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Since the introduction of this additional funding from 2020, teacher numbers have increased from 52,247 in the 2019 teacher census to 54,033 in the 2023 teacher census.

I have greatly valued discussions with the OECD to date and my next meeting with the OECD is scheduled for Wednesday 21 February.

In school inspections, HM Inspectors evaluate and report on the quality of education being provided. HM Inspectors use quality indicators from 'How good is our school? (4th edition).' This framework focuses on evaluating the quality of education provision for learners which is a key responsibility of HM Inspectors. There are currently no plans for HM Chief Inspector to issue additional guidance in relation to staff health and wellbeing.

The health and wellbeing of staff is primarily the responsibility of the employer. For most schools in Scotland this means local authorities are responsible for ensuring arrangements are in place to support staff health and wellbeing.

In carrying out inspections, HM Inspectors are mindful that inspection can be an unfamiliar experience for school staff. HM Inspectors work together with the school to minimise disruption and unnecessary bureaucracy. HM Inspectors provide a headteacher's briefing note to schools being inspected to ensure they know what to expect, and what papers or examples of work the inspection team will want to see. They aim to carry out inspections in a way that seeks to minimise burden on staff and keep paperwork required to a minimum. Inspectors are happy to observe what teachers would be doing on an ordinary day without any special changes for an inspection.

HM Inspectors take care to ensure that they operate in line with best practice principles, known as the PRAISE framework. This framework outlines expectations regarding conduct and behaviour of HM Inspectors when engaging with staff in a school or setting.

The Scottish Government is unaware of any such claims.

Decline in applications for teaching bursaries can be for many reasons, including a fall in the overall number of applications for the PGDE courses in bursary eligible subjects.

We are engaging with a range of stakeholders including local authority employers, university providers and the teaching unions to work collectively to raise the profile of teaching as a highly rewarding career.

As you will be aware, the scheme was extended in 2023 to include Gaelic as a secondary subject, and Gaelic medium across all secondary subjects and in primary.

As announced in a statement to Parliament on 12 December 2023, Maths will be the first curricular area to be revised as part of the new systematic curriculum improvement cycle.

The update to the Maths curriculum will begin in 2024 and will be tested with Scotland’s teachers later in the year. The next curricular area to be looked at in depth after Maths will be Literacy and English.

Planning for the sequencing and implementation of the overall improvement cycle is underway. Decisions on which curricular areas should be prioritised following Maths/Numeracy and Literacy/English and timescales for those further packages of work, will be informed by evidence and will be subject to discussions with key stakeholders and delivery partners.

We have announced £900,000 for local councils to aid training of support staff who are responding to the new challenges in our schools, post-Covid. This announcement was made in direct response to the findings of the Behaviour in Scottish Schools Research, which indicated that it is school support staff who have the most challenging experiences in dealing with negative behaviours, and that support staff themselves would welcome more training to support them in their roles.

Allocation and use of the funding was agreed at the meeting of COSLA leaders on 26 January 2024. Each local authority will receive a minimum of £10,000 of funding, with the remaining funding distributed on the basis of pupil numbers. A letter was issued to local authorities on 7 February 2024 advising them of their funding allocation. Local authorities will decide how best to use their allocated funding to help the support staff in their area.

The curriculum improvement cycle for Literacy and English will commence later in 2024 and will be informed by a range of evidence, including The Education Scotland pilot curriculum review, which will commence in March 2024, the thematic inspection of Literacy and English, also announced on 12 December.

I am advised that Education Scotland established a National Timetable Group in October 2022. This brought together experienced timetablers from across Scotland. I am advised that the group has met on a number of occasions and has considered the practicalities of providing additional time for collegiate working to support moderation. Education Scotland is gathering analysis with a view to sharing case studies of approaches from schools and local authorities.

Education Scotland has carried out a survey of teachers via curriculum area networks on support for consistency in teacher professional judgement . This survey received responses from over 500 teachers.

Education Scotland has initiated a programme of exploratory work with teachers from across all Dundee City Council secondary schools to explore approaches to improving the consistency of teacher professional judgment.

As noted in the answer to question S6W-24947 on 19 February 2024, the draft Professional Framework will undergo further evaluation and consultation about ease of use from now until March 2024.

This evaluation evidence will be used to inform further development with another opportunity for users to provide feedback on the content from March 2024 to June 2024. The evaluation will be provided by users of the Framework and is included at the end of the material. It will also be gathered by Education Scotland staff delivering content from the Framework. Other on-going consultation and feedback will occur through our Networks and programme boards which Education Scotland attend.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers .