Useful overview
There is certainly recognition that Scots is something that should be embraced within the curriculum and to varying extents, this is happening. There is however evidence that the use of Scots in the classroom is still somewhat restricted to ‘token Scottish moments’ – reciting the poetry of Robert Burns, celebrating St Andrews Day, etc. I hope that there will come a time when it is recognised that a child’s linguistic repertoire, regardless of the language varieties they speak, is embraced within the curriculum and nurtured so that children grow up recognising the value of being able to speak ‘in more than one way’.
Scots in the Scottish Curriculum
Scots is a language variety spoken in the Scottish Lowlands and in Northern Ireland. It is generally known in Scotland as Lowland Scots, to distinguish it from Scottish Gaelic, and Ulster Scots in Northern Ireland, to distinguish it from the variety spoken in Scotland.