Giving evidence before the Education Committee, EIS representatives welcomed the Scottish Government’s target of reducing classes to a maximum of 18 pupils for P1 to P3 but called for a more consistent approach to class sizes, with a target of a maximum of 20 pupils for all classes to be phased in over the longer term.

EIS told MSPs that lowering class sizes was essential to accommodate the significant curriculum changes being ushered in by Curriculum for Excellence. Vice President Elect, Helen Connor said: “If you look at the changes happening in our education system you need the class size to allow teachers to engage with young people to achieve the four targets of Curriculum for Excellence. If you’re trying to do this in a class of 30 it’s much more difficult than if you take 10 pupils away from that.”

Ronnie Smith, EIS General Secretary, argued that whilst reducing class sizes in P1-3 was a step in the right direction lower class sizes must be sustained throughout school classes if it is to have a significant impact. Smith said: “We want to see the work undertaken in P1-3 extended throughout primary school. Where there is evidence of a set back in education it is where youngsters move from small class sizes to larger class sizes. So there must be a smoothing out in reduction of class sizes beyond P1-3.”

Smith raised concerns over the lack of specificity in the Scottish Government’s Concordat agreement with local authorities in terms of meeting the class size target by 2011. Smith said: “We would share the concerns that there is not enough specificity or robust monitoring in the Single Outcome Agreements or the concordat agreement about meeting this target and over the desire of local authorities to move towards these reductions. We will be looking very closely at the ‘year on year’ progress made.”

Connor acknowledged education authorities which were making positive progress towards lower class sizes but also cited the case of Glasgow City Council to demonstrate the problems of leaving it to local authorities to implement the target. She said: “We welcome the progress made in areas like South Lanarkshire, North Lanarkshire and Orkney. The difficulty for us is that this is a national commitment made by the Scottish Government but it will be delivered by local authorities. Equally we have Glasgow saying that reducing class sizes is not a priority for them…. My question is what the Scottish Government is going to do to monitor local authorities who are not going to have a year on year reduction in class sizes, because the expectation has been built up.”

In response to a question from Mary Mulligan MSP on resources to fund lowering class sizes, EIS Vice President David Drever recommended the committee take this issue up with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA). He said “Some individual authorities are not singing from the same hymn sheet and that gap is worth exploring.” Committee Convenor Karen Whitefield told MSPs that COSLA had declined to give oral evidence before the committee on the matter but that in light of this the committee may now consider compelling them to do so.