Children in Scotland and Save the Children consulted 49 young people who otherwise might not be heard from 'in mainstream' responses to the Scottish Executive's National Debate on Education. Seven 'expert groups' of young people from a variety of perspectives, took part in in-depth discussions about their experience of school. The groups included young Gypsy/Travellers, pupils from a school for children with physical disabilites and young people in care. They developed key messages for a poster and a CD-ROM which were displayed at 'School Daze' event with the Scottish Minister for Education and Young People and submitted to the Scottish Executive along with the report. The difficulties or barriers that faced the young people did mean that many had a fairly negative view of their educational experience, particularly at school. However, a number of young people were positive about their experiences. Of those who were unhappy about the experiences, most were able to identify things that they had enjoyed about education and things which had worked well. Young people suggest a number of improvements, from a broader range of activities at school, considerably smaller class sizes, improved teacher-pupil relationships and more flexibility and support. While young people across the groups had different experiences and different ideas about education, there were some common factors that most felt would have made a big difference for them. The young peoples responses were grouped by the questions raised in the debate, and can be summarised as follows:What should you learn?· Teach 'Skills for Life'· Provide a wider range of subject choice and a broader range of activities, including: vocational subjects, practical skills, cultural and sporting activities· Build self-esteemHow should you learn?· Learning should be fun · Flexibility in how courses and qualifications are followed · Teachings methods in classes should vary to cater to individual learning styles· Class management and behaviour policies which treat young people with respect and listen to their viewsWho can help you learn?· The pivotal role of teachers - should be in a position to relate to young people with patience, humour and understanding· The importance of support and guidanceWhere should young people learn?· Class sizes should be no bigger than 15 or 20· Schools should be in good repair, pleasant, local, accessible and flexible enough to meet the needs of all children and young people in the communityThese four issues, which did not neatly fit into the format of the response forms for the Debate, were strongly expressed by the young people: 1. missing the opportunity of education; 2. considerable and often interrelated problems of bullying and discrimination; 3. experiences of being negatively labelled; and4. participation of young people in school and individual decision-making.The report informed the Scottish Executive's response to the debate in a number of ways, reflected in statements about bringing forward proposals to reduce class sizes, promote more small group learning and review the curriculum to identify how pupil choice and flexibility can be improved. Save the Children and Children in Scotland are currently producing a more child-friendly version of the report to distribute to all the young people who took part in our consultation.