cabinet secretary and the Scottish Government made of the skills gap that currently exists in green industries and technologies? What steps does the cabinet secretary propose to take to ensure that current and future Scottish students are equipped to take on the green jobs of the future?
A skills investment plan was published last year. If the member does not have it, I will be happy to ensure that it is provided to her. There are very good examples of how that plan is coming to fruition. I was in Carnegie College just this week. Its activity in that area is an excellent example of how colleges are playing a key role in supporting Scotland’s emerging economies.
Question 4 has not been lodged by Richard Baker.
National Exams
East Renfrewshire Council has indicated that its seven secondary schools wish to delay the introduction of the new national qualifications. No other local authority has advised us of any school that has requested a delay in the introduction of the new national qualifications.
Does the cabinet secretary accept that his aggressive attitude towards those who offer concerns about the curriculum for excellence is reducing the current debate to a negative argument that is alienating many teachers, whom we rely on to improve the life chances of our young people? Does he accept that his decision to allow East Renfrewshire education department to take an alternative path complicates matters, given the views that many have expressed, including the general secretary of the Scottish Secondary Teachers Association, who wants the examinations to be delayed to allow the much-needed curriculum for excellence to commence in an effective and meaningful manner?
The answer to both questions is no. I say gently to the member that if he had been present at this morning’s debate—if he had listened to that debate or participated in it—he would have heard much discussion of the matter, much discussion of the fact that there is a tailored programme of support and that progress is being made, and much discussion of the fact that the damage that is being done to curriculum for excellence comes from his party, from his front bench and, perhaps, from the type of question that he has asked.
Apprenticeship Schemes
In Scotland, all apprentices must be employed, which means that apprenticeship opportunities are directly linked to employers and to the labour market.
Following representations from employers in East Kilbride, can the minister assure me that, in the interests of potential apprentices and employers, the views and experiences of companies that employ apprentices will be taken into account in the operation of the Government’s apprenticeship schemes?
As part of the process to approve frameworks for apprenticeships, the modern apprenticeship group is working to ensure that the sector skills councils improve the number and range of employers that they consult as part of the apprenticeship framework development process. My view is that it is vital that the apprenticeship frameworks are relevant to employers, regardless of their size. That priority can be reaffirmed to the modern apprenticeship group.
Supply Teachers
The Scottish negotiating committee for teachers is monitoring the impact of the changes to the terms and conditions of short-term supply teachers. We will play our part in the tripartite discussions and the tripartite group will take action if there is concrete evidence that a real problem is emerging.
Is the cabinet secretary aware that in Edinburgh there have been 1,494 requests for short-term cover in the current academic year, of which 10.6 per cent have not been filled, and 200 requests for long-term supply cover, of which 24.5 per cent have not been filled?
The member must recognise that the terms and conditions for short-term supply cover were agreed by the SNCT, which is a tripartite arrangement, so they were agreed by the trade union side, the Government and local authorities. It would require the agreement of all three to examine the arrangements and see whether they need to be altered.
Will the cabinet secretary confirm whether the tripartite group is discussing the inflexibility of hours, as a result of which some supply teachers can be kept in school beyond the time period when they might well be able to get another job?
There should be no such inflexibility. If the member wants to indicate to me instances when that guidance has not been observed, I will look at them very seriously but I have to say that we have ensured that there is clear guidance on this issue.
The cabinet secretary uses the word “if”; however, problems are emerging just now. In my local authority, West Lothian Council, the failure rate for short-term supply has peaked at an astonishing 94 per cent. What help can the cabinet secretary give the local authority to ensure that the pupils in our schools have supply cover?
I am always concerned if problems emerge. If the local authority has been to the Scottish Government and the union—and of course as a local authority employer it is part of the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities arrangement—and has tabled the issue for discussion and consideration, it will be considered. However, I say to Mr Findlay that publishing a response to an FOI request containing inconsistencies and inaccuracies is not helping the matter at all.
