HC Deb 26 May 1988 vol 134 cc507-8
6. Mr. Fatchett

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many representations he has received opposing his proposals for the compulsory testing of pupils from (a) pupils, (b) parents and (c) teachers.

Dr. Mawhinney

The period for comment on the Government's proposals does not end until 10 June 1988. It would not, therefore, be appropriate or meaningful at this stage to attempt an analysis of the responses received so far.

Mr. Fatchett

I hope that the Minister will publish the analysis that he makes, unlike his right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Education and Science in relation to the Education Reform Bill. Do the Government intend to publish the figures for the results of compulsory testing at the age of seven?

Dr. Mawhinney

The consultation paper offers the people of Northern Ireland the option of testing at either seven or eight. I await with interest the responses of the people of Northern Ireland on this issue.

Mr. Kilfedder

The Minister deserves congratulations for the commendable, albeit limited, moves to urge religious integration in schools in Northern Ireland. However, when he is considering criticisms of his proposals, will he bear in mind that schoolchildren also have human rights to an education which is full in every sense of the word and which includes the right of mixing, learning and playing together with children of another religion or of no religion?

Dr. Mawhinney

I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for his earlier comments. I entirely agree with him. One of the document's central proposals is to provide an option for parents who wish and choose voluntarily to have an education system in which their children can be educated in the same classroom as children from the other side of the community. There are a growing number of such parents and I look forward to seeing that fact reflected in the responses to the document.

Ms. Mowlam

Will the Minister please respond to a recent report of the Northern Ireland Council for Educational Research, which contains a section on compulsory testing and shows clearly that, for one in six pupils, there is a mismatch between their transfer results at age 11 and their performance at 16? Furthermore, will he tell the House what there is in his consultative document to alter that mismatch and, therefore, the future of many children in Northern Ireland?

Dr. Mawhinney

I am sure that, having read the document, the hon. Lady will remember that two options are available for assessment and testing at age 11. One offers to substitute teacher assessment, together with assessment and testing marks at age 11 in English, mathematics and science, for the present verbal reasoning 11-plus test. Again, I look forward to receiving responses on that issue.

Mr. Watts

Does my hon. Friend agree that the regular testing of children will be of considerable benefit to parents in monitoring the progress of their children in school and the performance of the schools that they attend?

Dr. Mawhinney

I agree with my hon. Friend. Not only will that be of considerable assistance to parents in determining how the education of their children is progressing, but it will enable us to determine much earlier in the life of our young people why, at present, almost one in four of those who leave our education system at the age of 16 have no recognised qualifications whatsoever.