[8] When proposing a change to any aspect of education provision in their area, local authorities must engage in a formal process as required through the Schools (Consultation) (Scotland) Act 2010.

Traditionally, the Scottish system at secondary school level has emphasised breadth across a range of subjects, while the English, Welsh and Northern Irish systems have emphasised greater depth of education over a smaller range of advanced subjects.

[9][10] The 2021 Nuffield report noted that "Scottish pupils start off strongly at a young age, but then quickly fall behind their UK peers, particularly in maths, which we know has been an issue that Scotland has had to grapple with for several years.

By the end of the 15th century schools were also being organised for girls and universities were founded at St Andrews, Glasgow and Aberdeen.

In the seventeenth century, legislation enforced the creation and funding of schools in every parish, often overseen by presbyteries of the local kirk.

The existence of this network of schools later led to the growth of the "democratic myth" that poor boys had been able to use this system of education to rise to the top of Scottish society.

It is now required by the Scottish Parliament for students to have two hours of physical education a week; each school may vary these compulsory combinations.

Due to lower population numbers in some of Scotland's island settlements, not every island community can have a secondary school given low pupil numbers and the financial strain this can present by having a secondary school open and operational for what, in some cases, can be a lower than average pupil roll.

[16] In some areas, pupils attending secondary school require to travel from island communities to the mainland for access to secondary education, with children residing in residential accommodation (also called hostels) on the mainland during school term-term to avoid having to make lengthy travel back to their island communities.

[16] The Scottish Government has pledged to ensure that "island students be put on an equal platform with their counterparts from the mainland".

Parents wishing to home educate do not need the permission of the Local Authority unless the children are already registered at a school.

Generally, most pupils take National 4/5s (previously Standard Grades, but some schools offered Intermediates instead) in S3-S4, and Highers in S5.

One unique aspect is that the ancient universities of Scotland issue a Master of Arts as the first degree in humanities.

Following a review, in 2017, the Scottish Government introduced a new framework that would empower teachers and Early Years Practitioners to remove the unnecessary levels of bureaucracy that had been attached to Curriculum for Excellence, planning and evaluating for children's progress and learning and the paperwork involved in Scottish education as a whole.

The Scottish Government envisages equity being achieved by ensuring every child has the same opportunity to succeed, with a particular focus on closing the poverty-related attainment gap.

[40] The attainment challenge focuses and accelerates targeted improvement activity in literacy, numeracy and health and wellbeing in specific areas of Scotland, known as "challenge authorities" (those councils with a higher percentage of children growing up in poverty and deprivation).

[40] On 1 February 2017 the share each primary and secondary school will receive for the academic year 2017–2018 from the Scottish Government's £120 million Pupil Equity Funding was announced by the Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills John Swinney.

[41] The survey showed a sustained decline in basic literacy and numeracy among school pupils over six years.

[42] It was then scrapped by the government and its measures of literacy were replaced in part with a system based on teacher judgements.

[41] The teacher judgement data from December 2018 indicated that 70% of pupils achieved the expected literacy level by the end of primary school.

Colleges offer a wide range of vocational qualifications to young people and older adults, including vocational, competency-based qualifications (previously known as SVQs), Higher National Certificates and Higher National Diplomas.

Further education colleges also provide support to apprenticeship programmes, which are coordinated by the public body Skills Development Scotland.

There are fifteen universities in Scotland and three other institutions of higher education which have the authority to award academic degrees.

[48] All Scottish universities have the power to award degrees at all levels: undergraduate, taught postgraduate, and doctoral.

[49] University status in Scotland and throughout the United Kingdom today is conferred by the Privy Council which takes advice from the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education.

The Scottish Funding Council contributing £1.1 billion of public money to the fifteen universities, this was a six per cent reduction since 2010/11.

Young Students are defined as those under 25, without children, marriage, civil partnership or cohabiting partner, who have not been outside of full-time education for more than three years.

Fees must be paid by those outside the young student definition, typically from £1,200 to £1,800 for undergraduate courses, dependent on year of application and type of qualification.

[58] Labour's education spokesperson Rhona Brankin criticised the Scottish system for failing to address student poverty.

These Group Awards, alongside Scottish Vocational Qualifications, aim to ensure Scotland's population has the appropriate skills and knowledge to meet workplace needs.