CfE e-bulletin
January 2013
Welcome to the first CfE e-bulletin of the New
Year. Throughout 2013 we will be aiming to
provide easy access to information which will
help you promote positive engagement among
practitioners, pupils and parents as you embed
Curriculum for Excellence in your setting. Each
monthly issue will provide you with the most
up to date information on resources and
materials available.
It is the responsibility of the CfE Implementation Group to keep our ear to the
ground and tackle some of the pressing issues and questions in the education
community surrounding CfE. For example, we are aware that S3 profiling is a
big priority for secondary education just now with the target to have all S3
profiles in place by June of this year.
To help support you in this, advice was published in December of last year to
help raise confidence about pupils achieving levels and practitioners checking
progress. This advice has been published on the Education Scotland website and
available for every curriculum area.
Further work is underway with schools to gather annotated exemplification of
pupils' work, including practical advice. We aim to have this ready by May of
this year and I will keep you updated as we progress. Another hot topic within
the education community has been around the transition from the Broad
General Education to Senior Phase. At the end of last year we developed two
briefing documents which focus on this progression. The first of these
documents focused on the way young people learn during the Broad General
Education and the second focused on how schools should ensure a smooth
transition into the Senior Phase, building directly on the phase before. I hope
you find them helpful.
A third related briefings is due to be published next month, with a focus on
curriculum planning at the Senior Phase and planning in the early years and
primary. To help inform future briefings it is essential for us to hear directly
from teachers about their current concerns. The first in a planned series of
conversation style events with teachers took place at the end of last year to
allow us to take stock of where we are and what is needed next. We aim to use
the information gathered at these events, alongside other sources, to target
further support and future briefings and make sure they target the issues that
really matter to you.
Dr Bill Maxwell
Chair of CfE implementation Group
Further titles published in Professional Focus Papers series
Education Scotland has published further titles in its series of Professional Focus
Papers. These materials have been designed to assist those supporting learners
as they prepare for the implementation of the new National 4 and 5
qualifications.
The papers highlight important features of learning which are enhanced or
different from previous arrangements. They provide advice on approaches to
learning and teaching which build directly on those used in the 3-15 Broad
General Education in order to promote continuity in learners’ acquisition of
knowledge, understanding and skills. The papers are also intended to stimulate
professional reflection and dialogue about learning.
This set of papers covers Lifeskills Mathematics, Mathematics, Care, Latin and
Classical Studies at both National 4 and National 5, and Dance, Psychology,
Sociology and Economics at National 5 only.
They come as part of the development of course materials across the full range
of National 4 and National 5 qualifications, being managed by Education
Scotland in partnership with ADES.
The Professional Focus Papers are now available for download on the National
Qualifications area of the Education Scotland website.
Taking Stock of the Senior Phase Conversations
Education Scotland together with Scottish Government hosted the first in a new
series of conversation-style events at St Margaret's Academy Livingston, by
kind permission of Jim Cameron HT.
The conversation theme for the day was around Taking Stock of the Senior
Phase: where are we and what is needed next in order to support schools in
fully developing the senior phase. Forty eight invited delegates from a range of
partners and stakeholders gathered together to fully consider the theme
together. The event featured mini-keynotes as thought pieces from a range of
participants including education authorities, secondary school HTs, parents,
universities, YoungScot and colleges.
The main part of the day was given over to facilitated discussions around the
main themes arising. Kenneth Muir, Strategic Director School Years, Education
Scotland presented a well-received overview of the senior phase and all
participants were asked to contribute suggestions for future development and
support around the senior phase.
The event was the first in a 2013 series of conversation-style events where
Education Scotland will lead and facilitate discussions with stakeholders and
partners around supporting aspects of Curriculum for Excellence.
Inspectors find further examples of excellence in Curriculum for
Excellence in practice
The most recent round of school inspection reports published by Education
Scotland records two further cases of secondary schools achieving 'excellent'
evaluations. The schools, Bishopbriggs Academy in East Dunbartonshire and
Glasgow's St Andrew's RC Secondary School, were inspected at the end of 2012
and show further evidence of improvement since the issue of updated guidelines
that reflect the increased expectations now applying as a result of the
implementation of Curriculum for Excellence up to S3.
Furthermore, Hightae Primary School, near Lockerbie, became the first primary
school in Scotland to achieve 'excellent' in all five ratings since the issue of
updated guidelines when inspected towards the end of last year. You can find
out more about the inspections by visiting the inspection reports section of the
Education Scotland website.
