News
under £1m from backers in Eng- confirms the urgent need to act” improve maths and science perfor-
NEWS IN BRIEF
land to finance the first produc- and announced a summit on the mance.
bly Government has announced.
tion run and fulfill initial orders findings for early next year. But for “The reality is that these tests
Local government minister Brian
for 100,000 units. The company Docherty, the Cabinet Secretary’s are administered in a relatively
Gibbons said the £3.9bn package
expects to sell one million in the response has been disproportion- small number of schools to a rela-
represented a “realistic increase” and
first year. The handset was designed ate and unhelpful. tively small number of students. councils setting unreasonable council
by a company in Leith and is being “The Cabinet Secretary seems This can only be a snapshot of
tax increases could expect to be
manufactured in Livingston. to believe there is some sort of cri- what individual students achieve
capped. “I will monitor the position
sis here and she is the only person on an individual day, especially as
carefully and I am prepared take ap-
propriate action to keep council tax
Full story, page 58 in Scottish education that believes students taking part are aware that
increases to reasonable levels if it is
that. When these figures were this test has no bearing on their
necessary to do so,” he said.
Teachers urge
released there was not one iota SQA performance.
But councils condemned the
of panic in any science or maths “We at SSTA are exceptionally settlement as predictable and inad-
caution on maths
department in secondary schools concerned that the Cabinet Secre-
equate. “The minister consulted local
in Scotland. tary has taken it upon herself that
government on their views of the
and science survey
“The Cabinet Secretary’s reac- because there is a marginal disap-
provisional local government settle-
ment but he has not listened to any
tion was, quite frankly, amazing. pointment in a less than satisfac-
of the representations that have been
By Cera murtagh She needs a degree of reality about tory survey that this means that
made,” said Welsh Local Government
An international survey which what this survey proves,” he says. Curriculum for Excellence is all the
Association leader John Davies.
found Scottish pupils to be lagging Brian Cooklin, Headteacher more necessary. This shows a total
behind those in England and other of Stonelaw High School and lack of judgment. She is making a
gOvERNmENT ChASTISED OvER
countries in maths and science, former President of School Lead- political leap that is totally unwar-
WmC
should be received with caution, ers Scotland also warns against ranted… The Cabinet Secretary
Ministers should consider handing re-
sponsibility for the Wales Millennium
teachers’ bodies have warned. drawing direct comparisons with should be aware that her party has
Centre to the Arts Council for Wales,
The Trends in International countries with very different edu- in the past really criticised league
Assembly Members have said.
Mathematics and Science Study cational systems: “It’s a bit facile tables and it is somewhat disap-
The Audit Committee found that
(Timss) ranked Scotland’s primary and cheesy to treat this as some- pointing that she now departs from the venue’s funding bodies had been
pupils 22nd for maths and 23rd for thing very significant in terms of that to make a political point,” he
insufficiently alert to the risks during
science and its secondary pupils Scottish education… If you look at argues.
the operational phase, and that the
17th for maths and 15th for science some of the countries at the top of Ken Cunningham, General
Assembly Government’s monitoring
of the centre after it opened had
in a league table of 60 countries. the rankings, for example, Singa- Secretary of School Leaders Scot-
been “wholly inadequate”.
But according to some stakehold- pore, having spoken to teachers in land, however, believes Curriculum
“It was only when the Wales Mil-
ers, the survey does not give signifi- Singapore, I know that they have a for Excellence will improve how
lennium Centre reached a financial
cant cause for concern or signal a very different system which is heav- maths and science are taught in crisis in October 2006 that the Assem-
crisis in these subjects. ily based on rote learning. So the schools and improve pupil perfor-
bly Government began to develop
Jim Docherty, Depute General students’ knowledge may be broad mance: “We are always naturally
a sufficient grip of the [centre’s]
Secretary of Scottish Secondary but it doesn’t necessarily mean that suspicious of any international
financial position,” said committee
chair David Melding AM. “It is impor-
Teachers’ Association has criticised they can apply it.” comparators because of the way
tant that arrangements are now put
Education Secretary Fiona Hys- Docherty likewise questions the that they’re arrived at. So while
in place to ensure that this situation
lop’s reaction to the statistics. In validity of the international survey the survey is helpful, in the gen-
doesn’t arise again.”
the wake of the publication, Hys- and criticised the Cabinet Secre- eral sense of raising awareness
lop said the league table “highlights tary’s claims that the implementa- of the issue, the figures must be
CASh TO BAIL OuT STRuggLINg
unacceptable failings in maths and tion of Curriculum for Excellence, approached with a degree of cau-
hOmEOWNERS
science in Scotland’s schools and the new schools curriculum, will tion… These results are not a huge
Homeowners at risk of repossession
have been thrown a lifeline with the
expansion of the Assembly Govern-
hACkWATCh
hBOS
ment’s mortgage rescue scheme.
An extra £4.5m has been
If the letter from the government on public interest grounds. It attempt to intimidate a legitimate
pumped into the scheme in response
solicitor to the Scots businessmen challenges the ruling by Business appeal and secure its withdrawal.
to the deepening economic crisis,
mounting a legal challenge Secretary Lord Mandelson, Mandelson may have
taking the total to £9.5m. Grants
to the HBOS takeover was barely a few weeks into the job, misread the legal position as
made under the fund can be used by
meant to scare them off, it has to waive Office of Fair Trading the hearing is being conducted
housing associations to buy a share
backfired. Not only has it stiffened concerns about a substantial under Scots law, where there is
of the mortgage or buy properties
their resolve but it will add to threat to competition in banking precedent for applicants not to be
outright and then rent them back to
mounting public concern over in Scotland that would result from liable for costs in public interest
the former owner.
the government’s handling of this takeover. legal challenges. Government
this affair and its evident desire to The letter, which offered to spokesmen say such intimidation
pLAuDITS FOR LEADINg
crush opposition to its preferred waive legal costs if those who is “routine”. Quite the contrary, it
pOLITICIANS
“solution”. had lodged the appeal halted smacks of a government on the
Assembly presiding officer Dafydd
The appeal which the their action immediately, went on run.
Elis-Thomas has been named Welsh
government seems anxious to to warn that Mandelson would
politician of the year.
discourage is being made to the pursue costs from each of the Leader,
Elis-Thomas, former president of
Competition Appeals Tribunal six businessmen. It is a blatant The Scotsman
Plaid Cymru, picked up the honour for
his role in transforming the Assembly
|
www.holyrood.com | Holyrood magazine | 15 December 2008 |
11
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80