SCOTTISH teachers said yesterday that many of their number were going home in tears and facing marital problems because of “demoralising and stressful” curriculum changes.

Delegates to the Educational Institute of Scotland’s (EIS) national conference in Perth railed against the SNP Scottish government’s “curriculum for excellence.”

The SNP has promoted it as “a coherent, more flexible and enriched curriculum,” with lessons built around “successful learners,” “confident individuals,” “responsible citizens” and “effective contributors.”

But EIS has harshly criticised the project, saying that the new criteria are too vague to guide lesson plans.

Ayrshire delegate Ross Hannan yesterday described the past year had been “the most demoralising and stressful of my entire career.”

Aberdeenshire’s Derek Ross said many colleagues had confessed that work-related stress sent them home in tears “every night” — and was even straining some members’ marriages.

“I’m retiring in four weeks’ time,” he said. “And as I end these 41 years I’ve never seen my colleagues at such a low ebb.”