'No plans' for a further EHE review in Scotland

[Ali P]

Keith Brown MSP, Minister for Schools and Skills, sent the following response to a query about the Scottish Government's plans (or otherwise) for a 'review' of elective home education.

Thank you for your letter dated 20 February to Fiona Hyslop, Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning, on behalf of your constituent, Mr S, regarding home education.

Mr S asks whether a review into Home Education will be conducted in the near future. Following extensive consultation, the Scottish Government issued new Home Education Guidance in January 2008. The guidance sets out the rights and responsibilities for home educating parents and local authorities and we consider, sets out a framework where home educators and local authorities can establish positive relationships and mutual respect. This guidance has received very positive responses from both home educators and local authorities. We therefore, have no plans to carry out a further review on Home Education.

For your constituent's information, I have attached a link to our Home Education Guidance.
http://wm.scotland.gov.uk/Publicatio.../12/17133313/0

[Diane]

At least somebody's got some sense.

Yay, Scotland.

Diane

[Elaine Kirk]

That news has had such an effect on me ! probably because to me it reads
'Your childs sense of security and wellbeing will not be undermined by the SNP '

[Ali P]

Originally Posted by Elaine Kirk

That news has had such an effect on me ! probably because to me it reads
'Your childs sense of security and wellbeing will not be undermined by the SNP '

Well, not as far as the home ed stuff goes, but I have grave doubts as to whether they know or understand the bigger GIRFEC agenda that they are heartily embracing without much, if any, scrutiny.

I would like to believe that a few of our esteemed Govt ministers have worked out where it has come from (and Danielle Reid/Victoria Climbie is the wrong answer), but so far I'm not convinced. Talking to some of those who think it's "a good thing" is like talking to the undead in my experience.

That leaves only two possibilities as far as I am concerned:

• the Scottish Govt is too dim to realise what it's really about.
• the Scottish Govt is happy to concede the national identity register (to which they are allegedly opposed) by the back door and they think we're too daft to notice.

Don't get me wrong, I am delighted to have this assurance from the minister about home ed, but GIRFEC will intrude into the lives of every single child (and his/her entire family), and who knows what data will be collected/made up/shared/lost/hacked or otherwise misused?

[Amy Thomson]

Originally Posted by Ali P

Well, not as far as the home ed stuff goes, but I have grave doubts as to whether they know or understand the bigger GIRFEC agenda that they are heartily embracing without much, if any, scrutiny.

That's what I'm worried about. It's fantastic that the Scottish Government has no plans for a review, but I do wonder how much difference it's going to make in practice if every child is to have a 'named person' (health visitor or a teacher in most cases - there are to be special arrangements, apparently, for home educators) assessing them at every turn. Especially as all the assessments are to be tied to whatever state-imposed curriculum is fashionable at the time, so the data can be standardised for storage.