Study claims Scottish children lack skills

A new study has found thousands of Scottish school leavers cannot even spell and add up. The findings show a "significant" number of pupils finish their secondary education lacking "even the most basic skills", The Sun reported. Kids from poorer areas are more disadvantaged than when they started. And the rot starts early, with one in six S1 (Step I) pupils classed as "functionally illiterate", says the study for think tank Reform Scotland. Study chairman Keir Bloomer said: "There may have been a time when our education system was among the best in the world, but that is not true now."