Earlier this week, it was announced that the ratings assigned to schools in England in the wake of inspection are to be scrapped - but, for the time being at least, single-phrase sub-judgements will remain.
This is the situation Scottish schools have found themselves in for years. And now secondary school leaders are calling for the new chief inspector, who will lead the independent school inspection body due to come into being in 2025, to have the power “to remove gradings from reports” completely.
School Leaders Scotland (SLS) also wants the framework for inspecting schools - How good is our school? - to be revised, updated or replaced.
Already, acting chief inspector Janie McManus is seeking views on the framework and model of inspection in Scotland.
SLS makes the recommendations in its submission to the Scottish government’s consultation on the new education bill published in June.
The bill - which was published a year late - sets out plans to replace the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) with a new national qualifications body, Qualifications Scotland, and to enhance the independence of the inspectorate.
Reform or rebrand?
In its response, SLS warns against staff from the SQA transferring “lock-stock and barrel to the new body, as this would not be a reform but a rebranding”.
It says: “There must be new blood and new thinking, and this must be seen by the open, competitive appointment to senior posts in Qualifications Scotland. We therefore question why the chair of the SQA will automatically become the chair of Qualifications Scotland.”
SLS also questions what will happen to Education Scotland’s remaining functions when the inspectorate breaks away from that body as part of planned reforms - and how the Centre for Teaching Excellence announced in 2023 will fit into the new landscape.
It asks “what structure and standing” Education Scotland will have post-reform and if it is going “to be left to wither on the vine”, adding: “The areas of curriculum and learning and teaching are crucial to closing the poverty-related attainment gap.”
SLS goes on to reiterate its support for the proposals contained in the independent review of qualifications.
The review - which reported in June 2023 and was led by Professor Louise Hayward - recommended scrapping external exams for qualifications below Higher level, broadening the range of assessment methods used in schools and introducing a Scottish Diploma of Achievement.
‘Clear blueprint for the future’
SLS describes the Hayward report as “a clear blueprint for the future”, adding: “It needs to become a reality, providing an articulate and robust vision for the future, something sadly lacking in the overall thrust of the bill. The Hayward proposals along with the other reports such as Muir, Withers, Stobart, OECD...provide a golden opportunity for the future of our country which sadly is in danger of being missed.”
Education directors’ body ADES has warned in its own submission to the consultation - also shared exclusively with Tes Scotland - that the government’s plans for reform did not go far enough and failed to deliver on the recommendations made in the many recent reviews of Scottish education.
The government has yet to officially respond to the qualifications review, although this is expected later in September.
However, Ms Gilruth has already made it clear that she favours “evolution, not revolution”, and that she considers the Hayward review proposals to be “a radical shift in Scottish education”.
Following inspection, Scottish schools do not receive an overall rating. However, they are still graded on a six-point scale that ranges from “excellent” to “unsatisfactory” for their performance on key areas such as “learning, teaching and assessment” and “raising attainment and achievement”.
On grading, SLS writes: “We would welcome the power for the new chief inspector to remove gradings from reports. We would welcome a narrative of improvement for each inspection and where they are at, how they got there and where they need to go next as part of a journey of improvement.”
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