English: I'd like to thank Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Education and Training in Wales for his annual report. It's a report card on the performance of Wales's education system, and it appears that we are not doing well enough. While eight in 10 primary schools are deemed good or better, only 8 per cent of Wales's primary schools are classed as excellent schools. Every child in Wales deserves to go to an excellent school, and the standard of your education shouldn't be dependent upon where your parents choose to live, if they even have a choice, which many families do not. And the outlook for our secondary schools is much bleaker - only around half of Wales's secondary schools are judged to be good or better, and half of the secondary schools inspected in the past year needed follow-up action, and two were placed in special measures. The problem, according to Professor David Reynolds, former education adviser to both the Welsh and the UK Governments, is because we are introducing a new curriculum at the same time as trying to drive up standards in a system that is not all that wonderful by international standards. Standards have improved slightly, and of course that's very welcome, but we still have one of the worst-performing education systems in the world. We are letting down future generations and condemning us to languish at the bottom of the economic league tables. We are preventing half of Wales's young people from achieving their true potential. We have known for years that we weren't helping our brightest, but, as highlighted by the chief inspector's report, we are letting down pupils across all abilities and all age ranges. I had the pleasure of attending the official opening of Ysgol Carreg Hir in my region, a new primary school resulting from the merger of three primary schools: Bryn Hyfryd and Ynysmaerdy, and one which was in special measures, Llansawel. I have to say that I was very impressed with the new school buildings, the staff and the pupils. The pupils seem to thrive in the new environment, which was conducive to learning, and I have no doubt that the new school will be much better than the sum of its parts, and it will, thanks to the staff, pupils and parents, be judged as excellent when Estyn inspectors visit the school. However, not all our children and young people are lucky enough to have state-of-the-art learning environments. Many, many pupils are crammed into crumbling classrooms, filled with broken and out-of-date equipment. Teachers and pupils alike do their best, but massive underinvestment and budget cuts have taken their toll. I recently met with the headteacher of Ysgol Gyfun Cymraeg Llangynwyd to discuss the future of Welsh-medium education in the Bridgend county borough. His school had a good rating from Estyn and scored five stars in the 'Real Schools Guide', but he has explained that it is getting harder and harder with the budget to make it stretch as far as it needs to to maintain these standards. The crumbling buildings and chronic underinvestment are taking their toll, and his experience is far from unique. Spending per pupil is much lower than in England or Scotland and has fallen by over £300 in the last decade. No wonder ASCL Cymru were forced to write about the severe funding crisis and its effect on Welsh schools. Unfortunately, unless we address the funding crisis, more and more schools will be doomed to failure. Every young person in Wales deserves to attend an excellent school like Ysgol Carreg Hir, deserves to receive a world-class education and deserves to be nurtured and challenged to find their true potential. So, this Estyn report should serve as a wake-up call, because we are failing Wales's young people in many areas, and the report card reads 'must do better.'
