This one speaks the truth...

Blimey, things have come to a pretty pass when we have to rely on the Head Teacher of a private school to speak up about the impending mess that is "A Curriculum for Excellence" (or Mince as I described it in a recent post). So fair play to the head of "Smellies", as the good people of Edinburgh might refer to the august institution that is (deep breath) Daniel Stewart's and Melville College, for doing just that, as reported by the Scotsman newspaper here.

Apparently the outcomes for Mathematics are due for release... today? I'll believe it when I see it. Even better would be for the ACE people to fess up and actually make clear precisely how we are meant to contribute our thoughts and opinions, as (scandalously) there seems to be no actual mechanism for feedback at all just now. To be fair, this is entirely in keeping with the so-vague-it's-saying-next-to-nothing approach taken thus far by the whole enterprise.

This is all very worrying.

A Curriculum For Mince?

OK, maybe I'm being a bit harsh, but the much heralded "numeracy outcomes" for ACE (as those in the know call it) are now out, and boy, you might just as well try to nail jelly to the wall as get a grasp of these beauties. Those of you working in schools needn't dash off to find which member of the Senior Management Team has received the paperwork and is hiding it in a cupboard somewhere, as - of course - the outcomes are available online. (Is it just me, by the way, or is it not an appalling dereliction of duty and responsibility for major public organisations like LTS and SQA to unilaterally transfer the copying and printing costs on to already-cash-strapped schools?)

So, you can find them - and various other bits and bobs - here. Early response from maths teachers I know is basically "despair". We shall see. More to follow.