Chamber and committees

All applications received for the current 2023-24 Dyslexia and Inclusive Practice GTCS Professional Recognition Programme that met the required entry criteria, were given a place. The number of places on the current programme were increased to meet demand.

Decline in applications for teaching bursaries can be for many reasons, including a fall in the overall number of applications for the PGDE courses in bursary eligible subjects.

We are engaging with a range of stakeholders including local authority employers, university providers and the teaching unions to work collectively to raise the profile of teaching as a highly rewarding career.

As you will be aware, the scheme was extended in 2023 to include Gaelic as a secondary subject, and Gaelic medium across all secondary subjects and in primary.

I have greatly valued discussions with the OECD to date and my next meeting with the OECD is scheduled for Wednesday 21 February.

The Scottish Government is unaware of any such claims.

In school inspections, HM Inspectors evaluate and report on the quality of education being provided. HM Inspectors use quality indicators from 'How good is our school? (4th edition).' This framework focuses on evaluating the quality of education provision for learners which is a key responsibility of HM Inspectors. There are currently no plans for HM Chief Inspector to issue additional guidance in relation to staff health and wellbeing.

The health and wellbeing of staff is primarily the responsibility of the employer. For most schools in Scotland this means local authorities are responsible for ensuring arrangements are in place to support staff health and wellbeing.

In carrying out inspections, HM Inspectors are mindful that inspection can be an unfamiliar experience for school staff. HM Inspectors work together with the school to minimise disruption and unnecessary bureaucracy. HM Inspectors provide a headteacher's briefing note to schools being inspected to ensure they know what to expect, and what papers or examples of work the inspection team will want to see. They aim to carry out inspections in a way that seeks to minimise burden on staff and keep paperwork required to a minimum. Inspectors are happy to observe what teachers would be doing on an ordinary day without any special changes for an inspection.

HM Inspectors take care to ensure that they operate in line with best practice principles, known as the PRAISE framework. This framework outlines expectations regarding conduct and behaviour of HM Inspectors when engaging with staff in a school or setting.

As announced in the statement to the Scottish Parliament on 12 December 2023, the Council of Deans agreed to reconvene their Initial Teacher Education (ITE) National Maths Group.

The first meeting of the reconvened group took place on 29 January 2024 and we understand that the Council of Deans will be communicating with members in due course about the timings and focus for future meetings.

The ITE Maths group will meet up to four times per year. An Education Scotland representative will be invited to each meeting. Contact details for the Council of Deans are available at: https://www.scde.ac.uk/contact-us/ .

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-23510 on 19 December 2023. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers .

We have announced £900,000 for local councils to aid training of support staff who are responding to the new challenges in our schools, post-Covid. This announcement was made in direct response to the findings of the Behaviour in Scottish Schools Research, which indicated that it is school support staff who have the most challenging experiences in dealing with negative behaviours, and that support staff themselves would welcome more training to support them in their roles.

Allocation and use of the funding was agreed at the meeting of COSLA leaders on 26 January 2024. Each local authority will receive a minimum of £10,000 of funding, with the remaining funding distributed on the basis of pupil numbers. A letter was issued to local authorities on 7 February 2024 advising them of their funding allocation. Local authorities will decide how best to use their allocated funding to help the support staff in their area.

As announced in the statement to the Scottish Parliament on 12 December 2023, the review of the maths curriculum framework will begin this year (2024), with a revised maths curriculum to be tested with teachers before the end of the year.

The national action plan will be developed in collaboration with the Scottish Advisory Group on Relationships and Behaviour in Schools (SAGRABIS), which met to discuss the draft action plan on 12 December 2023 and 31 January 2024. It is expected that the action plan will be published in spring 2024.