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Schools of Ambition programme

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The Schools of Ambition programme, also called the Schools of Ambition initiative, was a government programme in Scotland that aimed to improve school character and performance[2] by offering struggling secondary schools philanthropist money and an extra annual £100,000 in government funding for three years.[3][4] This would then be spent towards implementing a transformation plan that could include environmental changes, investment into curricula and staff, and cooperation with businesses, sixth forms and the local community. Participating schools became Schools of Ambition, specialist schools that likely had a change in management,[3][4] which aimed to stand out as innovating, leading schools that would inspire the youth.[5] The scheme was launched by Jack McConnell's Labour–Liberal Democrat coalition government in 2005[6] and discontinued by Alex Salmond's SNP government in 2010.[7][8]

First Minister Jack McConnell launched the programme during a visit to Inverness High School on 16 September 2005. This school was one of the first 20 Schools of Ambition.[1]

Before the launch of the programme, only seven out of Scotland's 386 secondary schools had specialist school status.[9]

Development

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In July 2004, at the same time as the launch of the British government's educational five-year plan for England, in which a specialist school system would be established, it was alleged by sources that Scottish ministers were in negotiations with entrepreneurs to privately invest into new proposed specialist schools in Scotland. Entrepreneurs speculated to have taken part included Conservative Party supporter Lord Irvine, Labour Party lord Willie Haughey and philanthropist Tom Hunter.[10] These new specialist schools would not be based on England's city academies, which at this time were specialist schools[11][12] independent from local authority control with private sponsors influencing their curricula, staff and ethos,[13] but would instead be schools "that will link private sector funding with public sector investment [...] with more flexibility than current schools". First Minister Jack McConnell was revealed to have at least agreed with the "principle" of private funding after the negotiations, although "no firm decisions" were made.[10]

These proposals were confirmed by McConnell in September 2004, when he announced that 20 secondary schools identified as the worst in the country would benefit from extra resources and funding from the private sector, namely philanthropist donors, and the Scottish Executive through a new Schools of Ambition initiative. As compensation, these schools had to promise to improve their attendance, attainment and behaviour. McConnell and his education minister Peter Peacock insisted that these donors would have no influence in these schools and that they would be completely comprehensive. They would be modelled after North Lanarkshire's specialist schools, which were unselective comprehensives, and would specialise in subjects like art, sport and music.[14] Like English specialist schools, they would also be centres of excellence in these subjects.[15][16] The programme would be granted £8 million every year.[17][18]

The programme was built-upon in the November 2004 education white paper Ambitious, Excellent Schools: Our Agenda for Action.[5] This paper established the Scottish government's agenda for modernising comprehensive education, with plans to "see rich, colourful and diverse [comprehensive schools], offering choice for pupils and with ambition for themselves and for each and every one of their pupils". The programme would enable its schools to seek support from philanthropic or local benefactors and would give them administrative independence. Schools expected to gain from the programme would be nominated for participation by their local government authorities and put forward to a special panel full of the representatives of the authorities, Her Majesty's Inspectors and the Scottish Executive.[19] They would then submit a transformation plan to the panel, which could include investment into environmental changes, curricula and staff, and cooperation with businesses, sixth forms and the local community.[5] If approved, the schools would then gain School of Ambition status and receive an extra annual £100,000 in government funding for three years and the possibility to receive more money from philanthropist donors. These schools would have specialist school status and would likely have new management.[20][3][4] Schools judged by inspectors to need significant improvement and support would be approved to the programme automatically.[19]

Implementation

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Labour Education Minister Peter Peacock and SNP Education Secretary Fiona Hyslop.

In February 2005 government ministers, including Education Minister Peter Peacock, invited local councils to bid their secondary schools for a place in the programme as one of its first 20 schools.[21][4] Schools had to establish a vision and make a transformation plan, explaining its effects on pupils and the local community. 43 schools were shortlisted by late-April and almost 30 councils had put forward a bid, with only four yet to have done so.[22][23] The 20 winning schools were announced in June,[3] making up the first "tranche" of the programme.[24][25] All of these schools were partnered with a potential philanthropist.[3]

The programme was launched by the Scottish Executive Education Department on 16 September 2005, when First Minister Jack McConnell visited Inverness High School, which was one of the 20 Schools of Ambition announced earlier that year.[5][1][3] Before the programme's launch, only seven out of Scotland's 386 secondary schools had specialist school status, a figure that would subsequently grow with the new Schools of Ambition.[9]

