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An Early Intervention Programme has seen Highland Primary schools in deprived areas improve pupil performance in reading by double, and mathematics by seven times the Highland and national average. By the end of the programme pupils in the early intervention group showed an average gain of 22 months in reading age in one year – almost double the improvement expected in the past.

These remarkable statistics form part of a report to The Highland Council’s Education, Culture and Sports Committee (21^st March 2002) on a three year project aimed at improving the standards of literacy and numeracy in primary 1 and 2 classes of 56 Highland primary schools.

Objectives of the Early Intervention Programme included: teacher training; creation of classroom assistants; improved liaison with parents; provision of additional teaching materials; and creation of materials for use by parents.

For primary 2 classes in the 56 participating schools, results of national tests show that the Early Intervention Programme has:

• Doubled the number of children reaching level A in reading
• Increased five fold the number of children reaching level A in writing
• Nearly doubled the number of children reaching level A in mathematics.

For Gaelic Medium classes national test results for the 90 children involved showed that 25%, 20% and 65% of primary 2 pupils achieved level A in reading, writing and maths respectively be the end of primary 2. Given that most of the children involved come from non-Gaelic speaking homes this is an extraordinary achievement.

Councillor Andy Anderson, Chair of Education, Culture and Sport Committee says: "This is one of the most positive and encouraging reports to come before the committee. The Early Intervention Programme is top class. This level of support should be the norm for all aspects of schooling and not something special."

Additional resources provided by the Excellence Fund have seen the appointment of classroom assistants to all Highland primary schools. The Highland Council now employs 184 full time equivalent classroom assistants.

The council will seek committee approval to extend the early Intervention Programme into middle and upper primary school classes with the aim that no pupil enters secondary school with inadequate literacy and numeracy skills.