The Scottish government has made it clear it is planning to run the “traditional exam diet” next year but the education secretary John Swinney reveals in this edition of the Tes Scotland podcast that he believes there is “a really strong argument” for the way senior pupils are assessed to be reformed. 

Mr Swinney says the expectation for the coming school year is that the exams will be sustained but adds that he believes “there is every need for us to openly explore whether exam diets are the way of the future”.

Mr Swinney also reveals during the podcast – which was recorded on 3 July – that it is “likely” school staff will have to follow “physical distancing requirements” when schools return after the summer and that for most pupils “there is no tangible case for wearing face masks in school” – although he adds that it may be appropriate for some senior pupils who are “essentially young adults” to wear marks and there are “questions about staff”. He says the government is waiting for guidance from its scientific advisers on the issue.

Face masks are due to become mandatory in shops in Scotland on 10 July.

During the podcast Mr Swinney also speaks about his family’s experience of home schooling; making parliamentary statements remotely from his son’s bedroom and the time his nine-year-old appeared in the background of a meeting of the Covid-19 Education Recovery Group – which is responsible for planning how schools will reopen – in his snorkelling gear. His son, Matthew, was going on a virtual school trip.