PINS Theme: Taking a Critical Stance
PINS is interested in exploring how we in the voluntary sector - and our colleagues in the statutory sector - think about and evaluate the work we do with children and young people who are disaffected or disengaged from learning and schooling. This theme and the reports and resources below support you to develop how you think about and evaluate your work with children and young people. Please do continue to let us know about approaches and resources that you find helpful.
NEW - The Big Public Service Debate
The Big Public Service debate is taking a new look at how to transform our services. How can Scotland’s Public Services deliver better for Scotland? What does a future public service look like? How do we put people at the heart of service delivery? More HERE
Embedding evidence at Includem
Includem provides relationship-based support to help troubled young people achieve better lives, working in partnership with others. Includem has embedded the use of evidence from its inception, the shape of the services and the organisation was based on the research about “What Works?”. More HERE
Connect: Communities of Practice and CLD
Education Scotland has launched a new online communities of practice for those who take a community learning and development approach to their work in supporting communities or work in partnership with CLD practitioners. You can sign-up HERE
New look for the probationer teacher website
Probationer Teacher Scotland, the online resource for student, probationer and newly qualified teachers, has been re-launched. More HERE
Advancing Scotland as a Learning Society: A Community Learning and Development Contribution
This report is a record of the Conversations project which took place across Scotland earlier this year including 200 activists and practitioners who practice in a wide range of contexts. Download the pdf HERE
It is also possible to get involved in a debate online about the report HERE
Summary statistics for schools in Scotland
This publication brings together a wide range of information on school and pre-school education in Scotland and covers: pupils, teachers, pre-school children, school attendance, exclusions, examination results, destinations on leaving school and school buildings. More HERE
We thought they didn’t see
An evaluation of the Children and Mothers Experiencing Domestic Abuse Recovery (CEDAR) programme highlights the positive impact of this innovative work. Download the pdf HERE
Decision-making and social work in Scotland
This report considers the role of evidence in decision making around risk in social work and what affects this process. The research aims to shed light on the relationship between evidence and practice wisdom or professional judgement, and how this relationship shapes decision making. More HERE
Doran Review publishes interim report
The Review is an independent and strategic review of learning provision for children and young people with complex additional support needs. The interim report outlines why it is being undertaken, what it is aiming to achieve and emerging themes following its first phase. It also sets out the key questions for the second phase. More HERE
The influence of parents, place and poverty on educational attitudes and aspirations
What are the real barriers to educational achievement? What is the relationship between young people’s aspirations and how they are formed? This JRF study investigates and argues that our interventions should be reconsidered, HERE
Review of teacher employment
The group tasked with reviewing the Teachers' Agreement, reached in 2001 following the McCrone Inquiry has published recommendations. Download the pdf HERE
The Children’s Parliament also published its contribution to the Review HERE
Learning in Scotland’s Communities
The report presents the findings of HMIE’s work in learning communities in Scotland. The study investigates the impact of community learning and development (CLD) on outcomes for learners. It draws on inspections of over 90 learning communities associated with secondary schools across all local authorities in Scotland. Download the PDF HERE
Changes to the way schools are inspected in Scotland
Education Scotland is changing the way Scottish schools are inspected. The school inspection framework covers a range of sectors, including stand-alone pre-school centres, primary including those with nursery classes, secondary including community learning and development (CLD) as part of secondary, and aspects of transition, special, independent and all-through schools. More HERE
Teaching Scotland's Future - Report of a review of teacher education in Scotland
Graham Donaldson has published his report setting out the findings of his Review of Teacher Education in Scotland. Headline recommendations include: teacher quality and leadership in schools must improve, there should be more rigorous selection for initial teachers education and all teachers should be skilled in supporting the development of literacy and numeracy skills in their pupils and in overcoming barriers to learning such as dyslexia. Read more HERE
Sector bodies publish new version of code of good governance
A group of voluntary sector bodies have updated 'Good Governance: A Code for the Voluntary and Community Sector'. Read more HERE
Learning Together: Opening up learning
A new guide published this week by HM Inspectorate of Education is to stimulate professional reflection, dialogue and debate about learning and how to improve it. It emphasises self-evaluation and describes good practice. Section 5 (annexes) gives examples of reflective questions, for example for staff who are evaluating the impact of the curriculum and innovations. Take me to this resource HERE
HMIe reviews of voluntary sector agencies
Using the quality and performance indicators from HMIE publication ‘How Good is our Community Learning and Development 2’ HMIE has published reviews of some of Scotland’s most established voluntary sector agencies. The Boys’ Brigade go HERE. The Girls’ Brigade Scotland go HERE. The Scout Association go here HERE
making the most of evaluation
This paper from SQW (an independent consultancy) considers the lessons form policy evaluations and the importance of making more of them to improve public sector resource allocation and use. Take me to this reportimproving the odds: improving life chances
This HMIe report documents good practice from a number of schools that are making a significant difference for lower-achieving groups of pupils, often in less advantaged communities. Take me to this REPORT
what community development does: a short guide for decision makers on how it achieves results
This resource explains what community development is and why policy makers should value community development as a way of achieving local and national outcomes. Take me to this RESOURCE
improving services to protect children: how good are we at assessing risks and needs to help children and families?
Services and staff who have responsibilities for protecting children from abuse and neglect can use this guide to help self-evaluate and improve the services provided. The guide helps users to recognise how good are we now? and identify what needs to be done to decide how good can we be?. Take me to this REPORT
improving services to protect children: how good are we at sharing and recording information to help children and families?
Services and staff working who have responsibilities for protecting children from abuse and neglect can use this guide to help self-evaluate and improve the services provided. The guide helps users to recognise how good are we now? and identify what needs to be done to decide how good can we be?. Take me to this REPORT
developing evidence based practice in voluntary organisations: the barnardos experience
This resource outlines Barnardos evidence based approach to practice and service delivery. Take me to this RESOURCE
