Achi news desk-
Earlier today, the Scottish Government published the latest in a series of papers called ‘Building a New Scotland’, which is intended to “form a prospectus” for the nation that could be built following a vote for independence.
We’ve already seen ideas about topics including democracy, the economy, migration, and culture – now the focus has turned to education.
The basic claim is that an independent Scotland could pursue “a better approach to education and lifelong learning” but, as the paper itself points out, “Scotland’s different and independent education system predates devolution”.
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If anything that is actually something of an understatement, as Scotland’s independent education system is hundreds of years old, having started when this country became the first to introduce compulsory education (although not universal education) possibly – an event which predates the Act of Union by more than two centuries.
Education is already a purely Scottish issue even while we remain within the United Kingdom. If it were so inclined, the Scottish Government could use existing powers to embark on a radical top-down restructuring of Scottish education at any time: unlike some other areas of public policy, independence is not a prerequisite for reform meaningful. or specifically Scottish decision-making.
So why is independence important at all?
The government’s argument is that independence would remove all the restrictions that currently exist, allowing for a policy designed to improve the health and well-being of citizens, families, communities, and the country as a whole – and all of them would certainly have an impact on education. provision and outcomes in Scotland.
The latest paper states that they want to be able to make choices “that make the conditions and foundations for learning even stronger, so that every young person has the best possible chance to succeed at school and in post-school education.”
The premise is simply that independence would allow the government to make much more progress in tackling poverty and reducing other inequalities, and improving life in Scotland in general, and that this would lead to better educational experiences for the some who live here.
Examples of areas that remain outstanding include “immigration, equality legislation, parental and family leave and pay, many taxes, social security and employment”. The devolution settlement also prevented the incorporation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) into Scottish Law.
Scotland was also dragged out of the EU against its will. This has had a direct impact – for example, students in this country can no longer take part in the Erasmus+ program and are instead stuck with the UK Government’s far inferior alternative – but it also overlaps with areas such as recruitment, research and international collaboration .
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It is certainly true that all these different issues interact with education provision, and, as a result, independence would – or at least could – change the landscape of Scottish education.
It is also true that building a more equal country would improve the inputs and outputs in Scottish education. Indeed – and contrary to the claims of the SNP over the last decade – reducing social and economic inequality is the only way to have any real hope of ‘closing the attainment gap’.
So in many ways this is not really a paper about independence; rather, it is an argument for recognizing the full complexity of education provision, including the way seemingly disconnected policy decisions can and do have a huge impact on things like school experiences and exam results.
And on that point, the Scottish Government is correct.
People like me have long argued that anyone who claims to be serious about ‘closing the attainment gap’ needs to be interested in issues such as housing, public transport, precarious employment, mental health, and much more. The publication of this latest paper suggests that the government understands all that – at least when it is convenient for them to do so.
A fairer and more progressive independent Scotland would be a very good thing for Scottish education, but the question remains: do voters believe that independence is the path to a more equal and fair future?
