Education doesn't begin and end at school gates

Indeed, research recently undertaken by the Conservative party, reveals pupils from poor backgrounds in Scotland are 20 times less likely to achieve three A Grades at Higher level. 20 times.

A truly depressing statistic.

The Conservatives say that too many schools in Scotland are failing too many Scottish children.

While I may agree with part of that argument, is it the whole story. It is true that many Scottish schools are simply not up to scratch.

Indeed, a Scottish Government report, published in April this year, gauging attainment levels in P4 to P7 pupils concluded that standards were lower in 2013 then they had been in 2011.

So, while some schools are clearly below the required standard and contributing towards the problem what else is wrong.

Officials will argue that education doesn't begin and end at the school gates.

I find myself in agreement.

For too many parents it is the duty of the education system to fulfil all of the child's educational needs.

Attitudes such as this form part of the problem.

Many parents in Scotland, who can afford to, send their children to private school.

Others adjust their lives and relocate their homes in order to fall within the catchment area of a good school.

Around the city schools like St Ninian's and Williamwood, Bearsden and Lenzie Academies etc, offer high quality education, as part of the state school system.

Indeed, when it comes to educational attainment they compete with the best private schools.

Parents, who therefore make sacrifices in order to live in such a catchment area and to send their children to such schools are important to the education system.

Their ambition for their ­children is clear and they are motivated to achieve the best possible outcomes for the child.

It is therefore true, that the parent or parents are equally as important, in their attitude to study and homework and exams as the schools themselves.

Good education is a partnership between the parent or parents, the school and, of course, the child.

All three, need to be motivated towards securing the best possible education.

Sadly, this is not always the case.

If any part of this three-legged stool is missing it simply falls over.

Yet in some of Glasgow's poorest areas all three components may be missing.

Like many cities around the country, the gap between Glasgow's rich and poor grows wider.

As it does, the legacy it leaves behind is the form of educational apartheid we are witnessing today.

The only way to tackle the inequality of educational poverty is to tackle poverty itself.

Having a lower income or less resources doesn't mean that people should have less ambition particularly for their children.

Indeed in many cases, people are often motivated by wanting better for their children, than they have had, themselves.

Educational inequality is a symptom.

Its cause is the inequality of wealth distribution across the country.

Political policies to address these issues, would be most welcome.

In the meantime, it is up to us, as parents together with our schools to ensure that our children are ­motivated to be the very best that they can be.

THE Labour Party appears to be at something of a political crossroads both in the United Kingdom and here in Scotland.

Labour's leader in Scotland, Johann Lamont, left with her dignity and integrity very much intact and with a clear message to the UK Labour Party, to stop treating Scotland as a branch office with no freedom or authority to act on their own. Labour's choice of a replacement in Scotland will determine their future electability.

The SNP have cleverly stolen most of Labour's socialist clothes.

South of the border, despite the efforts of Ukip to damage the Conservatives, recent polls show that they remain slightly ahead of Labour nationally.

It is entirely possible that Labour will lose the 2015 UK Election, and the 2016 Holyrood Election.

Labour say that they have learned the lessons from previous defeats in 2011. At the crossroads, they have a choice, between popularity and obscurity.

So which one will they choose. Have they learned their lesson. Time will tell.

I see that Glasgow's gateway to the West Highlands has again been closed due to the power of nature.

The A83 Road through Argyll is more commonly known as the "rest and be thankful".

Travellers across the centuries have done just that when they reached the top of its steep climb.

This week 200 tons of landslip debris, mud and water closed the road for the fourth time in five years.

The natural shape and steepness of this geographical giant is quite remarkable.

It is therefore not surprising that our attempts to engineer a solution have met with repeated failure.

As the roadway is patched up once more, it does us no harm to reflect upon the fact, that powerful as we are, we can't move mountains.