Transformation of Scottish secondary school can happen 'all over the country'
Schools throughout Scotland should be strongly encouraged to learn lessons from the transformation of a secondary in the Borders, a new report has said.
The study, published by the Reform Scotland think tank, highlighted the turnaround at Berwickshire High School at Duns after it put “knowledge” back at the heart of the curriculum.
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Hide AdThe school is said to have gone from being described by inspectors as “weak” and “unsatisfactory”, to being sector-leading, in only four years.
Attainment also improved dramatically, with the percentage of students attaining five or more Level 5 qualifications (such as National 5) in S4 going from 44 per cent in 2018 to 64 per cent in 2023, while the percentage of students attaining five or more Level 6 qualifications (such as Higher) in S5 went from 21 per cent to 41 per cent in 2024.
The role of knowledge in Scotland’s Curriculum for Excellence has been under the spotlight since the nation recorded its worst ever scores in the OECD’s Pisa tests, published in December 2023.


Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth subsequently said the role of knowledge would be considered as part of a “curriculum improvement cycle”.
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Hide AdThe new Reform Scotland report has been written by Lindsay Paterson, professor emeritus of education policy at the University of Edinburgh, and Bruce Robertson, the director of Next Level Educational, education author and headteacher of Berwickshire High School.
They say it is often claimed that schools in Scotland have traditionally paid too much attention to knowledge, neglecting the skills which people will need as adults, but that view is “mistaken”.
The report highlights the changes made under Mr Robertson’s leadership at Berwickshire High, and the impact there.
Mr Robertson said: “At Berwickshire, we have shown that it is possible to work within Curriculum for Excellence and still create a curriculum based on knowledge and rich in content, which both increases the attainment of students and better prepares them for life and work.
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Hide Ad“We took a curriculum which had, in effect, very little clear content, and in which the intended outcomes were vague and ambiguous, and redesigned it for the betterment of teaching and learning.
“We did it at Berwickshire High. It can and should happen all over the country.”
Professor Paterson said: “At Berwickshire, Bruce Robertson’s leadership and innovation have transformed outcomes for his students by putting knowledge-based content back into his school’s curriculum.
“The return of knowledge to the curriculum throughout the rest of Scotland could produce a new generation of talent.
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Hide Ad“As a matter of urgency, the Scottish Government should now strongly encourage schools throughout Scotland to learn from Bruce’s ‘Programmes of Teaching and Learning’ model and roll it out throughout the country.”
Chris Deerin, director of Reform Scotland, said: “The performance of Scotland’s schools is, with good reason, a cause of national concern.
“The most recent Pisa figures were particularly alarming – Scotland appears to have entered a long decline when it comes to pupil performance in key areas such as reading, maths and science.
“As it stands, the Curriculum for Excellence is not serving Scotland’s teachers, pupils or parents as well as it should or could. However, as the results from Berwickshire High School show, Robertson’s redesign has led to dramatic improvements in pupil performance. We hope policymakers play close attention.”
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Hide AdA Scottish Government spokesperson said: “The Curriculum for Excellence was endorsed by the OECD in 2021 as the right approach for Scotland. It helps children and young people gain the knowledge, skills and attributes needed for life in the 21st century.
“Education in Scotland compares favourably to every other nation in the UK.
“We have the highest spend per pupil and the lowest pupil to teacher ratio. We also have record levels of literacy and numeracy in our schools, the lowest attainment gap since records began and record numbers of young people entering work, training, college and university.
"This is all as a result of sustained investment.
“Our education reform programme, including Scotland’s Curriculum Improvement Cycle, will further strengthen the role of knowledge across the curriculum.
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Hide Ad“We are keen to learn from innovation taking place in schools across Scotland, including Berwickshire High School.
“We continue to place classroom and school leadership experience at the heart of education reform, as demonstrated by the secondment of the National Maths Adviser a practising head teacher.”
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