Scotland’s most famous landmark was the backdrop to the launch of the Scottish Parliament’s new Education Centre and Teacher’s Guide today.

The contrast between the historic Edinburgh Castle and the new, hi-tech centre in nearby Cannonball House was highlighted by the Parliament’s Deputy Presiding Officer Ms Patricia Ferguson MSP, who said that learning about Scotland’s historic past would now be supplemented by education about the country’s new, modern Parliament.

Opening the Centre and launching the 16-page guide booklet, Ms Ferguson said that the Parliament was determined to play its role in encouraging Scotland’s voters of tomorrow to make their voices heard today.

Ms Ferguson said:

"The Consultative Steering Group (CSG) on the Scottish Parliament made it very clear that the Parliament should be accessible, open and responsive. It also said that young people should be given every encouragement and opportunity to make their voices heard.

"I believe that this excellent new Education Centre, and the fact that the Parliament has a specialist Education Service whose staff have a background in teaching, is a clear recognition that the CSG’s principle’s have been taken fully on board.

"It is often said that this is a Parliament for the people, and I am a strong believer that this should mean our young people and not just those who have reached voting age. After all, the school children of today are the voters – and MSPs! – of tomorrow.

"The Education Unit has grasped the CSG’s recommendation that schools should be encouraged to make full use of educational material to inform the young people of Scotland about the democratic structures in Scotland, their relevance and their relationship to them.

"The Parliament’s Education Service is extremely fortunate to have obtained the use of Cannonball House here in the heart of Edinburgh as the Education Centre for the interim accommodation. With the Castle looming large over the building, the Centre is ideally placed to contrast the colourful history of Scotland with the modern, progressive outlook that the Parliament brings.

"Cannonball House will host visits from school groups who will be given audio-visual presentations on the Parliament, followed by a tour of the main Chamber in the Assembly Hall and workshop sessions back in the Centre. The Education Service will provide a full range of resources including a distinct section within the Parliament’s website.

"The second reason for being here today is to launch the Teacher’s Guide to the Scottish Parliament. This 16-page booklet has been specially designed by the former teachers in the Education Service as a guide to help teachers around the country introduce the study of the Parliament to pupils of all ages. It is intended to be suitable to the non-specialist teacher with little or no background in political or citizenship education. It contains a beginner’s guide to the Parliament – there are a few of us could do with that! – an outline project plan for schools and a detailed list of other sources of information.

"The full visits programme to the Parliament will start in September this year, and I am sure, with all the effort that has gone in to the Education Service so far, that it will prove a useful and welcome opportunity for children throughout Scotland to get closer to their Parliament."

At the opening ceremony, pupils from Coaltown of Balgonie Primary School in Fife described the historical background to the Parliament and pupils from Dunbar Grammar School in East Lothian compared and contrasted the ‘old’ and the ‘new’ politics.

Cannonball House will be the Education Centre for the Parliament until the move to Holyrood in autumn 2001. Edinburgh City Council provided it as part of the interim accommodation package.

The building dates from the 16^th century and has a colourful history. It takes its name from the iron shot embedded in its west gable. Popular legend has it that the shot was fired during the 1745 siege, although it is actually thought to mark the height of the Pentland wells from which the city drew its water supply. The house has been under siege on three occasions in the past; it will now be under siege from the schools of Scotland wishing to visit!

The entrance lintel features a 17^th century inscription ‘Nosce Teipsum’ translated as ‘Know thyself’, an appropriate motto for an education centre.

Cannonball House has been inextricably linked to the theme of education for the last century. Its previous incarnations include being an annex to Castlehill School, an office base for the Duke of Edinburgh Award, a theatre workshop and, from 1975, an Urban Studies Centre. At its peak, 9,000 Lothians school children used the centre each year.

BACKGROUND NOTES

The Scottish Parliament has two Education Officers – Alan McClosky, a former secondary school teacher of Modern Studies and French, and his assistant Jackie Speirs, a former primary school teacher. They co-wrote the Teacher’s Guide.

Copies of the Teacher’s Guide will be sent to all Scotland’s primary, secondary and special schools over the next week or so.

The Education Service can be contacted on: 0131 348 5000, fax: 0131 348 5601 or email: education.service@scottish.parliament.uk

The detailed ‘Young People and Teachers’ section of the Parliament’s website can be accessed here