FROM the beginning, the introduction of the National 4 qualification in Scottish schools was an ambitious project, but from the beginning too there has been concern among parents. Some worried that the new qualification was a second-rate choice, particularly because there is no exam at the end of the course. There has also been a distinct decline in interest over the last few years, with 14,000 fewer pupils taking it compared to 2015.

Some of the uncertainly was only to be expected. National 4 was a profound change to the education system and any change will take time to bed in. It also requires a fundamental adjustment in thinking from pupils, parents, teachers, and employers. For generations, all that mattered was the final exam, but the principle of the new curriculum was the desire to encourage a much broader, deeper type of learning - the kind that would equip pupils to do well in the world after school. That was, and is, a sound principle.

However, National 4 does appear to have the beginnings of a reputational problem and that cannot be ignored. There are 116,000 pupils working towards it this year and it is vital for them that they have something that is widely seen as useful and valuable. If there are doubts over the reputation of the qualification, that could have serious consequences for pupils relying on it to apply for college courses, apprenticeships or employment.

One reform many parents would like to see is the introduction of a final exam, although some caution is needed over the idea. Bolting an exam on might seem like the obvious solution, but that might end up doing a dis-service to some pupils. The whole point of the new qualification was that not every pupil thrives in a system where exams are the be-all and end-all and instead National 4 proposed a system of continuous assessment that would lead to college or further training. That remains a reasonable ambition.

But that still leaves the problem of how to ensure that the reputation of National 4 is protected and improved, and that may mean that some element of external assessment will be necessary. The idea of introducing some differentiation in the qualification in the form of several grades is also worth considering.

Whatever is needed, it is important that reform is considered quickly so National 4 can become a distinct and valuable part of the education system. The problem is that The Herald understands that under the current timetable, nothing would change for at least two years with implementation by the Scottish Qualifications Authority due for 2019/20 at the earliest.

That does at least mean there is an acknowledgement that the reputational problem needs to be tackled, but the delay would also leave thousands of children studying for National 4 with some parents still fretting that it is second best. In the end, the aim must be to convince those parents that National 4 is a valuable qualification, but the more the delay, the harder that will be.