Curriculum for Excellence (Careers in Business)
The importance of developing enterprise skills and entrepreneurial behaviour is recognised in curriculum for excellence as beginning at an early age, through primary school and into secondary school and further and higher education establishments. Indeed, curriculum for excellence is delivering that with the incorporation of determined to succeed, our strategy for enterprise in education.
It has become evident in the Midlothian part of my constituency that schools are reducing the teaching of business-related subjects. That must affect employability and, ultimately, our economic competitiveness. Will the cabinet secretary consider whether it would be appropriate to introduce guidelines to preserve important core subjects?
Business education and economic issues were considered by an excellence group. Indeed, I hope that every local authority is considering the reports of those excellence groups, which have been very productive.
Colleges (Boards of Management)
That opinion is expressed in EIS’s official response to the Griggs review of further education governance, and I have read it with interest. In that context, it is one of many views that I am considering closely alongside Professor Griggs’s proposals. I will not form a final position on any issue until that process of careful consideration is complete; in fact, I have taken forward the process this week in further conversations with colleges and others.
The Griggs review, to which, as the cabinet secretary has acknowledged, the EIS made that assertion, suggests that the new FE regional boards should not exceed 12 members and should contain within that number a member of staff and the elected president of the student association. Does the cabinet secretary agree that, where there is collaboration between two colleges in a region, each college should have a staff and student representative on the board to ensure that differing interests of staff and students in individual colleges are properly protected and their voices heard?
I am considering the composition of regional boards and will certainly take that point seriously. There is a correspondence between the von Prondzynski and Griggs reviews with regard to the participation of students and staff. I very strongly support that in both cases and will ensure that whatever the composition of regional boards—and, indeed, whatever the composition of university courts—there is an adherence to those principles, which I think have been agreed across the board. I hope that, as we take forward these reforms, everyone in the chamber will support that element of accountability, which I think is essential.
In a region where two colleges have not merged but there is nevertheless to be a regional board, what will the effect be on the activities and responsibilities of the college boards that presumably will remain?
That is a key element of discussion with the colleges and with others. I think that it is fair to say that the overall view, to which I adhere, is that the regional boards will have a financial role, as the fundable bodies, and a governance role. We do not want to duplicate provision in such circumstances, so the role of college boards will be one of delivery.
National Exams
The Association of Directors of Education is a member of the curriculum for excellence management board and the newly formed curriculum for excellence implementation group. It has been fully involved in the implementation and delivery of curriculum for excellence, including the new qualifications. Through various networks and support events, there are regular meetings at all levels between local authorities, ministers, Scottish Government officials, Education Scotland and the Scottish Qualifications Authority.
Does the cabinet secretary accept that, with the delay in East Renfrewshire, we have throughout Scotland an inconsistent approach to implementation? Would not he be better to give priority to the serious concerns that have been expressed by teaching professionals, pupils and parents, and to build a consistent and consensual approach by listening to those voices instead of the voices of the civil servants in St Andrew’s House?
I can only say to Mr Kelly what I said earlier—although if he had been part of the discussion this morning and had learnt from the debate he would not have asked that question. [Laughter.]
It is because Mr Kelly was there.
As I said, if Mr Kelly had listened he would not have asked the question. He was clearly present corporeally, but perhaps in no other way, because he does not seem to have absorbed anything of this morning’s discussion. The debate indicated absolutely clearly what the situation is, and it demonstrated the work that is being done with the Educational Institute of Scotland and others to take forward the issues.
I was present at this morning’s debate corporeally and in every other sense. May I therefore remind the cabinet secretary that I remain opposed to wholesale delay in implementation of the new exams? I have acknowledged the additional support and the audit preparedness that he announced at the Education and Culture Committee’s meeting on Tuesday. Nevertheless, the cabinet secretary himself has acknowledged that many teachers remain concerned about the implications of pressing ahead this year, and that schools, in conjunction with parents, local authorities and Education Scotland, must decide whether to proceed. In that context, is he prepared to discuss with local authorities the timeframe within which the decisions will be taken, on a school-by-school basis?
