Chamber
Plenary, 05 Apr 2001
05 Apr 2001 · S1 · Plenary
Item of business
Examination Diet 2001
I am happy to give the same reassurance that I give week in and week out when I visit schools throughout Scotland and discuss such matters with teachers and pupils. I have been guaranteeing for months that we will do nothing in the period running up to this summer's exams that will work against the successful delivery of the exams. That is why some of the decisions that we have all pressed for—for example in relation to certificate design and the recirculation of scripts—have had to be delayed or considered very carefully. We guarantee that everything that can possibly be done will be done to deliver the exam diet and the results accurately and on time this summer.
We cannot account for human error. We have had problems in the past month with individual coding entries in individual schools. There have been more than 400 errors and we have to chase up every one of them, as well as ensure that at the centre, the work that is done by the education department, the SQA and other national bodies is done properly.
I reassure the Parliament and every pupil in Scotland that we will do absolutely everything to correct all the errors and have the systems and performance measurements in place, which will make it clear that we expect the results to be accurate and on time. If there are any problems between now and the diet or afterwards, they will be acted on timeously and effectively, because that was part of the difficulty last year.
There will be communication with individual students. The SQA confirmed that at my meeting with the chairman and the chief executive last week. Rightly, we have delayed detailed consideration of the appeals system for 2001 until we are finished with the appeals system for 2000, and until I am satisfied that we have the arrangements in place for the exams this summer, never mind the appeals afterwards. However, we will look at the appeals system in the weeks ahead.
The review of the new qualifications is taking place and stakeholders are involved in it. We have promised all along that we will produce an interim report in June, before the end of the academic year. I confirm that that will happen.
We cannot account for human error. We have had problems in the past month with individual coding entries in individual schools. There have been more than 400 errors and we have to chase up every one of them, as well as ensure that at the centre, the work that is done by the education department, the SQA and other national bodies is done properly.
I reassure the Parliament and every pupil in Scotland that we will do absolutely everything to correct all the errors and have the systems and performance measurements in place, which will make it clear that we expect the results to be accurate and on time. If there are any problems between now and the diet or afterwards, they will be acted on timeously and effectively, because that was part of the difficulty last year.
There will be communication with individual students. The SQA confirmed that at my meeting with the chairman and the chief executive last week. Rightly, we have delayed detailed consideration of the appeals system for 2001 until we are finished with the appeals system for 2000, and until I am satisfied that we have the arrangements in place for the exams this summer, never mind the appeals afterwards. However, we will look at the appeals system in the weeks ahead.
The review of the new qualifications is taking place and stakeholders are involved in it. We have promised all along that we will produce an interim report in June, before the end of the academic year. I confirm that that will happen.
In the same item of business
The Presiding Officer (Sir David Steel):
NPA
The next item of business is a statement from Mr Jack McConnell on progress towards the 2001 examination diet. It would be helpful if members who wish to ask...
Tricia Marwick (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP):
SNP
On a point of order, Presiding Officer.Following the partisan remark that the Minister for Transport and Planning made to Bruce Crawford during question time...
The Presiding Officer:
NPA
No.
Tricia Marwick:
SNP
—that she is equally accountable to SNP members—
The Presiding Officer:
NPA
No. I am sorry, but the remarks were not partisan.
Tricia Marwick:
SNP
They were.
The Presiding Officer:
NPA
Order. I listened carefully and the minister addressed herself first to two Labour members, then to one SNP member. That was the context in which she made th...
Tricia Marwick:
SNP
Further to that point of order. I ask the Presiding Officer to study carefully the Official Report of today's proceedings.
The Presiding Officer:
NPA
I will do so. I always do so.I call Jack McConnell to make his statement on the 2001 examination diet.
The Minister for Education, Europe and External Affairs (Mr Jack McConnell):
Lab
To avoid the need for any further points of order to be made, I apologise in advance to both my Opposition colleagues for the fact that they received the sta...
The Presiding Officer:
NPA
I appeal for members' co-operation. Even without taking into account the time that we have lost this afternoon, we are very pushed for time. I must leave suf...
Michael Russell (South of Scotland) (SNP):
SNP
I welcome today's statement and confirm my party's support for the actions that are being taken to ensure that this year's diet produces results according to...
Mr McConnell:
Lab
I am happy to give the same reassurance that I give week in and week out when I visit schools throughout Scotland and discuss such matters with teachers and ...
Mr Brian Monteith (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con):
Con
I, too, welcome the opportunity to respond to the minister's statement, even though there was not much in it that was new. The focus must be on a successful ...
Michael Russell:
SNP
Not yet.
Mr Monteith:
Con
I will ask the Minister for Education, Europe and External Affairs three questions, the first of which the First Minister will be interested in. What will be...
Mr McConnell:
Lab
I do not want to revisit the philosophy of the new national qualifications. We must consider the new national qualifications as a total package; they are not...
Ian Jenkins (Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale) (LD):
LD
I thank the minister for his statement. He has done a great deal of work, as has the SQA. The minister is right to put the interests of children at the heart...
Mr McConnell:
Lab
I am confident that the SQA will give enough time for printing. I am also confident that we will hit those other deadlines. Obviously, we need to continue to...
Karen Gillon (Clydesdale) (Lab):
Lab
I thank the minister for his statement. It is important that he keeps the Education, Culture and Sport Committee informed of developments, because the commit...
Mr McConnell:
Lab
Karen Gillon made two extremely important points. I agree that the situation with FE students is unacceptable. It is correct that the exam diet for last year...
Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP):
SNP
It is widely accepted that last year's difficulties were, to some extent, attributable to data processing software, yet the computer system this year is larg...
Mr McConnell:
Lab
The person who lost his job this week was not an IT worker for the SQA; he was an independent consultant who had been employed by the SQA.On the computers, I...
Robin Harper (Lothians) (Green):
Green
The minister intimated that a head teacher would be included on the board. To follow on from what Irene McGugan said, and based on what I have learned from t...
Mr McConnell:
Lab
We would not expect people who had marked a paper last July to mark it again in the autumn or winter appeals. What is important is that the people who are in...
Robin Harper:
Green
Can I ask a brief supplementary?
The Presiding Officer:
NPA
We are in danger of squashing a lot of people out, because the questions and answers have, inevitably, been long. I am afraid that I will be unable to call e...
Dr Sylvia Jackson (Stirling) (Lab):
Lab
In addition to the pressing issues with the 2001 exam diet, which have to take priority, one of the main concerns of the EIS is the review of the internal as...
Mr McConnell:
Lab
There have been two or three significant surveys of teacher opinion and the way in which the internal assessment has worked. That information and other infor...
Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP):
SNP
I welcome much of what the minister has said, but I would like to ask him a couple of important questions. Going back to what the report of the Enterprise an...