The Draft Film and Screen Curriculum
In July 2022, Screen Scotland Education Team invited practitioners from Early Years Education, Primary and Secondary Schools, Further and Higher Education Institutions, Film and Screen Educators, the SQA, Education Scotland, the BFI, the Scottish Film and Screen Industry and Scottish Government to attend a symposium to develop the framework for a Draft Film and Screen Curriculum. Facilitated by Screen Scotland, practitioners worked in groups on specific levels of education. Over the following three years, Screen Scotland developed, delivered, tested and evaluated a Draft Film and Screen Curriculum for Scotland.
Testing the Draft Film and Screen Curriculum
Testing and evaluation of the First Edition Draft Film and Screen Curriculum was key to ensuring that its content was appropriate and deliverable in Early Years and School settings This took place across three phases:
Phase One
Delivery and testing in Shetland and Argyll and Bute took place in Early Years and Primary settings, and in Early Years, Primary and Secondary settings in Highland and Dundee delivered by Screen Educators in Residence (SEiRs) in partnership with class teachers.
In parallel with Phase One, a new pilot qualification, the SQA Film and Screen Award at SCQF Levels Five and Six, was devised and developed by SQA, Screen Scotland, education and industry.
Phase Two
Delivery and testing took place in secondary settings Shetland, Highland, Dundee, Argyll and Bute and Edinburgh, Scottish Borders (with Alchemy Film and Arts). Beginning in June 2023, SEiRs delivered the Draft Film and Screen Curriculum to Secondary School Learners in S1 to S6. Phase two included delivery of the pilot SQA Film and Screen Award at each school, at SCQF Level Five and Level Six.
Phase Three
Delivery and testing took place across thirty local authorities in Scotland by teachers who attended the Screen Scotland Summer School, a programme which taught the art of filmmaking, and the skills required to deliver film and screen learning in the classroom. This was completed by a Curriculum Support Programme available to every teacher. A Screen Scotland funded programme of training and evaluation of the draft Curriculum for early years practitioners complemented work in schools in Phase Three.
By the end of phase three in June 2025, the Draft Film and Screen Curriculum had been delivered and tested in 30 local authorities, to over 6,000 children aged three to eighteen. Over 100 young people have successfully achieved the SQA Film and Screen Award at Level Five or Level Six.
Launch event
On 10 September 2025, Screen Scotland, in collaboration with Education Scotland and Scottish Government, hosts a launch event the celebrate the national rollout of the draft Film and Screen Curriculum into the Curriculum for Excellence.
Curriculum Evaluation and Advocacy Networks (CEAN)
All the work of the Draft Film and Screen Curriculum is supported by two Curriculum Evaluation and Advocacy Networks (CEAN), created by Screen Scotland.
CEAN membership includes education practitioners and teachers at Early Years, Primary and Secondary Levels, tertiary education colleagues specialising in film, screen and creative education, representatives from education and qualification bodies, industry advisors and key staff from Education Scotland, SQA and Screen Scotland.
CEAN2 is open to all, and meets quarterly online to share Screen Scotland Education updates.
If you would like to join this group please email [email protected] with CEAN2 in the subject line.