NICOLA Sturgeon will tomorrow urge teachers, schools and councils to bring her innovative ideas to help improve the educational attainment of Scotland's most disadvantaged children.
In a speech to student teachers in Dundee, the First Minister will say Scotland's educators need to "think differently and challenge accepted ways of doing things" and outline a new £20m fund to tackle educational inequality.
"The barriers to learning caused by poverty and inequality have their origins beyond the school gates and set in long before university," Sturgeon said yesterday.
"In every local authority area in Scotland, there are children and young people who are not achieving all they are capable of.
"In the most deprived 10 per cent of areas of Scotland, fewer than one person in three leaves school with at least one Higher.
"In the most affluent areas, it's four out of every five. That is not acceptable."
She said the government was already providing an "attainment adviser" for every council, but the extra £20m announced in the budget was intended to "focus minds" on innovative approaches.
However the appeal to work with ministers comes as relations between councils and the SNP government on education are at rock bottom.
Most councils last week refused to sign up to a new government designed to boost dwindling teacher numbers, claiming Finance Secretary John Swinney's offer of £51m was £10m short.
Councils were also angry that Swinney had given them an ultimatum on the issue, warning that a "failure to deliver" stable teacher numbers - an SNP policy - would see a "clawback in funding".
Although Scotland's SNP-led councils backed the £51m deal on Friday, all others rejected it.
Jim Murphy yesterday unveiled a £25m plan from Scottish Labour to boost the attainment of the poorest children by doubling teaching assistant numbers in the feeder primaries for the 20 worst performing secondary schools, and introducing new dedicated literacy support.
The money would come from the reintroduction of a 50p income tax rate for high earners.
Murphy said: "One of the biggest problems that some of the kids from the poorest backgrounds have is literacy. In too many homes the literacy levels of parents, particularly mums, is a problem. And children in care often have no-one to help them with their reading. My central mission is to make sure the poorest kids in Scotland get a decent start in life."
Education Secretary Angela Constance said Labour should focus on getting its councils to sign up to the SNP's £51m fund on teacher numbers.
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