Scottish Government missing opportunity for real exams reform say Greens
The Scottish Government is missing an opportunity to move on from a Victorian-era exam system, says Scottish Greens education spokesperson Ross Greer.
Mr Greer’s comments came as the Scottish Government published its response to the Independent Review of Qualifications and Assessment (IRQA), led by Professor Louise Hayward. The Scottish Greens secured this review in the aftermath of the 2020 SQA grading scandal.
Mr Greer has called for the recommendations of the Review to be implemented in full, but the SNP has opted to only accept some of its recommendations, reject others and kick many of the most important ‘into the long grass’.
Scottish Greens education spokesperson Ross Greer MSP said:
“The Scottish Greens have long argued for more use of continuous assessment, rather than the high-stakes end-of-term exam system we’ve had since the Victorian era. I’m glad that, four years on from our party securing this review, continuous assessments will now come into regular use in Scotland’s schools.
“The problem with today’s announcement is that little else will change. These assessments will be added to an already creaking system, rather than replace some exams as we had proposed. That leaves me seriously concerned about teacher workload.
“My fear is that today will go down as a missed opportunity. We could have taken our exams system out of the Victorian era by embracing Professor Hayward’s bold proposals in full. I can’t help but feel that five or ten years from now, we will be back here, regretting that the Hayward reforms weren’t embraced at the time.
“An education system which continues punishing students suffering from illness or chaotic home situations around the time of their exams is not fit for the 21st century. Students have long called out for a fair chance to demonstrate all of their knowledge and abilities, and the proposed Scottish Diploma would have been a wonderful way to do this. It's disappointing to see that, like many other recommendations, be kicked well into the long grass.
“Had the Scottish Government been bolder today, it would have had the support of the Scottish Greens, teachers’ unions and young people across Scotland. They have made a different choice, but the Scottish Greens will continue to make the case for full implementation of Professor Hayward’s recommendations."