Back to school week 2013 has particular significance for pupils entering their fourth year of high school.
They will be the first to study for the new National Qualifications, which are replacing Standard Grades this year. The new qualifications will bring assessment into line with Curriculum for Excellence, Scotland’s approach to learning and teaching.
S4 is also the first year of the new ‘Senior Phase’ which will provide flexible opportunities for pupils to develop the knowledge and skills that will be much-valued by employers, colleges and universities, and help pupils prepare for whatever their next steps may be.
Minister for Youth Employment Angela Constance said:
“After a set of record exam results in 2013, testament to the hard work by the young people involved, I wish the best of luck to all our pupils as they begin their next school year.
“Our education system takes a significant step forward this week. The young people starting their fourth year are now entering the new Senior Phase and they will be the first to work towards the new National Qualifications.
“The Senior Phase builds on the pupils’ broad general education and this next step sees them entering an exciting and challenging stage in their learning, which will leave them well prepared to take their first steps on the career ladder.
“Considerable effort has already gone into ensuring that learners are prepared for the new qualifications, and Scottish Government has worked closely with Education Scotland, the Scottish Qualifications Authority and local authorities to provide support.”
Ken Cunningham, General Secretary of School Leaders Scotland said:
"This is the year when the new national qualifications for our current S4 young people come to fruition. All the preparation, discussion, and consultation should have resulted in opportunities to recognise the achievements of our pupils in more appropriate and up-to-date ways than ever before.
“National 4s with their flexible, responsive on-going assessments; National 5s building on these and balancing internal and external assessment methods suited to the range of courses; and, of course, some young folk bypassing these to go straight to the Highers revised to recognise the range of skills being developed through the Curriculum for Excellence programme.
“All of these routes open up an exciting set of paths and I have every confidence that they will meet the needs of all our young people and better prepare them for their place in society. I wish them and their teachers every success as the year unfolds.”
Eileen Brown, headteacher at Kyle Academy, South Ayrshire added:
“Standard Grades have served us well in Scotland, in a number of ways, but the curriculum and qualifications structure has to evolve to prepare young people for a very different and rapidly changing world.
“The Senior Phase offers us new flexibility including staff, pupils and parents able to design and shape a curriculum which meets the specific needs of our own young people in each school, and young people able to acquire not only academic qualifications but also wider awards and experiences.
“This is an exciting time for Scottish education. We are ready to embrace the opportunities.”