Yes. That discussion takes place regularly; it has formed part of the discussions that I have had with the Educational Institute of Scotland and others.
Curriculum for Excellence (Support for Schools)
The directors of education in those areas have confirmed that their schools are on track to deliver the new qualifications. We have not received any requests for additional help from those areas, but Education Scotland stands ready to help any school that asks for or is identified as needing it.
I thank the cabinet secretary for the constant reassurance, but can he indicate a little more clearly the sort of support he envisages? I know that he has done something of that already, but he could do a little more.
I am glad that reports of the debate were taken hotfoot to Richard Simpson to inform his question. I commend that approach to other Labour members.
Scottish Studies
Minister, you have been waiting patiently.
We welcome and are taking forward the conclusions and recommendations of the Scottish studies working group, which were published on 1 March. The group recommended that learning about Scotland be embedded across the curriculum to promote coherence and progression and to ensure that such learning is not marginalised. The Scottish Qualifications Authority is investigating options for an award in Scottish studies and additional guidance, resources and support will be launched later this month to strengthen the place of learning about Scotland.
Does the minister agree that, to understand our nation’s place in the world, and our own, it is important that we understand our own history—good and bad?
I strongly agree with that, and I hope that everyone agrees—although I sometimes wonder from the initial debate that we had about Scottish studies—that the best way of engaging young people’s minds to understand about the wider world is to engage them in the history, culture and activities of their communities and country.
Question number 13, from Bill Walker, has been withdrawn.
Knowledge Transfer/Exchange Strategy
The pre-legislative paper “Putting Learners at the Centre—Delivering our Ambitions for Post-16 Education” sets out the strategy for maximising the contribution of university research to increasing sustainable economic growth. A range of proposals will contribute to achieving that, including a single knowledge exchange office for Scotland, new innovation centres in our key sectors, and improved support for knowledge exchange. Good progress has been made on all those proposals. In particular, I welcome the establishment of a new working group that includes university and business interests to explore what a single knowledge exchange office might look like.
A key element of the strategy is the value and impact of enterprise and innovation as an output from academic research. In Stanford University in California, the research and academic community accepts that there will be pursuit of equity investment in successful research products and services. A support and mentoring structure secures the foundation of the go-to-market philosophy. Will the cabinet secretary ensure that research bodies, particularly in universities, understand and embrace a similar approach and thereby guarantee future income streams for their research facilities?
There are already good practices in Scotland in a range of universities, including the University of Dundee and the University of Edinburgh. I want to ensure that the experience and knowledge that exist are rolled out across the sector and to universities that have perhaps done less of such work. Many Scottish universities have learned from experiences overseas and applied that to their situations. Chic Brodie’s point is well made. The work that is being done to ensure a unified Scottish approach is important and I am certain that it will continue to bear fruit.
Early Childhood Education and Care
The Scottish Government recognises that all parents should have the choice of a range of high-quality and flexible early learning and childcare provision that meets their needs and those of their children. That is why we are committed to expanding the range, capacity and flexibility of early learning and childcare provision. We are scoping the steps that we need to take to make early learning and childcare accessible and affordable for all.
We agree that implementing the early years framework is important. There is no statutory Scottish Government funding for childcare for children under the age of three, although local authorities provide discretionary free or subsidised services that help to provide equitable access for low-paid families. Those non-statutory services are most at risk from budget cuts. Will the minister commit to working with local authorities to ensure that low-paid families will still be able to access childcare for children under three?
I thank Alison Johnstone for raising that point. We will, of course, work with anyone who wants accessible, affordable and flexible high-quality childcare everywhere in Scotland. I would welcome any thoughts that the member has on the issue, and I extend to her an invitation to meet to discuss the matter further.
