The Curriculum for Excellence Management Board met on Thursday 22nd April to discuss, amongst other things, the Cabinet Secretary’s recommendations in his ten-point plan.

The Management Board’s response was as follows:

At its meeting today, the Curriculum for Excellence Management Board considered a range of evidence on progress of the programme. The Board discussed a range of issues raised by teachers, parents and other stakeholders. The Board believes that some of these have already been addressed through recent developments and is committed to tackling the issues which remain, including the need to continue to build teacher confidence.

Overall, the Board is assured that the existing programme plan remains realistic and achievable.

The Board will continue to monitor the plan closely, taking appropriate action to address any issues which may arise as the programme progresses, including issues affecting the current timetable for the development and delivery of the new National Qualifications.

The Board welcomed the Cabinet Secretary’s proposal to remove the qualifications in Literacy and Numeracy from S3, and will provide advice in due course on an alternative approach.

The Board acknowledged the EIS position that there should be a year’s delay in the implementation of the new National Qualifications. However, the other members were persuaded that there are sufficient safeguards in place to ensure that the qualifications timetable will be met and the concerns of teachers can be addressed.

Some key messages from this:

• The Curriculum for Excellence timeline continues as planned.
• The literacy & numeracy qualifications in S3 have been removed.