Candidate Response – Scottish Unionist Party
We believe that today’s students are disadvantaged when compared to previous generations through being burdened with student loans by having to pay tuition fees. The Scottish Unionist Party would support moves to return to a system of free education up to the first degree level.
The party believe in strengthening the schools system by reducing class sizes and by ensuring that best practice in learning and teaching is shared across all sectors of education.
We support inclusion where it is to the benefit of all but feel that where pupils have social and emotional problems that result in behaviour which disrupts the education of others or where the parents and staff in SEN establishments feel that it is in the best interest of the pupils, then we support separate units and additional trained support as appropriate.
We support the call to strengthen the pre 5 sector but would not support any moves to make pre schooling compulsory. We also disagree with extending the school leaving age to 18 opting instead for developing appropriate further education and skills based learning for 16 to 18 year olds who might otherwise end up unemployed.
The Scottish Unionist Party support moves to end segregation in education. We believe that all of our young people should be educated together in multi denominational / multi faith schools.
There is no place in a 21st century Scotland for the sectarian division of our children at the age of 5.
We also believe that teachers should be employed because of the ability and educational qualifications and not because of their religious beliefs and we would ask you to question the University of Glasgow’s Education Department’s policy of discrimination in the recruitment of students to their under graduate and post graduate courses in Primary Education.
Yours for the Union.
Jim Nixon
Secretary