Item 08 Appendix 1
West Dunbartonshire Council · 26 November 2025
Back to Educational Services Committee — 26 November 2025 and its agenda
Text extracted from the council's PDF. Layout and reading order may differ from the original.
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Curriculum, Qualifications and Assessment Reform – Progress to Date and Next Steps June 2025 Appendix 1
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1 Curriculum, Qualifications and Assessment Reform – Progress to Date and Next Steps
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2 Background to Scotland’s Reform to Curriculum, Qualifications and Assessment Scotland is making important changes to its curriculum, qualifications and assessment system to better support children and young people from ages 3 to 18. This will help ensure every learner is recognised for the knowledge, skills and achievements they develop during their learning journey. The recommendations of the OECD report in 2021, the National Discussion 2023 and the Scottish Government's response to the Independent Review of Qualifications and Assessment (2024) provided clear messages about what should change in relation to curriculum, qualifications and assessment. There are also elements of the Review of the Skills Delivery Landscape, Fit for the Future: developing a post-school learning system to fuel economic transformation, 2023, which are pertinent to the work. Common themes across these reports include the need to introduce a systematic approach to curriculum review , clarify the position of knowledge, create clearer progression between the Broad General Education (BGE) and the senior phase and onwards into post-school learning, review the balance of approaches to assessment and consider ways in which broader achievement can be recognised.1 The document provides an initial timeline to give clarity to partners and practitioners across the education and skills system, as well as to parents, carers, children and young people, about what will happen and when, and to support early thinking about when and how teaching, learning, and assessment will start to feel diVerent. While change to curriculum, qualifications and assessment should be expected, the focus will remain on the enhancement of excellent learning and teaching as we know this will make the greatest impact on outcomes for children and young people. While the changes outlined in this paper respond to a series of reports, they also represent a response to consistent messages from children, young people, parents and carers who have also advocated for change in respect of Scotland’s curriculum and approach to qualifications and assessment2. Common themes in discussions about the future of Scottish education include moving beyond a perceived focus on a high-stakes annual exam diet, making learning more engaging and recognising the achievements of 1 In reading this paper it may be useful to refer to glossary of terms published by Education Scotland here. 2 Children and young people’s views have actively shaped education reform in Scotland through structured engagement including focus groups, surveys, and co-designed discussions. Their voices informed the Muir Review (Putting Learners at the Centre, 2022, pp. 11-12) , which prioritised learner agency and wellbeing; the National Discussion on Education (2023, pp. 24-42) , which identified relevance, equity, and support as key themes; and the Independent Review of Qualifications and Assessment (IRQA, 2023) which incorporated pupil perspectives on the desire for more continuous and diverse assessment methods. The Children and Young People’s Commissioner Scotland engaged with the reviews above and also contributed through participatory work focused on the lived experience, highlighting more relevant and personalised learning, improved support and fairer assessment as key priorities ( CYPC Strategic Plan and CYPC Strategic Plan Follow Up pp 8).
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3 all learners. This paper sets out how the education sector will take forward a range of ideas related to these priorities. Over the past 18 months the Scottish Government (SG), Education Scotland (ES), Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) , Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework Partnership (SCQFP), Skills Development Scotland (SDS) and the Curriculum and Assessment Board (CAB)3 have been working in partnership to support and enable significant, wide-ranging and important reforms to Scotland’s approach to curriculum, qualifications and assessment. At the heart of this work is a new Curriculum Improvement Cycle (CIC), being led by Education Scotland, which sets out to establish a process for systematically reviewing the curriculum in Scotland. This will allow Scotland’s curriculum to evolve over time in response to what children and young people need and what society demands. The focus of this first cycle of review will be the evolution of the technical framework for the curriculum from 3–18 and improving how progression is supported from BGE into the senior phase. This work includes a review cycle for Gaelic, recognising the importance of developing a curriculum specifically tailored for Gaelic Medium Education (GME). In the senior phase, we will review the balance of assessment approaches and broaden the range and types of assessment methods used in National Courses. We will review and rationalise qualifications currently used in the senior phase and work to create the conditions where all qualification types are perceived as having equal value. We will also co-design and develop a digital profile that will act as standardised framework for recognising young people’s wider skills and achievements, as well as qualifications, with strong underpinnings for comparability and recognition outside school. Our collective aim is to ensure our children and young people acquire and gain recognition for the knowledge, skills, understanding, attributes, and capabilities that will equip them for future success. The reforms will protect and build on key strengths within our curriculum and approach to qualifications, assessment and skills development but they will make some important and much-needed improvements. The changes will ensure the curriculum, assessment and range of qualification types available to learners in Scotland remain forward looking, inclusive and support high quality teaching and learning, and improved attainment and achievement for all. 3 Membership of the Curriculum and Assessment Board (CAB) includes: Association of Directors of Education, Association of Headteachers and Deputes in Scotland, College Development Network, Colleges Scotland, Community Learning and Development Manager Group, Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, Early Years Scotland, The Educational Institute of Scotland, Education Scotland, Professor Mark Priestley, University of Stirling, Professor Louise Hayward, University of Glasgow, National Association of Schoolmasters Union of Women Teachers, School Leaders Scotland, Scottish Council of Independent Schools, Scottish Funding Council, Scottish Government, Scottish Secondary Teachers Association, Scottish Qualifications Authority, Skills Development Scotland and Universities Scotland.