Making Good Assessment Decisions
Education Scotland, in partnership with SQA, has published ‘Making Good
Assessment Decisions, Professional Learning Resource’. This resource has been
produced to support the recently launched posters, also entitled Making Good
Assessment Decisions which are being distributed to schools.
These can be used by local authorities, schools, colleges and other stakeholders
to support the development of moderation/verification practices and as a
platform for discussion. This further professional learning resource outlines the
continuity between the quality assurance procedures developed to support the
Broad General Education and those for the senior phase, including the new
National Qualifications.
The resource comprises of a presentation and attached notes. The presentation
lends itself to promoting professional reflection, dialogue and debate about
making good assessment decisions. It can be used flexibly; either as a
presentation to groups of staff or by individual practitioners. Where
appropriate, further information is available and can be accessed from each
slide.
The additional information can also be downloaded as a separate pdf document.
It is hoped that this professional learning resource will build practitioner
confidence in making good assessment judgements and therefore support
improvements in the continuity and progression of children’s learning.
Course Material on Glow
Education Scotland has launched a dedicated website which provides quick,
secure and easy access to the range of web-based course materials being
published to support the new National Qualifications. In addition, the site also
provides access to the popular series of Professional Focus Papers.
The website can be accessed via Glow (Glow login required) which is a
recognised portal in Scottish Education for resources. Glow does, of course,
also accommodate open and honest collaboration across the profession
throughout Scotland, providing an ideal platform for practitioners to review and
revise materials to suit their local requirements and share thoughts and ideas
about materials.
We have been working very closely with ADES to coordinate the development
and publication of these course materials across the full range of National 4 and
National 5 qualifications and further materials will be published over the coming
months.
The course materials are being developed from a variety of sources and are
being shared nationally so that teachers can see what colleagues in other areas
are preparing for their own contexts.
CfE Briefings
Two new titles in this popular series are currently being developed and will
publish next month. They will focus on Progression from the Broad General
Education to the Senior Phase - Part 3: Curriculum planning at the Senior Phase
and Planning in the early years and primary. The CfE briefings series is designed
to provide succinct advice on the progress being made in key areas of change,
to help inform discussion and promote further, innovative development. The
briefings can also be used to underpin the information given to staff and partner
agencies more widely, to learners themselves, and to ensure that their parents
and fully and clearly informed of the changes that are taking place. Other titles
already published in the series include:
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Broad General Education in the Secondary School (supported by a guide
for parents and carers and a Q&A on BGE);
Assessing Progress and Achievement in the 3-15 Broad General
Education;
Profiling and the S3 profile;
Interdisciplinary Learning;
Personalised Learning;
Progression from the Broad General Education to the Senior Phase Part 1: The S3 Experience and
Progression from the Broad General Education to the Senior Phase Part 2: Learning in the Senior Phase
Multiple copies of all of these have now been sent to schools.
You can access the current briefings by visiting the Education Scotland website.
Update from SQA
Managing Assessment across the Centre
SQA has developed resources for centres to help them manage the assessment
of the new National Qualifications being introduced from 2013/14. This has
been done in partnership with ADES, SLS, SCIS and College Development
Network. To find out more, please visit SQA's website.
Unit Assessment Support
SQA has published the first of its Unit Assessment Support packs for Units in
the new National Courses, from National 2 to National 5. The first pack is
available on the SQA Secure website and practitioners can arrange access
through their SQA Co-ordinator. Further Unit Assessment Support packs will
follow at the end of February and at the end of April 2013. All packs are valid
from August 2013 and must therefore be held securely and treated as
confidential. Further information on Unit Assessment Support can be found by
using the subject drop-down menu on the SQA website.
SQA CfE Web Pages
The CfE web pages on SQA’s website have been redesigned and restructured to
make them clearer and easier for users to navigate. The new pages include a
revised CfE timeline, improved Subject search facility and new audience
sections for Schools, Colleges and Universities. You can view the new web
pages at the SQA website.
CfE Leaflets
SQA has updated its CfE leaflets for each of its main audience groups.
Copies of the new leaflets are available on the CfE web pages of SQA’s website
and can be downloaded as pdf files. To find out more, visit the audience pages
at the SQA website.
Draft Advanced Higher Course Assessment Specifications
SQA has published draft Course Assessment Specifications for Advanced Higher.
These can be accessed by using the subject drop-down menu at the CfE section
of the SQA website
You can give your feedback on these draft Advanced Higher Course Assessment
Specifications via Have Your Say.