Meeting of the Parliament 07 December 2022
Scotland’s learners, parents, carers and everyone who works in education have been through an extraordinary period over the past few years. They deserve our thanks and admiration for everything that they have achieved against the challenging backdrop of the Covid pandemic, the drive towards recovery and now the cost of living crisis.
Notwithstanding the significant challenges to our education system, I see first-hand examples, day in, day out, of teachers, childcare practitioners and lecturers who go the extra mile to support our children, young people and adult learners in their learning journey to ensure that they thrive and achieve positive destinations.
Scottish education is performing well and is continually improving, thanks to the hard work and dedication of the education workforce. Teacher numbers are at their highest since 2008, with the number of primary teachers at its highest since 1980. The pupil-teacher ratio is the best on record, and we have the highest spending per pupil within the UK nations. Moreover, the latest figures show that, at 93.2 per cent in 2020-21, we have more school leavers in Scotland in education, employment or training nine months after the end of the school year.
Progress is being made in closing the attainment gap and outcomes are improving. Scotland is the only part of the UK to offer the equivalent of 1,140 hours of high-quality early learning and childcare to all eligible children regardless of their parents’ working status, putting children first.
Internationally, Scottish education is viewed as high performing by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, which recently reviewed and endorsed curriculum for excellence. Meanwhile, the 2018 programme for international student assessment—or PISA—study ranked Scotland among the top-performing countries in young people’s global competence.
Scotland leads the European Union in having the highest proportion of adults aged 25 to 64 who are continuing their education.