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4 Outcomes and Benefits We know that the changes set out in this document will have significant and long-term benefits for children and young people, educators, schools and settings, colleges as well as employers and the tertiary education sector. While increasing the eVectiveness of our curriculum, qualifications and assessment system we will also build a culture that supports children and young people in the achievement of their own goals and learning pathways. All activity will be underpinned by a service design approach to development which includes communications and engagement that enables all interested parties understand the rationale for change, what is happening and when and how they will have the chance to become involved. Key benefits of the programme of reform include: • The establishment of a consistent national approach to the reform of curriculum, qualifications and assessment. This will ensure that all education settings and educators will all be working within an agreed and supportive framework designed to support local decision making while setting clear expectations as to a common, Scotland-wide, approach. • A recognisable and sustainable model for the ongoing review of the curriculum. The model will have four main stages: analysing; engaging and co- creating; sharing, learning and adopting, mobilising, and monitoring and evaluating. • An evolved technical framework, giving greater clarity on the knowledge and skills children and young people should develop at each stage of their learning journey across the broad general education and into the senior phase. This will support better transition and progression across the curriculum. • An updated approach to curriculum, qualifications and assessment will help us address a range of complex issues such as attendance, attainment and behaviour by making learning more accessible, more appealing and more enjoyable for a greater number of children and young people as well as more relevant to post-school study and employment. • An approach to assessment in the senior phase which will include a reduced focus on exams, where appropriate, and will include digital assessment. This could in part be achieved through modularisation of qualifications allowing learners to have their achievements recognised as they progress through a course of study. This strand of work will begin with a focus on senior phase qualifications at SCQF Level 4 and 5, where feedback from stakeholders indicates that a review is required to support better outcomes for more children and young people.
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5 • The review and resulting rationalisation of the existing qualifications oCer resulting in the creation of clear and high-quality learner pathways for all children and young people. This will include addressing long-standing issues in respect of parity of esteem between diVerent pathways (such as work based learning) and qualification types. • Continued co-design and development of Scotland’s Learner Profile, as part of Skills Development Scotland’s My World of Work digital career service, which will record a young person’s achievements and help them evidence their success. This work is being led in partnership between Education Scotland and SDS. • The development of a new and significant programme of professional learning that will support educators to confidently adopt changes to the curriculum and to eVectively manage new forms of assessment. • The development of a coherent and robust approach to evaluation, including through inspection evidence, of the implementation of the updates to curriculum, qualifications and assessment across Scotland, and its impact on learner outcomes. We recognise that a key step in realising the benefits outlined above - and in responding to long-standing concerns about the impact of qualifications on teaching and learning - is to resolve the relationship between the technical framework of the curriculum (the guidance that teachers and practitioners use to plan learning) and National Course specifications in the senior phase. To achieve this, we will bring these two strands of work together to ensure that the curriculum framework and qualifications are fully aligned. Curriculum, Qualifications and Assessment Reform – Timeline This diagram illustrates our current and shared understanding of how reform to curriculum, qualifications and assessment will be taken forward over a number of years. The diagram starts in 2025 with the Curriculum Improvement Cycle well underway (the Cycle having commenced in early 2024) and concludes with the availability of new qualifications at SCQF Levels 6 and 7 in 2032. The timeline has been developed by the Scottish Government in conjunction with key partners including Education Scotland and SQA and has also been tested with the Curriculum Assessment Board. Expected key dates include: • Scotland’s Learner Profile via My World of Work moves from early experience to national roll out in the summer of 2025.