In February 2006, it was announced that six more schools were joining the programme's first tranche, although their identities and locations were yet to be revealed. Tom Hunter, who was now investing £600,000 into the programme, implied that these schools would be located in Glasgow.[26] They were revealed in April 2006, alongside a seventh School of Ambition, forming the programme's second tranche. Only one of these were located in Glasgow. At the same time, Education Minister Peter Peacock decided to open up bidding for the third tranche, claiming that the programme had made good progress.[27][28] 21 of these schools were announced in February 2007, giving the programme almost 50 Schools of Ambition.[29][30] Three more would also join: the third tranche was finalised in March 2007, leaving 51 Schools of Ambition across Scotland's 32 local authority areas.[28] A 52nd school had also joined the programme by 2008.[31]

A new SNP government was sworn into office after the 2007 Scottish Parliament election. The new education minister, now renamed education secretary, was Fiona Hyslop. Hyslop had previously welcomed the programme when in opposition for bringing more support to schools, but stressed that it would benefit only a few schoolchildren. The SNP's policy was to give all schools School of Ambition status.[32][29] It was then announced in March 2008 that the new government would be discontinuing the programme in 2010 under Hyslop's orders.[8][7][33] Hyslop said the "lessons learned from the project [would be] put into practice across all schools so that all schools can be schools of ambition" and confirmed that funding would continue until the end of the current parliament.[8][34]

The programme ended in 2010 with the expiration of the third tranche's period of extra funding.[35]

Reception

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When the programme was announced in September 2004, it was unclear whether the new Schools of Ambition would be selective. Some teaching unions opposed the Schools of Ambition programme on these grounds, adding that the new plans would introduce selection "by the back door",[15] a claim that was often used against specialist schools in England.[36][37][38] This uncertainty began when, during the announcement, First Minister Jack McConnell said that "there [would] be no elitist selection of pupils", despite having said two weeks earlier that comprehensive schools were "ordinary" and had no place in Scotland, thereby implying that a move to selective education in Scotland was coming.[39] McConnell's aides had also claimed a week before the announcement that he saw selection as a way to improve standards.[15] Furthermore, an alleged source from the Scottish Executive believed that selection in the programme was unavoidable, as they expected a need for its schools "to select according to narrow aptitudes in order to allow pupils to pursue their talents". This source also claimed that ministers in the government had avoided using the term "selection" as they did not yet know how the new schools would work and feared misrepresentation of the programme in the media. "Elitist selection" as dismissed by McConnell was therefore claimed to have meant "selection on a broad spectrum of academic ability".[14]

