Dear All
The Curriculum for Excellence sounds like a good idea in principle but for order for it to work in practice; everyone must know what they are talking about, especially the teachers who teach it.
That is generally accepted as a given.
I have blogged on this issue before because it is important for schools and children to get off on the right foot.
The SNP Government wants this to start this year despite warning from teachers.
Analysis coming back suggests the best possible move is postponement until the bugs are worked out.
Now, more fresh evidence emerges today to suggest many of Scotland’s schools are ill-prepared for the introduction of the controversial new curriculum.
An evaluation by HM Inspectorate of Education (HMIE) is stating 25% of schools have only just begun to consider implementing the reforms.
It is time the SNP Ministers in government wised up.
Stop it now, shelf it and reintroduce it when everyone is up to speed.
A survey of Scottish Secondary Teachers’ Association (SSTA) members which was published last week makes pretty bad reading, 89% said they needed more subject resources and 84% said the level of training was inadequate.
Ann Ballinger, general secretary of the SSTA, said;
“The hugely worrying issue raised by this document is the number of schools who haven’t even begun to introduce the new curriculum. As early as March, SNP Education Minister Mike Russell said he thought Scotland was ready to deliver the new curriculum, but this paper suggests the opposite is true.”
Larry Flanagan, education convener of the EIS states;
“We are clear that our call for a delay to the qualifications timetable enjoys massive support in secondary schools and we will continue to press that case.”
The big three always come into play at election time, health, education and jobs.
In 2011 there will be a Holyrood election; does the SNP Government really want to take such a stupid risk?
Yours sincerely
George Laird
The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University
The Curriculum for Excellence sounds like a good idea in principle but for order for it to work in practice; everyone must know what they are talking about, especially the teachers who teach it.
That is generally accepted as a given.
I have blogged on this issue before because it is important for schools and children to get off on the right foot.
The SNP Government wants this to start this year despite warning from teachers.
Analysis coming back suggests the best possible move is postponement until the bugs are worked out.
Now, more fresh evidence emerges today to suggest many of Scotland’s schools are ill-prepared for the introduction of the controversial new curriculum.
An evaluation by HM Inspectorate of Education (HMIE) is stating 25% of schools have only just begun to consider implementing the reforms.
It is time the SNP Ministers in government wised up.
Stop it now, shelf it and reintroduce it when everyone is up to speed.
A survey of Scottish Secondary Teachers’ Association (SSTA) members which was published last week makes pretty bad reading, 89% said they needed more subject resources and 84% said the level of training was inadequate.
Ann Ballinger, general secretary of the SSTA, said;
“The hugely worrying issue raised by this document is the number of schools who haven’t even begun to introduce the new curriculum. As early as March, SNP Education Minister Mike Russell said he thought Scotland was ready to deliver the new curriculum, but this paper suggests the opposite is true.”
Larry Flanagan, education convener of the EIS states;
“We are clear that our call for a delay to the qualifications timetable enjoys massive support in secondary schools and we will continue to press that case.”
The big three always come into play at election time, health, education and jobs.
In 2011 there will be a Holyrood election; does the SNP Government really want to take such a stupid risk?
Yours sincerely
George Laird
The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University
2 comments:
There are several problems...
The ridiculous amount of confusing and badly written documents on the CfE site make it extremely difficult for anyone to know what is going on.
I would urge all teachers to read this paper and think very carefully about what it means for their professional status:
http://www.knowandpol.eu/fileadmin/KaP/content/Scientific_reports/Orientation2/O2.PA1.Scotland_educ.FV.English_version.pdf
Much of the "debate" regarding CfE has been along traditional v progressive lines. This is another distraction.
CfE only makes sense looked at within this broader context of Integrated Children's/Citizens' Services.
These articles are well worth reading:
The hidden politics of the Curriculum for Excellence
http://www.heraldscotland.com/comment/guest-commentary/the-hidden-politics-of-the-curriculum-for-excellence-1.920583
The curriculum of confidence tricks
http://www.tes.co.uk/article.aspx?storycode=2466457
Emotions and personality not measurable
http://www.tes.co.uk/article.aspx?storycode=6027077
And on a lighter note :)
Collapse of a decent education is deafening
http://www.tes.co.uk/article.aspx?storycode=6029218
The consequences of changing to an outcome based system have hardly been discussed at all afaics.
http://www.answers.com/topic/outcome-based-education
To vastly over simplify, what may be a sensible and useful educational model in many cases(eg a first aid certificate) is unbelievably dangerous when it means state set outcomes for every area of a person's life.
For a quick example here are the CfE's health and wellbeing experiences and outcomes:
http://www.ltscotland.org.uk/curriculumforexcellence/healthandwellbeing/outcomes/alloutcomes.asp
CfE is as an integral part of Getting it right for every child (Girfec) AKA Gathering Information For Every Citizen - these forms should give you a flavour:
http://www.forhighlandschildren.org/htm/girfec/gir-publications/phnr-separate-forms&guidance-aug09/phnr-contents-list.pdf
This is only the start of what is to be gathered and recorded for every citizen.
This is then stored within the eCare Framework,the purpose of which is to enable information about citizens to be shared across agency boundaries - a single view of every citizen:
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/Doc/924/0009673.pdf
Frame 17 really puts us in our place.
Dear Sheila
These are the things politicians have to know.
Thank you for your posting.
Yours sincerely
George Laird
The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University
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