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6 • Start of a new qualification product type design phase in the autumn of 2025. • The publication of the draft evolved curriculum technical framework in the summer of 2026. • Rebalancing assessment in existing national qualifications, with a change of approach in the first subjects from 2026. • A significant period for preparing for the evolved technical framework from January 2027. • Start of new qualification development phase at subject level in 2028. • Formal adoption4 of the evolved technical framework in two stages from 2028. o Adoption of changes to Early, First, Second and Third Level from August 2028 o Phased adoption of changes to fourth level and beyond from August 2029 • Level 4 and Level 5 National Qualifications aligned to the evolved curriculum technical framework from 2031. The diagram shows the key strands of reform over time. Orange and yellow bars indicate changes to curriculum and qualifications including the Curriculum Improvement Cycle/development of new approaches to assessment. The text highlighted in blue shows where it is expected that key milestone or outputs (e.g. new document, tool or guidance) will be released. The expected major milestones, for example the adoption of new qualifications, are noted in Annex C. The graphic is designed to help local authorities, education settings and educators start to prepare for change. For example, it allows the reader to see that an updated curriculum is being developed now, when we expect that to be formally adopted in 2028 and when associated qualifications will start to become available in 2031. The diagram therefore illustrates the period of time the system has to prepare for change including in respect of a period of professional learning. If viewing the timetable from the perspective of a learner, it is worth noting that a young person currently entering primary seven later this year, can expect to be in the first group to experience the evolved technical framework in the third year of secondary school. Conclusion and Next Steps While this paper focusses on reform to curriculum, qualifications and assessment it is important to note that reform to education bodies will continue in the coming months with Qualifications Scotland and the independent HMIE becoming operational in the 4 Formal adoption refers to the point at which schools and settings are expected to transition to the new technical framework for Curriculum for Excellence (CfE) as the basis for planning learning, teaching, assessment, and reporting. From this point forward, the new framework becomes the reference standard for local authority quality assurance processes, school self-evaluation, and national inspection activity.
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7 Autumn of 2025. The refocused Education Scotland - with a primary focus on curriculum - will also implement transition plans for Autumn 2025. This is a complex and long-term programme of work and it is reasonable to assume some dates will change. Every eVort will be made to ensure that the programme retains its coherence, that key elements remain aligned, that appropriate time is built in for leaders and educators to prepare for change, and that action is taken in the correct order. We will therefore publish periodic updates, including in Gaelic, to this timeline. There will be many opportunities for all interested parties to engage with the work. To stay updated on opportunities as they arise, please register with Education Scotland and SQA newsletters. It is also possible to provide comments on the series of three discussion papers published by Education Scotland that outline the background work of the Curriculum Improvement Cycle. Our intention is to ensure that: • The package of reform and its implementation is coherent and retains the shared view that curriculum should drive qualifications. • The work will continue to be developed collaboratively in conjunction with a range of stakeholders, including our educators, children and young people. This is a long-term programme of work and educators will need time, information, support and professional learning to implement changes arising from the evolution of the technical framework 3-18 and understanding of the new approach to qualifications and assessment. • The reform programme takes account of the capacity challenges and the reality of education post-Covid. These include, for example, educators having time to prepare for new approaches and how the wider system, addresses interdependencies such as digital infrastructure, national performance measures and assuring alignment between the CIC and new frameworks including: inspection and review, the wider skills policy landscape and teacher education and development in Scotland. This is a unique and significant opportunity to ensure all young people in Scotland have their achievements recognised, their talents nurtured, and their future supported by a curriculum and qualifications system that reflects who they are and what they can do. It is also a chance to shape an education system that prepares them to grow as learners, to develop as individuals, to contribute meaningfully to society, and to participate fully as citizens in a rapidly changing world - one that demands adaptability, creativity, compassion and a deep understanding of both people and planet.
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8 Annex A- Useful Links • Curriculum Improvement Cycle – Education Scotland • Scotland’s Curriculum for Excellence: Into the Future – Report of the OECD • SG response to The Independent Review of Qualifications and Assessment • All Learners in Scotland Matter - Report of the National Discussion • Putting Learners at the Centre • Scottish Government – Education Reform • Fit for the Future: developing a post-school learning system to fuel economic transformation. Skills Delivery Landscape Review – Final Report • Scotland's Learner Profile
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© Crown copyright 2025 This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open- government-licence/version/3 or write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk. Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned. This publication is available at www.gov.scot Any enquiries regarding this publication should be sent to us at The Scottish Government St Andrew’s House Edinburgh EH1 3DG ISBN: 978-1-83691-813-4 (web only) Published by The Scottish Government, June 2025 Produced for The Scottish Government by APS Group Scotland, 21 Tennant Street, Edinburgh EH6 5NA PPDAS1617214 (06/25) w w w . g o v . s c o t