5. How well do all children, young people and adults achieve?

Every child and young person can expect their education to provide them with:

• assessment activities which give feedback to children and young people on what they have learned and how much and how well they learned it so that they can build on previous learning and experiences.
• a wide range of success, achievement and attainment which maximises their life chances;
• a broad definition of what constitutes achievement;
• full recognition for their skills and talents and learning, wherever it takes place;
• tailored support which takes account of their personal circumstances and prior learning; and
• support in moving into positive and sustained destinations beyond school.

• Imaginative and interesting learning activities which match learners’ interests and needs, and offer an appropriate level of challenge.
• Detailed and open questioning by staff which allows them to ensure that learners make appropriate progress and get the support they require.
• A wide range of achievement and attainment in schools and establishments and in the community which is well monitored, recognised and celebrated by all staff.
• Children and young people who are very well prepared to move onto the next stages of their lives.

There is now a much wider range of recognition for achievements, such as through ASDAN and Youth Achievement Awards, and this is growing all the time. In many aspects, levels of attainment are increasing. However, attainment for the lowest performing group of young people, and for many young people who face barriers such as those arising from poor family circumstances or social and emotional behaviour needs, has not improved.

The OECD report of 2007 highlighted the impact of socio-economic factors on the outcomes of education in Scotland. There is overwhelming evidence that levels of attainment are much lower overall in areas of deprivation. Young people from Scotland’s most socio-economically deprived areas left school at S4 in 2008 with average levels of attainment around half of those from the least deprived areas. There is no clear overall understanding of why this should be the case, and indeed there is considerable variation from education authority to education authority. Children and young people from deprived socio-economic areas have higher levels of absence and exclusion, which will impact on achievement. Those with a chaotic home life are unlikely to be able to focus on their learning. However, HMIE inspection evidence shows that key aspects of education, including how well learners’ needs are met, do not depend on the socio-economic characteristics of where a school sits.

Staff need to understand how the circumstances faced by many children and young people may give rise to barriers which affect their learning and achievement. In order to support staff in meeting the diverse learning needs of all children and young people, there is an ongoing need for initial and continuing professional development. Professionals need strategies to support all children and young people, and match tasks and activities well to their needs. They also need to help the children and young people themselves develop strategies to overcome barriers arising from their own personal circumstances.

In addition, staff need to know wherever possible the specific circumstances faced by individual children, young people and adults. In some cases these circumstances are not obvious. Children or young people may be young carers, or living in families affected by drug and/or substance misuse. Some children and young people have mental health issues which go undetected, but result in chronic underachievement. Some may have a particular sexual orientation which they prefer to keep secret. Where staff are aware of learners’ circumstances, they must not lower their own expectations of what can be achieved. In particular, staff must not make hasty judgements about children and young people, perhaps through flawed assessment techniques, which limit expectations and aspirations.

Below are links to video clips from Journey to Excellence and other good practice resources. Each clip will lead you to related clips. Feel free to explore as much as you have time for, but do try to look at clips from areas you may not be entirely familiar with.

1. How will I develop my understanding of children’s learning and development, and family circumstances, which will allow me to interact sensitively with them and support them in making progress? Where is my current understanding strongest, and where is it weakest? Am I aware of all the circumstances and learning needs in the children and young people I deal with? How can I play my part in helping learners in ensuring that their circumstances do not form barriers to learning?

2. How can I help my colleagues to use strategies more effectively to improve learning? How can I help children and young people to develop strategies for managing their personal and family circumstances?

3. How will I improve my approaches to assessment to allow me to gain information about learners’ progress, attainment and achievement, and use this effectively to intervene quickly and improve practice? How effectively am I implementing AiFL strategies? How do I seek the views of all learners, ensuring that the progress of children and young people is accurately and usefully recorded?

4. How might we consider the extent of which our assessment policies and practice might themselves become a barrier to learning and participation?