In relation to the kind of childcare services that Alison Johnstone described, will the minister follow the example of her predecessor, Angela Constance, and beat a path to North Edinburgh Childcare in my constituency, which is the finest childcare centre in Scotland, not only because of the quality of services, but because it has always had an understanding that childcare is an essential part of regeneration and anti-poverty strategies as well as more general early years policies?
I welcome Malcolm Chisholm’s input to the debate and to the early years task force. Of course I would be delighted to meet him and visit that childcare centre. I know that my predecessor thoroughly enjoyed her two visits there.
Children with Autism (Communication with Parents)
The Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004, as amended, requires education authorities to provide children and young people with the support that they need to overcome any barrier that they might face to accessing learning. The act also provides parents or carers with the right to be involved in decision making in relation to any additional support for their child. The Scottish Government funds organisations such as Enquire and the Govan Law Centre and funds the take note advocacy service to support parents who exercise their rights under the act. The accompanying code of practice outlines what education authorities can do to encourage good communication with parents.
I thank the minister for that answer and for his response to my query regarding a constituent of mine who has an autism-related problem. How does the minister monitor the effect of all the policies and support that he has put in place for children with special needs? Is he satisfied that the policies are truly delivering for children at Inverkeithing primary school, where there are particular problems and where the parents, despite having made formal complaints to the education authority and to the minister himself, have still not received responses?
I cannot comment on a situation in a particular school, and some of the issues are for local authorities to address. I remain happy to correspond with Helen Eadie about any specific concerns that she may have.
Student Loans (Diploma in Professional Legal Practice Students)
We have held no discussions with law students regarding the removal of student loan support for those studying for the diploma in legal practice, because that is not being proposed.
I thank the cabinet secretary for his answer. The diploma is compulsory for anybody who wants to practise law in Scotland, so there is great concern among law students throughout Scotland. Given what the cabinet secretary has just said, will he agree to meet representatives of the University of Edinburgh law students council to discuss matters in more detail?
I would be happy to provide information to them in the first instance because—as I have made clear—the basis on which Gavin Brown’s question was asked is untrue. We are not removing student loan support for those who study for the diploma in legal practice—that is not being proposed. In such circumstances, a meeting based on a false premise would not be sensible. However, if there is a reason for a meeting, I would be happy to ensure that my officials speak to those involved and, if it would be useful thereafter, of course I will meet them. Let us deal with facts, rather than things that are simply not true.
University of the Highlands and Islands
This Government provides a wide range of support to the University of the Highlands and Islands.
Is the cabinet secretary aware that last night UHI held a discussion entitled “Beyond Creativity”? It was designed to give students an insight into the work of the Highlands and Islands’ music industry’s entrepreneurs, including Steve Robertson and Joe Gibbs, who is the founder of the Belladrum Tartan Heart festival. Does the cabinet minister agree that UHI is to be commended for recognising the economic importance of the live music sector in the Highlands and Islands?
I do. Only this week I visited Perth College, where I saw the tremendous work that is being done not just in music courses, but in sound engineering courses and even in the music business course. Moreover, Perth College will begin shortly to take on the applied music course that used to be provided by the University of Strathclyde. That is a very good example of how a sensible map of provision shows that, if something stops happening, it might be good for it to happen elsewhere.
Historic Events (Education)
There are a number of significant anniversaries of historic events during 2013 and 2014. The Scottish Government, its agencies and partners will promote learning opportunities around those that enable a broad understanding of Scotland and of our place in the world.
I am pleased that the minister is aware of the significance of the battle of Flodden to the Borders and to my constituents. Significant plans are already under way to mark its 500th anniversary. Does the Scottish Government have any specific plans to promote that event in schools in the Borders and throughout Scotland?
As I said, the anniversary of the battle of Flodden is among the events that are in the Government’s mind. It is commemorated every year in Selkirk, at the common riding, and I am sure that significant events will be planned there and elsewhere, which the Government will be happy to be involved in.
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