Welsh: Hoffwn ddiolch i Brif Arolygydd ei Mawrhydi dros Addysg a Hyfforddiant yng Nghymru am ei adroddiad blynyddol. Mae'n gerdyn adroddiad ar berfformiad system addysg Cymru, ac ymddengys nad ydym yn gwneud yn ddigon da. Er y bernir bod wyth o bob 10 o ysgolion cynradd yn dda neu'n well, dim ond 8 y cant o ysgolion cynradd Cymru a fernir yn ysgolion rhagorol. Mae pob plentyn yng Nghymru yn haeddu cael mynd i ysgol ragorol, ac ni ddylai safon eich addysg ddibynnu ar ble mae eich rhieni yn dewis byw, os oes ganddynt ddewis. Mae llawer o deuluoedd heb y dewis hwnnw hyd yn oed. Ac mae'r rhagolygon ar gyfer ein hysgolion uwchradd yn fwy llwm o lawer - dim ond tua hanner yr ysgolion uwchradd yng Nghymru a fernir i fod yn dda neu'n well, ac roedd angen camau dilynol ar hanner yr ysgolion uwchradd a arolygwyd yn ystod y flwyddyn ddiwethaf tra rhoddwyd dwy mewn mesurau arbennig. Y broblem, yn ôl yr Athro David Reynolds, cyn gynghorydd addysg i Lywodraeth Cymru a'r DU, yw ein bod yn cyflwyno cwricwlwm newydd ar yr un pryd â'r ymgais i wella safonau mewn system lle nad yw popeth yn wych o'i chymharu â safonau rhyngwladol. Mae safonau wedi gwella ychydig, ac wrth gwrs mae hynny i'w groesawu'n fawr, ond mae gennym un o'r systemau addysg sy'n perfformio waethaf yn y byd. Rydym yn siomi cenedlaethau'r dyfodol ac yn condemnio ein hunain i nychu ar waelod y tablau cynghrair economaidd. Rydym yn atal hanner pobl ifanc Cymru rhag cyflawni eu gwir botensial. Rydym yn gwybod ers blynyddoedd nad ydym yn helpu ein dysgwyr disgleiriaf, ond, fel yr amlygwyd gan adroddiad y prif arolygydd, nid ydym yn cyfarfod ag anghenion disgyblion ar draws pob ystod oedran a galluoedd. Cefais y pleser o fod yn bresennol yn agoriad swyddogol Ysgol Carreg Hir yn fy rhanbarth i, ysgol gynradd newydd sy'n deillio o uno tair ysgol gynradd: Bryn Hyfryd ac Ynysymaerdy, ac un a oedd mewn mesurau arbennig, Llansawel. Rhaid imi ddweud fy mod wedi fy mhlesio'n fawr gydag adeiladau'r ysgol newydd, y staff a'r disgyblion. Mae'r disgyblion fel petaent yn ffynnu yn yr amgylchedd newydd, ac roedd hyn yn ffafriol i'w dysgu ac nid oes gennyf unrhyw amheuaeth y bydd yr ysgol newydd yn llawer gwell na'i gwahanol rannau, ac y bydd, diolch i'r staff, disgyblion a rhieni, yn cael ei barnu'n rhagorol pan ddaw arolygwyr Estyn i ymweld â hi. Fodd bynnag, nid yw ein plant a'n pobl ifanc i gyd yn ddigon ffodus o gael amgylcheddau dysgu modern. Mae llawer iawn o ddisgyblion yn cael eu gwasgu i ddosbarthiadau sy'n dadfeilio gydag offer sy'n hen-ffasiwn ac wedi torri. Mae athrawon a disgyblion fel ei gilydd yn gwneud eu gorau, ond mae tanfuddsoddi enfawr a thoriadau yn y gyllideb wedi gadael eu hôl. Cyfarfûm yn ddiweddar â phennaeth Ysgol Gyfun Gymraeg Llangynwyd i drafod dyfodol addysg cyfrwng Cymraeg ym mwrdeistref sirol Pen-y-bont. Cafodd yr ysgol adroddiad da gan Estyn a sgoriodd bum seren yn y 'Real Schools Guide', ond esboniodd ei bod yn mynd yn anoddach ac yn anoddach ymestyn y gyllideb i fynd mor bell ag sydd ei angen er mwyn cynnal y safonau hyn. Mae'r diffygion yn yr adeiladau a'r tanfuddsoddi dirfawr yn gadael eu hôl, ac nid yw ei brofiad ef yn unigryw o bell ffordd. Mae'r gwariant fesul disgybl lawer is nag yn Lloegr neu'r Alban, ac mae wedi gostwng dros £300 yn ystod y degawd diwethaf. Does dim syndod fod Cymdeithas Arweinwyr Ysgolion a Cholegau Cymru wedi eu gorfodi i ysgrifennu am yr argyfwng ariannu difrifol ac effaith hynny ar ysgolion Cymru. Yn anffodus, os na fyddwn yn datrys yr argyfwng ariannu, bydd mwy a mwy o ysgolion yn sicr o fethu. Mae pob person ifanc yng Nghymru yn haeddu cael mynychu ysgol ragorol fel Ysgol Carreg Hir, yn haeddu derbyn addysg o'r radd flaenaf ac yn haeddu cael eu meithrin a'u herio i ddarganfod eu gwir botensial. Felly, dylai'r adroddiad hwn gan Estyn ein deffro, gan ein bod yn methu pobl ifanc Cymru mewn llawer o ardaloedd, ac mae'r cerdyn adroddiad yn dweud, 'rhaid gwneud yn well.'