Brian Whittle MSP has welcomed Education Secretary John Swinney’s U-turn on the system for pupils who haven’t been able to sit their exams this year.
Following an enormous backlash to the results produced by a moderation scheme which saw tens of thousands of pupils have their expected results downgraded, the Scottish Government announced they would accept the grade predictions of teachers without any alteration.
After initially defending the scheme, which saw more pupils in some of Scotland’s most deprived areas being downgraded than those in more affluent ones, Mr Swinney announced he was ditching the scheme shortly before facing a no confidence vote in the Scottish Parliament
The Scottish Government’s handling of education during the pandemic had already come in for criticism after complaints about patchy support for at-home learning before the summer holidays. Previous plans for pupils to return to school under a so-called “blended learning” model that would have seen most students at school for only a day or two a week were also abandoned after a public backlash.
South Scotland MSP Brian was among those who backed the no confidence motion, saying that while he had a great deal of respect for the Mr Swinney, Ministers have to be held accountable for their failures in government.
Brian Whittle MSP said:
“I’m glad John Swinney has finally accepted that this grading scheme was unfair and abandoned it. There was no ideal alternative to the normal exam system, but the scheme the Scottish Government and SQA wanted seemed to guarantee that talented pupils who happen to live in more deprived areas would have to clear a higher bar than their peers in schools with historically better results did.
It was right that John Swinney apologised for the mistake he made here, but there comes a time when ‘sorry’ isn’t enough. I’m not a politician that calls for people to be sacked at the drop of a hat, particularly when they stand up and take responsibility, but Mr Swinney’s time as Education Secretary has had too many serious mistakes.
We need an education system that parents, pupils, teachers and future employers have confidence in. After this latest fiasco, I think a lot of people will be asking whether John Swinney and the SNP are the right ones to deliver that.”
