All pupils in Scotland are to sit new national literacy and numeracy tests in the final year of primary school under Scottish Government plans announced yesterday.

All pupils in Scotland are to sit new national literacy and numeracy tests in the final year of primary school under Scottish Government plans announced yesterday.

The move, first proposed by the Scottish Conservative Party, will see all pupils take assessments in P7 to establish what levels of reading and writing they have achieved.

The SNP said the tests, agreed by MSPs from all parties after an education debate in the Scottish Parliament, would be standardised to an agreed set of national benchmarks, but would not be externally examined.

However, it remains unclear how much the proposed tests will differ from what is currently delivered in schools. All schools already test pupils on reading, writing and counting at different stages of their primary career, with substantial numbers using national government-approved materials.

There is also likely to be opposition from those who believe testing does not improve literacy or numeracy, but can actually damage progress by marking pupils as failures.

The SNP has already announced plans for every secondary pupil in Scotland to sit compulsory literacy and numeracy exams in S4.

Last night, an aide to Fiona Hyslop, the Education Secretary, said: "We have seen all political parties come together to support these proposals for nationally benchmarked assessments of literacy and numeracy in the final year of primary school.

"It is important because it gives a clear direction to the development of the new curriculum and we will be working with teachers, parents and others to draw up detailed proposals on how best to achieve these assessments."

The move is to partly address concerns from business and higher education that too many pupils are leaving school without meeting basic standards.

Current estimates suggest 25% of the primary school population go on to secondary without achieving basic literacy requirements - some 15,000 pupils.