Scotland’s Education Needs Knowledge

Scotland’s education system is stuck in mediocrity, says Professor Lindsay Paterson, who blames the Curriculum for Excellence for prioritizing skills over deep knowledge. Once a top performer, Scotland now lags behind, partly because teachers are left to guess what foundational knowledge students need. Paterson argues that education should equip students with the understanding of how facts connect—like the global drivers of decolonization—and that clear curriculum frameworks, modeled after Estonia’s, would free teachers to focus on innovation and individualized learning. He insists a knowledge-rich approach isn’t just smarter—it’s the key to lifting Scotland’s standards and...