HC Deb 27 January 1959 vol 598 cc868-70
23. Mr. Malcolm MacMillan

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what steps he is taking to sustain and enhance the status of history as a subject in the secondary school curriculum for the purpose of the School Leaving Certificate pass groups qualifying for university entrance.

Mr. N. Macpherson

Pupils may be presented in history in the Scottish Leaving Certificate Examination on either the lower or the higher grade, but the conditions under which passes in history are recognised for university entrance are entirely a matter for the Scottish Universities Entrance Board.

Mr. MacMillan

Is the Joint Under-Secretary aware that this treatment of a higher history pass as a lower equivalent pass will certainly lead to a reluctance on the part of students and scholars to take history at all and will lead in turn to a shortage of qualified history teachers, thus debasing the whole cultural and academic value of the Scottish school and university curriculum? Will the Joint Under-Secretary ensure that proper representations are made to sustain and enhance the status and reputation of history and history teaching in the schools? This is done in England. Why not in Scotland?

Mr. Macpherson

Experience shows that the status of a subject is not dependent solely on its treatment from the viewpoint of university entrance. History is of very great value but, at the same time, we are anxious that courses in secondary schools should be as varied as possible and that pupils should have every opportunity to study such subjects, including history, as may be of most value to them.

Mr. Woodburn

Is the Secretary of State aware that it is difficult to understand how in Scotland the subject of history is treated as a Cinderella? It was only recently that it was treated as part of the English courses. Surely, the intelligent man must know something about the history of his country.

Mr. Macpherson

It simply is not true that history is treated as a Cinderella. At the moment, a condition of being presented for the Scottish leaving certificate is that the student should have studied history for three years and either history or geography for the next two years.

Mr. MacMillan

I give notice that I will raise this matter at the very earliest opportunity to try to wring a more satisfactory answer from the Joint Under-Secretary.