Many also viewed the programme as having too weak of an impact. This opinion was shared between the main political opposition during the McConnell government, the SNP and Conservative Party, and also the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) and Scottish Secondary Teachers' Association (SSTA).[40][41] COSLA and the SNP did however welcome the programme, with COSLA in particular supporting "most of the reforms", criticising it only for a small focus around "schools in isolation".[40] The SNP's education spokeswoman Fiona Hyslop was concerned that it would only benefit a few schoolchildren and schools, with her party calling for every school to receive School of Ambition status.[4][29] Meanwhile, her Conservative counterpart James Douglas-Hamilton believed it was "grossly insufficient" and did nothing to address the alleged two-tier system in Scottish state education,[32][40] with his colleague Brian Monteith proposing extra pupil funding for all schools.[4] The Conservatives later saw the programme as a success, coming to its defence by the time the SNP had entered government.[42] The Scottish Socialist Party criticised the programme for ignoring class-size reduction and introducing school funding from the private sector.[40]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Inverness High School". West Inverness. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
  2. ^ Schools of Ambition: Leading Change (PDF). Edinburgh: Scottish Government. April 2009. pp. 1 and 32. ISBN 978-0-7559-8037-6.
  3. ^ a b c d e f "Cash to help schools 'transform'". BBC News. 27 June 2005. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
  4. ^ a b c d e f "Specialist schools plan go-ahead". BBC News. 23 February 2005. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
  5. ^ a b c d Research to Support Schools of Ambition: Final Report (PDF). University of Glasgow; University of Aberdeen; University of Strathclyde. Scottish Government Social Research. 2010. ISBN 9780755996841.
  6. ^ Macleod, Angus (28 June 2005). "First Scottish 'schools of ambition' are marked out". The Sunday Times. Archived from the original on 15 May 2022. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
  7. ^ a b "SNP ministers scrap £15m Schools of Ambition project". The Herald. 5 March 2008. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
  8. ^ a b c "Ministers to scrap schools scheme". BBC News. 5 March 2008.
  9. ^ a b "First Minister's Question Time". TheyWorkForYou. 8 September 2004. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  10. ^ a b "Private cash move to fund schools". BBC News. 9 July 2004. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  11. ^ Wilson, Joan (May 2011). Are England's Academies More Inclusive or More "Exclusive"? The Impact of Institutional Change on the Pupil Profile of Schools (PDF). Centre for the Economics of Education. p. 13. ERIC_ED529848.
  12. ^ Copps, John (April 2006). On your marks: young people in education, a guide for donors and funders (PDF). New Philanthropy Capital. p. 61. ISBN 9780954883683.
  13. ^ Smithers, Rebecca; Taylors, Matthew (16 September 2005). "Sponsors offered 'four for price of three' deal for city academies programme". The Guardian. Retrieved 17 July 2022.
  14. ^ a b "McConnell plans intensive care for the 20 worst schools Additional resources from public and private purse". The Herald. 8 September 2004. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  15. ^ a b c "The First Minister is for turning". The Scotsman. 8 September 2004. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  16. ^ "PART 5: SUPPORT STRUCTURES FOR TEACHERS AND LEARNERS OF STEM SUBJECTS". Supporting Scotland's STEM Education and Culture: Second Report. From the Scottish Learning Directorate; Contributions from the Science and Engineering Education Advisory Group. Scottish Government. 28 February 2012. Specialist schools (centres of subject excellence). ISBN 9781780456737.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  17. ^ "Peacock outlines schools shake-up". BBC News. 1 November 2004. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  18. ^ Curtis, Polly (1 November 2004). "Main points: Scotland's 12-step plan". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  19. ^ a b Peacock, Peter; Robson, Euan (November 2004). Ambitious, Excellent Schools: Our Agenda for Action (PDF). Edinburgh: Scottish Executive. ISBN 0-7559-4359-7.
  20. ^ Seenan, Gerard (9 November 2004). "Leaders in the field". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  21. ^ Macleod, Angus (24 February 2005). "New cash for Scots schools of ambition". The Times. Archived from the original on 4 December 2021. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  22. ^ "Peer pumps cash into Moray school". BBC News. 19 April 2005. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  23. ^ Macleod, Angus (20 April 2005). "Peer's £40,000 for Scots school". The Times. Archived from the original on 16 May 2022. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  24. ^ Lessons learned from the Schools of Ambition initiative (PDF). Livingston: HM Inspectorate of Education. 2010. p. 3.
  25. ^ Menter, Ian; Murray, Jean (13 September 2013). Developing Research in Teacher Education. Routledge. p. 106. ISBN 978-1-317-98588-4.
  26. ^ "Aim high in ambition stakes Schools project should be encouraged and expanded". The Herald. 24 February 2006. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
  27. ^ "'Ambitious schools' on increase". BBC News. 28 April 2006. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
  28. ^ a b Research to Support Schools of Ambition: Annual Report 2009 (PDF). University of Glasgow; University of Aberdeen; University of Strathclyde. Scottish Government. November 2009. ISBN 978-0-7559-7710-9.
  29. ^ a b c "Schools to receive ambition funds". BBC News. 23 February 2007. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
  30. ^ "Schools share £2m to encourage innovation in education". The Scotsman. 23 February 2007. Archived from the original on 14 February 2017. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
  31. ^ "Schools of Ambition". TheyWorkForYou. 20 March 2008. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
  32. ^ a b "Peacock opts for choice to solve pupils' woes". The Scotsman. 2 November 2004. Archived from the original on 2 April 2023. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  33. ^ "Axe for £15m scheme to help pupils excel". Glasgow Times. 5 March 2008. Retrieved 15 July 2022.
  34. ^ "Is snuffing out Schools of Ambition a classic political ploy?". The Herald. 6 March 2008. Retrieved 18 May 2022.
  35. ^ McLaughlin, Colleen (2013). Teachers Learning: Professional Development and Education. Cambridge University Press. p. 82. ISBN 978-1-107-61869-5.
  36. ^ Judd, Judith (6 November 1997). "Education: Gifted pupils could be taught in masterclasses". The Independent. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
  37. ^ "Selective amnesia". The Economist. 22 July 1999. ISSN 0013-0613. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
  38. ^ Lightfoot, Liz (10 February 2003). "Clarke 'bringing in selection by the back door'". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
  39. ^ Woodhead, Chris (12 September 2004). "Elitism is good for children". The Sunday Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Archived from the original on 7 September 2021. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
  40. ^ a b c d "School plans 'not radical enough'". BBC News. 1 November 2004. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
  41. ^ "Doubt cast on education proposals". BBC News. 8 September 2004. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
  42. ^ "Furore over end of schools strategy". The Herald. 21 March 2008. Retrieved 27 May 2022.
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