New figures released today by the Scottish government lay bare the impact of the pandemic on primary pupils’ attainment in literacy and numeracy, reports Emma Seith.
In the past, the government figures on whether pupils are hitting the expected level for their age and stage have tended to show small year-on-year improvements in pupils’ performance in literacy and numeracy, since they began being published in 2016.
However, figures published today for the 2020-21 school year show that primary pupils’ attainment in literacy and numeracy has hit its lowest level since 2017 (the report does not include the 2016 figures).
The figures also show that the attainment gap is at its widest.
Responding to the figures - which look at attainment in P1, P4 and P7, as well as the overall attainment of these pupils - education secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said they reflected “in stark terms” the significant impact of the pandemic on children and young people.
The Achievement of Curriculum for Excellence Levels (ACEL) 2020-21 report said: “The percentage of pupils achieving the expected CfE [Curriculum for Excellence] Level has decreased in 2020-21 across all organisers and stages compared to 2018-19.
“The proportion of primary school pupils achieving the expected CfE Level in literacy and numeracy has decreased by 5.4 and 4.4 percentage points respectively between 2018-19 and 2020-21.”
Almost three-quarters of primary pupils hit the expected level for numeracy (74.4 per cent) last year, compared with 79.1 per cent in 2018-19; 78.4 per cent in 2017-18; and 76.4 per cent in 2016-17.
In literacy, 66.9 per cent of primary pupils hit the expected level, compared with 72.3 per cent in 2018-19; 71.4 per cent in 2017-18; and 69.2 per cent in 2016-17.
Biggest gap recorded to date
The figures also show that, in literacy, attainment fell for both the primary pupils in the most and least deprived areas. However, the performance of those in the most deprived areas was hit harder,
When it came to literacy for instance 80.7 per cent of primary pupils in the most affluent areas were at or above the expected standard in 2020-21, compared to 56 per cent of those from the poorest backgrounds.
For literacy the attainment gap widened on 2018-19 by 4 percentage points, going from 20.7 percentage points in 2018-19, to 24.7 in 2020-21 - the biggest gap recorded to date.
In numeracy attainment, performance similarly dipped for both the primary pupils in the most and the least deprived areas. And, again, the attainment of the most disadvantaged pupils fell faster, with the gap widening on 2018-19 by 4.6 percentage points, and going from 16.8 in 2018-19 to 21.4 in 2020-21 - again the biggest gap recorded to date.
The report states: “As in previous years, across all stages (P1, P4 and P7) the proportion of pupils achieving the expected CfE Level was highest in listening and talking and lowest in writing in 2020-21. For listening and talking, 84 per cent of P1 pupils, 82 per cent of P4 pupils and 82 per cent of P7 pupils achieved the expected CfE Level. Meanwhile, for writing, 74 per cent of P1 pupils, 67 per cent of P4 pupils and 69 per cent of P7 pupils achieved the expected level.
“Across all organisers, the proportion of pupils achieving the expected level was highest amongst P1 pupils and lower for P4 and P7 pupils in 2020-21. Again this is consistent with the pattern observed in previous years.”
Collecting data on primary pupils’ performance last year was controversial, given the pressure teachers and school staff were already under as they attempted to address the impact of two national lockdowns, and get pupils back into the rhythm of attending school following months of home learning at the beginning of the calendar year. There were calls for the data-collection exercise to be suspended, to allow teachers to prioritise pupils’ wellbeing.
The figures also provide the basis for the league tables compiled recently by a newspaper, which have been criticised for the narrow picture they paint of achievement in education and for being “arithmetically poor”.
However, the government pressed ahead with its plans to gather the data - although it gave a reprieve to secondaries and special schools with data for these sectors not collected last year (2020-21). This was because of other pressures on these schools, it said, including the implementation of an “alternative certification model” that replaced national exams.
Data was not collected for any pupils in 2019-20 because schools were closed on the planned census date of 8 June.
The report says: “Many authorities noted that the Covid-19 pandemic has had an impact on the data submitted this year. Whilst most local authorities said that they were confident that the data provided was an accurate reflection of the assessment that had been possible, a number reported that the pandemic meant teachers had reduced opportunities to gather evidence on which to make judgements. This was due, for example, to school closures and self-isolation of pupils and teachers.”
Covid disruption
The report also says that the pandemic has had an impact on the “nature and quality” of moderation and that “a small number of authorities noted that they still had concerns about the consistency of judgements across schools within the authority and, therefore, across the country as a whole”.
Responding to the new figures, education secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said: “The ACEL statistics reflect, in stark terms, the significant impact the pandemic has had on our children and young people.
“Before the pandemic, the year-on-year trend in the ACEL data was positive. Unfortunately, the disruption caused by Covid-19 presented serious challenges for learners not just in Scotland but internationally.
“Improving educational outcomes is at the heart of our education recovery work, which is continuing at pace. This includes recruiting 3,500 additional teachers and 500 support staff over this Parliamentary term. We also continue to press on with our mission to tackle the poverty-related attainment gap, backed by a record £1 billion investment. Later today, in a statement to Parliament, I will highlight our new and ongoing work to support numeracy and literacy in our schools.”
She added that, since the start of the pandemic, the government had committed half a billion pounds to support education, and that other data published today reflected some of the progress that had been made.
She said the 2021 Summary Statistics for Schools in Scotland shows that there are now over 2,000 more teachers than before the start of the pandemic.
Ms Somerville continued: “The additional staff have, so far, brought the ratio of pupils to teachers to 13.2 - its lowest since 2009, directly supporting children by increasing the amount of teacher attention available to each child.”
Scottish Conservative education spokesman Oliver Mundell said: “These shocking results reveal the brutal impact on young people of Covid, which has been heightened by years of SNP failure.
“Scotland’s schools came into the pandemic unprepared after 14 years of the SNP letting standards slip.
“The double whammy of Covid and the SNP’s botched reforms have sent the attainment gap between the richest and poorest pupils spiralling to its worst-ever level.
“These grim statistics show that despite the best efforts of teachers and parents, pupils across Scotland are not reaching the expected levels of attainment in reading, writing, numeracy, literacy and listening and talking.
“Dreadful results on this scale should shame Nicola Sturgeon. She promised to close the attainment gap but instead, it’s wider than ever. Education has never been her top priority and it shows.
“The SNP Government have let down a generation of children and young people.”
Scottish Labour’s education spokesman Michael Marra, meanwhile, said the figures “must be a wake-up call”. He called on the government to “be ambitious” and to come up with ”a real plan to get schools back on track and close Scotland’s shameful attainment gap once and for all”.
