The Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) should be replaced, not reformed, the general secretary of the country’s biggest teaching union has said.

Larry Flanagan told the union’s annual general meeting that the SQA is “out of touch”, and also aimed criticism at inspection and curriculum development body Education Scotland.

Earlier this month, Scotland’s new education secretary, Shirley-Anne Somerville, announced plans to reform the SQA and Education Scotland, amid ongoing concerns that the assessment system in place for 2021 could lead to a repeat of the debacle of 2020.

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Mr Flanagan, speaking at the first EIS AGM since 2019 after Covid led to the cancellation of last year’s event, said: “I believe that the SQA, as an organisation, is out of touch with the education system.”

Planned reforms to the SQA and Education Scotland

He told EIS members: “I welcome the announcement on the review of the SQA, but frankly I am unsure about reform.

“I think replacement is a stronger option.”

He added: “We need a qualifications body which is accountable to the profession and not one which thinks the profession is there to do its bidding.

“We need to have a strong voice in that review process in order to ensure that, post that review, we have a qualifications body that enjoys respect and support from the profession and which exudes respect and support for the profession.”

Earlier today, Ms Somerville addressed the EIS AGM - which has been held online this year - and gave some detail about what will happen in the review of the SQA and Education Scotland.

She said: “This will be a key priority and will be informed by the findings of the OECD [Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development] review that is due to be published on 21 June.

“As part of a reform agenda, we will also devolve even greater powers to schools while intensifying the discussion around school-based decision making.”

She added: “I would like to make it clear that reform will not mean extra pressure or work for you at this critical time as we look to [Covid] recovery.”

The EIS was part of the National Qualifications 2021 Group charged with coming up with an “alternative qualification model” (ACM) for this year, and Mr Flanagan said he believes “students will be well served” by the new model.

“Not because of the SQA, not because of the Scottish government, not because of local authorities, but precisely because of the dedication and extraordinary effort of teachers and lecturers in ensuring that young people’s learning is properly accredited,” he told the AGM.

An SQA spokesperson said: “SQA welcomes and will play a full part in the review announced by the cabinet secretary [for education]. Our focus right now, quite rightly, remains on working with the whole education system to support our young people to get the qualifications they deserve this year.    

“The successful delivery of qualifications in Scotland relies on all parts of the education system working together in partnership. The alternative certification model was co-created by the National Qualifications Group, which includes the EIS.”

Mr Flanagan had said he wanted to clarify “misperceptions” about the role of the EIS in the National Qualifications Group.

He said that the “key issue” for the EIS in 2021 was that teachers’ professional judgement should be at “the centre of the model”. 

He added that “it was for schools and teachers to decide what was appropriate evidence upon which to base professional judgement, that there was no need to run full prelim-style assessments, and that assessment opportunities should not be one-off, high-stakes events”.

Mr Flanagan said: “All of this was actually agreed as the parameters for the ACM, but the position was undermined by the unilateral SQA subject advice which advocated for a different approach.”

On Education Scotland, Mr Flanagan said: “I recall that in the first speech I made as EIS general secretary [in 2012] I expressed concern that the then newly formed Education Scotland’s twin duty to both support schools and inspect them at the same time was a challenge; this proved to be the case. We need an agency, in my view, focused solely on supporting schools and one step removed from the influence of Scottish government.

“When Learning and Teaching Scotland and [education inspectorate] HMIE were merged [in 2011], most of the professional staff in both were forced to resign from the EIS and to join the civil service union as overnight they became an extension of government. That should be reversed.”

Mr Flanagan also advised EIS members to guard against any presumption that the worst of the Covid pandemic is in the past. 

He said that national data published today showed the number of pupil infections to be at a record level - higher than even last January when we had a national lockdown - with 5- to 11-year-olds being the biggest group.

Mr Flanagan said: “Public Health Scotland would caveat that by saying that more testing is being done and more asymptomatic cases are being picked up and there may be an element of truth in that, but I cite the figure simply to say we need to absolutely stay on guard and continue to press for caution regarding the challenge of Covid and all its variations, as, despite some optimism, we are far from past the pandemic crisis. We know potentially the third wave is already with us.”