Meeting of the Parliament 15 November 2017
It is something of a poor reflection on our society that the topic needs to be discussed in the first place. However, we have a duty to acknowledge where we can do better, and to work constructively to deliver for the people who are affected. The necessity of ending prejudicial bullying and harassment in Scotland’s schools is something on which everyone in Parliament undoubtedly agrees. Our views differ on many things, but this is certainly not one of them. I appreciate the constructive manner in which the issue has been approached by colleagues from across the political parties, but we have a lot of work still to do.
For example, the campaign Scotland against criminalising communities noted earlier this year that 55 per cent of Muslim children experience verbal Islamophobia in school, and the TIE campaign has reported that 91 per cent of LGBT youth have experienced homophobia and related prejudice-based bullying. That also causes huge teaching problems, because more than 15,000 absences take place due to bullying.
As members are no doubt aware, there are numerous reports with statistics to cite: many are being put out today. One statistic in particular shocked me. The study from TIE found that 27 per cent of LGBT youth had attempted suicide at least once as a result of prejudicial bullying. That is a huge number of young people who felt compelled to try to take their own lives due to the actions of others. That simply cannot be allowed to happen in a civilised society, so we must discuss solutions.
The Education and Skills Committee report identified weaknesses in the delivery of personal and social education. I cannot stress enough how important I believe that education to be. When it is done well, PSE educates children and young people about healthy relationships, diversity and equality. Unfortunately, as the committee has found, only 9 per cent of teachers felt the Scottish Government PSE guidance to be sufficient—which comes before I mention the fact that 34 per cent had not even read it.
We need an approach to PSE that is consistent across the country and that deals adequately with subjects including minority issues, diversity and mental health, and it needs to focus on combating the attitudes that allow prejudice and hatred to prosper.
Another key consideration is the ability of teachers to deliver such content. The highly specialised nature of secondary education means that teachers often do not have the relevant training to deal with those complex issues. Therefore I impress on the cabinet secretary the need not just to improve what we teach as part of PSE and how we deliver it, but to ensure that the guidance that is given is salient for teachers across the country.
Another area about which I have some reservations is the review process for the national anti-bullying approach. I know that the cabinet secretary has committed to reviewing it every five years, with interim ad hoc evaluations. I urge him to reconsider that approach, not just because of where we might be five years from now, but because of the changes that we have seen in the past few years alone. I think that the committee’s recommendation to hold a more regular full review is sound, and should be considered again by the Scottish Government.
In conclusion, I say that I think that we all appreciate the necessity and the gravity of the task that lies ahead of us. To end bullying and harassment in our schools, we need to put in place educational practices that prevent that behaviour from surfacing and which show why it is unacceptable in the first place.
The Scottish Government will publish its review of PSE by the end of next year, as part of its mental health strategy. Although I look forward to seeing its recommendations, that timescale should not prevent ministers from taking swifter action, when it is needed.
I encourage all those who can make a difference to do just that. Whether we are teachers, ministers, MSPs or community leaders, we all have a responsibility to do better. Let us work together and make prejudice-based bullying and harassment in schools a thing of the past.
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