Raising the Standard

Since Devolution spending on Education in Scotland has doubled but standards have remained static.  It's time to Raise the Standard of Education in Scotland.

Scottish Government Facts

• 10,000 pupils a year leave school unable to read or write properly.

• Every 10 minutes a member of staff is attacked in Scotland’s schools.

• Every 90 seconds a pupil is excluded from Scotland’s schools.

• 20,505 individual pupils were excluded in total from Scotland’s Schools last year.

• There are nearly one thousand fewer teachers than in 2008.

• £4.7 billion was spent on education in Scotland last year.

• Scottish pupils are ranked below the global average in Maths and Science.

• Over one million days are lost due to truancy.

The Scottish Conservatives will:

• Ensure pupils leave school with the best chance of getting a job, by giving every child the opportunity of gaining academic qualifications or learning a vocational skill.

• Set up Second Chance Centres so continually disruptive pupils are removed from mainstream education and taught in seperate classrooms until they show they can behave.

• Give head teachers, not politicians, the power over class sizes, teacher employment and discipline in their schools.

• Improve standards of testing in reading, writing and maths.

• Give Parents more choice over which school their child attends.