§ Sir Hector Monroasked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a further statement about the preservice training of primary and secondary teachers in Scotland.
§ Mr. YoungerI announced on 27 July 1983, at column 478, in answer to a question from my hon. Friend the Member for Cunninghame, North (Mr. Corrie) that I had approved guidelines recommended by a working party on primary pre-service teacher training for a new type of four-year primary degree course. I am glad to be able to report that all colleges of education offering primary teacher training have now prepared degree courses, based on those guidelines, for introduction in the 1984–85 academic session to replace the three-year primary diploma courses. Six hundred places are available in colleges for students on the new courses. I am grateful to all concerned for the speed and efficiency with which these arrangements have been made. The introduction of the new courses will represent a further major step towards improving the overall quality of the teaching profession.
The working party has now submitted to me its final report, containing recommendations about revision of the existing one-year primary postgraduate courses. I am arranging for this to be published today and copies have been placed in the Library. I am considering the recommendations and I shall announce my conclusions in due course.
I propose now to invite the General Teaching Council for Scotland, the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, the colleges of education and the teacher associations to be represented, with officials of my Department, on a similar working party to review the existing one-year secondary post-graduate courses.