Education, education, education

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

From accusations of misleading parliament to a cabinet reshuffle and further charges of manifesto U-turns, the last few months have dealt the Scottish Government a tough educational lesson.

Before parliament broke up for Christmas recess, former Culture Minister, and new Education Secretary Mike Russell made a statement on education. It followed the departure of his predecessor Fiona Hyslop who was demoted to Russell's former role after a barrage of opposition attacks on issues such as falling teacher numbers, class sizes and school buildings.

Russell spoke of "tremendous progress" on the Nationalists' manifesto commitments and added that where problems exist "we will work with imagination and dedication to solve them. We will work in partnership with parents and teachers to solve them".

The call was in contrast to the veiled threat Hyslop had previously spoken to when figures revealed a 1,348 drop in teacher numbers. She claimed that if councils could not deliver the national policy the Scottish government would examine "alternatives" to the current system of local government delivery of education. Hyslop blasted councils for spending more than £110m in their local government budgets that she said was meant for salaries. She also had a dig at the Labour-run Glasgow City Council which was responsible for more than one quarter of the total fall in teacher numbers.

The council hit back at Hyslop for "using Glasgow's children as a political football" and COSLA stated that the policy on teacher numbers was unrealistic and "economic suicide" due to falling school rolls, rising salaries, and record demands on children's services.

Opposition MSPs mounted pressure on First Minister Alex Salmond to sack Hyslop. Then days before the Liberal Democrats were due to lodge a motion of 'no confidence' against Hyslop, Salmond appeared to buckle as – a cabinet reshuffle later – Russell took over as head of education.

No sooner had Russell taken the reins that he was greeted by accusations of policy U-turns. It came in the wake of an announcement that the Scottish government had agreed a new "framework" on education with COSLA. It would allow councils the flexibility to drop the policy of free school meals for every child – concentrating on disadvantaged youngsters – in return for a reduction in class sizes for P1 to P3 by August 2010.

Work to expand pre-school hours is expected to continue, however different means of approaching this target have been suggested, including the 'Free at 3' campaign. Russell added that ongoing discussions will take place for post-May 2010 without the need for further regulation.

He blamed a £800m cut by Westminster on the Scottish budget for the abandoning or tweaking of the SNP's education policy.

Russell said: "The strength of the Concordat lies in enshrining a realistic, flexible and sustainable approach to the important issues that face local and national government. The Scottish Government – in partnership with COSLA – is firmly committed to the reduction in P1 to P3 class sizes. I firmly believe that delivering smaller class sizes in P1 to P3 is a necessary step towards improved attainment.

"Evidence and common sense tell us that more quality time with teachers pays dividends, particularly for the most vulnerable children. We are determined that the strength of our relationship will be demonstrated by the way in which we take forward this issue.

"Of course, much progress has already been made, including on class sizes. Whether it is the improved support for kinship carers, the extension of free school meals or the expansion of nursery places, there can be no doubt that real change for the better has been delivered."

Now the First Minister has become embroiled in his own education row. He stands accused by opposition members of misleading parliament. It referred to an incident in parliament in autumn 2007 when Salmond stated that a pledge to cut class sizes to 18 in early primary would be met.

The latest figures revealed the average primary class size was 23.1 pupils, down from 23.2 in 2008, however the number of P1-P3 pupils in class sizes of 18 or less remained unchanged (13.2 per cent).

It has now emerged that Salmond's statement in parliament was two months after a civil servant warned it could not be done in the term of the parliament. In response, Salmond has referred the issue, himself, to a scrutiny panel.