Scots schools accused of letting down children from poor families

SCOTLAND'S schools are failing children from deprived backgrounds, according to an international study that calls for a radical shake-up of the education system.

The report, from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), concludes that schools in Scotland are not strong enough to counter the negative effect of low social status on educational attainment.

It says other countries are far better at ensuring that children from disadvantaged backgrounds reach their potential.

The study - commissioned by former Labour education minister Peter Peacock before this year's election - calls for the testing of more pupils and the abolition of Standard Grades.

It also proposes a new, wide-ranging leavers' certificate - a "graduation" certificate for young people in schools, colleges or employment to mark the completion of an approved programme of studies or training.

Ministers said they would consider the report carefully but declined to say whether they would take its proposals on board until its formal launch today.

The study says: "Who you are in Scotland is far more important than what school you attend, and at present Scottish schools are not strong enough to ensure who you are does not count."

Although the report, "Quality and Equity of Schooling in Scotland", has positive aspects, it expresses concerns about the large number of pupils who do badly at school and end up doing little or nothing when they leave - the so-called NEETs (not in employment, education or training).

It argues all children should be tested, so there is reliable evidence of what progress they and their schools are making.

It blames Scottish secondary schools for being too academic and says that, to enable social mobility, children should be able to learn a trade or skill at school, as this would be more socially inclusive than sending pupils to learn such skills at further education colleges.

Rhona Brankin, Labour's education spokeswoman, urged the Scottish Government to accept the report's suggestions and to resolve the NEET problem through vocational training.

She called on the Scottish Government to set targets for the number of modern apprenticeships and training places available to young people.

She went on: "The report recognises the problem of pupils leaving school with no positive direction. This is a serious issue not only for Scotland's young people, but also the Scottish economy."

Murdo Fraser, the Conservatives' education spokesman, said the OECD's conclusions should not be dismissed.

He said: "It is important that the new administration admits that Scottish schools are not all that they might be, and that the SNP is outward-looking and ambitious in its stewardship of them.

"The OECD is a substantial, independent research body, which is well placed to identify effective practice from around the world and the areas where Scotland lags behind."

He was supportive of greater vocational training in schools to boost social mobility.

He said: "Provision of vocational training offers tremendous potential to engage those who are not interested in the current, predominantly academic, curriculum.

"It will open up rewarding careers in the skilled trades to many who would otherwise leave school without any real prospects, and it will help close down the skills gap that is holding Scottish business back."

Fiona Hyslop, the education secretary, declined to comment until the report is officially published, but a Scottish Government spokeswoman said: "This is one of three reports which give an international comparison with education in Scotland.

"Ministers will, of course, consider it carefully and look forward to the discussion [today] when the international experts arrive in Scotland.

"The Cabinet secretary for education and lifelong learning will be commenting further once the report is officially published."

The OECD report comes a fortnight after two reports showed Scotland was falling down the international league tables for pupil performance.

In a study of reading skills among primary school-age children in 45 countries and provinces, Scotland fell from 14th place in 2001 to 26th in 2006, according to the research carried out by Boston College in the United States.

The UK also plummeted from fourth to 14th in the OECD rankings for science published at the end of last month.

Judith Gillespie, of the Scottish Parent Teacher Council, said schools did not have the power to overcome a child's social background.

"If you took the children from a school in one of Glasgow's poorest areas and swapped them with [high performing] Jordanhill School, all that would happen is that you would give Jordanhill very poor results," she said.

She called for a return to basics rather than expecting schools to solve social ills.

She said: "If schools could focus on teaching children to read and write and not all the additional things they have to, we might actually see a huge change."

Last month, the outgoing president of the Headteachers' Association of Scotland warned schools were having to fill in the gaps of a society plagued by childhood obesity, mental health problems, binge drinking, broken relationships and teenage pregnancy.

Speaking at the association's annual conference, Charlie McAteer called on the Scottish Government to give teachers the training, and schools the facilities, needed to cope with the additional pressures.

He said: "The expectations which have been placed on Scottish education are enormous.

"If the Scottish Government wants to enable us to play a full part in bettering our society, it is necessary that sufficient, fair funding is consistently allocated to schools."

A 2005 study by Cristina Iannelli and Lindsay Paterson of Edinburgh University, "Moving Up and Down the Social Class Ladder in Scotland", found that "social-class inequalities in access to a full secondary education and to higher education have declined in the past ten to 15 years".

The study showed that in 2001, nearly two-thirds of adults surveyed had moved to a different social class from that in which they had been brought up. However, it warned of a fall in upward mobility and said an increasing percentage of people were remaining within the same social class as their parents.

The study concluded that "opportunities for upward movement have been declining".

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