Wednesday 20 Feb 2008 @ 14:20
Scottish Government
Scottish Government
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Putting literacy at the heart of learning
Reading, writing and spelling are to be embedded in all aspects of the new modern Curriculum for Excellence skills to give young people the best start in the 21st century workplace.
Under the Government's new Curriculum for Excellence, literacy is being put at the heart of teaching. There will be renewed attention on spelling, comprehension, punctuation and debate in all their learning, whether it's in the classroom or through new technology outside.
Today, young people are spending more time using many different types of writing in and out of the classroom: webcasts, podcasts, blogging and social networking. The new emphasis on literacy is intended to teach them to think about recognising the overt and hidden messages in different media and to consider the consequences of their own actions online. They will also learn when it is and when it's not acceptable to use text-speak.
Maureen Watt, Minister for Schools and Skills, said: "We teach children how to understand, analyse and communicate using words on paper and rightly so. We're not going to stop that - indeed we want people to be properly equipped with better literacy skills. At the same time, of course, we get our news and information more from TV and the internet than from the newspaper. We communicate through email and text messaging and social networking more than writing letters.
"Communication in the modern workplace is essential. Employers expect and are demanding core literacy skills from school leavers.
"Young people are immersed in technology and the tools that help them create websites, blogs, videos and podcasts also allow them to be authors and publishers. They can reach a worldwide audience, so we have to teach them to do this well. We would be failing them if we just stand by and ignore these developments.
"In a rapidly changing ICT world, there will be added focus on learning about effective communication in all forms of media. ICT presents so many different ways of communicating that learning about literacy must also help pupils to identify which form of communication works best in different situations."
Guidance on teaching literacy skills forms part of the English Literacy "draft outcomes" which are published today, along with Gaidhlig, as part of the Government's plans to introduce a more holistic approach to education for children aged three to 18.
Ms Watt said: "The draft outcomes for Scotland's new curriculum are intended to help teachers make teaching more relevant, exciting and engaging. We are keen to receive feedback on the outcomes from professionals who will be working towards this transformation across Scottish education.
"It is vitally important that teachers read and react to these draft outcomes and think about how they will be able to use this guidance to make their teaching as good as it can be."
Anyone with an interest can give their feedback by using a questionnaire on the Learning Teaching Scotland website.
The Literacy draft outcomes are pointers on what children should be learning and demonstrate to teachers how lessons can be linked, e.g. how a comprehension lesson can be expanded into drama. 2. Curriculum for Excellence aims to provide seamless education from age three to 18 and is taking a fresh look at what is taught in schools and how. 3. It aims to ensure that all young people can be successful learners, effective contributors, confident individuals and responsible citizens. 4. School pupils are already seeing changes in their classrooms through the groundwork that has been ongoing since 2004. The draft outcomes provide further tools for teachers. The plans are being firmed up in this school year and in 2009/2010 all schools across Scotland will be working on delivery. 5. Curriculum for Excellence will shift the balance between a teaching process that is heavily dependent on content to one that values new approaches that improve pupils' understanding of what is being taught and how it can be used. This is the start of a continuous process of review to ensure that the curriculum remains up to date.
Related Information
Under the Government's new Curriculum for Excellence, literacy is being put at the heart of teaching. There will be renewed attention on spelling, comprehension, punctuation and debate in all their learning, whether it's in the classroom or through new technology outside.
Today, young people are spending more time using many different types of writing in and out of the classroom: webcasts, podcasts, blogging and social networking. The new emphasis on literacy is intended to teach them to think about recognising the overt and hidden messages in different media and to consider the consequences of their own actions online. They will also learn when it is and when it's not acceptable to use text-speak.
Maureen Watt, Minister for Schools and Skills, said: "We teach children how to understand, analyse and communicate using words on paper and rightly so. We're not going to stop that - indeed we want people to be properly equipped with better literacy skills. At the same time, of course, we get our news and information more from TV and the internet than from the newspaper. We communicate through email and text messaging and social networking more than writing letters.
"Communication in the modern workplace is essential. Employers expect and are demanding core literacy skills from school leavers.
"Young people are immersed in technology and the tools that help them create websites, blogs, videos and podcasts also allow them to be authors and publishers. They can reach a worldwide audience, so we have to teach them to do this well. We would be failing them if we just stand by and ignore these developments.
"In a rapidly changing ICT world, there will be added focus on learning about effective communication in all forms of media. ICT presents so many different ways of communicating that learning about literacy must also help pupils to identify which form of communication works best in different situations."
Guidance on teaching literacy skills forms part of the English Literacy "draft outcomes" which are published today, along with Gaidhlig, as part of the Government's plans to introduce a more holistic approach to education for children aged three to 18.
Ms Watt said: "The draft outcomes for Scotland's new curriculum are intended to help teachers make teaching more relevant, exciting and engaging. We are keen to receive feedback on the outcomes from professionals who will be working towards this transformation across Scottish education.
"It is vitally important that teachers read and react to these draft outcomes and think about how they will be able to use this guidance to make their teaching as good as it can be."
Anyone with an interest can give their feedback by using a questionnaire on the Learning Teaching Scotland website.
The Literacy draft outcomes are pointers on what children should be learning and demonstrate to teachers how lessons can be linked, e.g. how a comprehension lesson can be expanded into drama. 2. Curriculum for Excellence aims to provide seamless education from age three to 18 and is taking a fresh look at what is taught in schools and how. 3. It aims to ensure that all young people can be successful learners, effective contributors, confident individuals and responsible citizens. 4. School pupils are already seeing changes in their classrooms through the groundwork that has been ongoing since 2004. The draft outcomes provide further tools for teachers. The plans are being firmed up in this school year and in 2009/2010 all schools across Scotland will be working on delivery. 5. Curriculum for Excellence will shift the balance between a teaching process that is heavily dependent on content to one that values new approaches that improve pupils' understanding of what is being taught and how it can be used. This is the start of a continuous process of review to ensure that the curriculum remains up to date.
Related Information
