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Exams underway for learners across Scotland
The exam period begins on Monday 22 April and concludes on Thursday 30 May.
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Exams underway for learners across Scotland
21
April
2024
Qualifications
Monday 22 April 2024
SQA exams begin on Monday for tens of thousands of young people across Scotland who will sit assessments for National 5, Higher and Advanced Higher courses.
The exam period begins on Monday 22 April and concludes on Thursday 30 May.
More than 131,000 candidates will sit exams, with learners undertaking question papers in subjects ranging from Maths and English to Sociology and Politics. For those candidates taking subjects such as Drama, Music, and PE, the performance and practical elements of the assessments have been taking place over the last several weeks.
Over the course of the next six weeks, more than two million question papers will be handed out in over 500 schools, colleges and training providers across the country. SQA exams will also be held in the United States of America and several European countries. Special arrangements have been put in place to accommodate those candidates who are, for example, representing their country at the time of their exams.
In addition, many learners will be in the final stages of completing National 1 to National 4 qualifications, SQA Awards, Skills for Work courses, National Progression Awards and National Certificates that are continually assessed throughout the year. These form part of a broad offering of qualifications, which support learners to progress into employment, training, further and higher education.
In total, more than 146,000 candidates are expected to get their results on Tuesday 6 August.
Following discussions with learners, teachers, lecturers, parents, carers and others, coursework has been reintroduced this year after being removed during the pandemic. SQA will consider any impact on learners completing coursework for the first time in its grading decisions. These considerations will be incorporated into SQA’s well-established grading processes.
“I would like to say good luck to everyone throughout Scotland who is about to sit exams or complete their assessments in the coming weeks. After months of hard work and study, thousands of young people are preparing to complete their qualifications and take the next step in their education, training, or employment.
“I also pay tribute to the professionalism of Scotland’s teachers and lecturers, and their commitment to learners across the country. Their work plays a vital role in enabling young people to reach their full potential.
“We very much value and rely on the expertise of the thousands of appointees, most of whom are practising teachers and lecturers, who collaborate with us throughout the year to ensure the exams and assessments are set, invigilated, marked, and quality assured. They play a crucial role in ensuring that learners' hard work and commitment is recognised.
“As coursework in subjects and exams in practical subjects have returned, I am confident that our package of support represents the fairest and best way to help learners to demonstrate their knowledge, understanding and skills for each course, while also maintaining the integrity, credibility and standard of their qualifications.”
Fiona Robertson, SQA Chief Executive and Scotland’s Chief Examining Officer
An exceptional circumstances service will be in place for those learners who are unable to sit an exam or whose performance is affected by personal circumstances. Additionally, a free and direct appeals service, which will give all learners the right to request a review of their marked exam papers, will be available after results are published in August.
The SQA learner web page has a wide range of support for learners, including a ‘Your Exams’ Guide that gives learners helpful hints and tips for preparing for exams. This booklet is also available from schools, colleges and training providers.
Learners can access revision tips and past papers and download SQA’s MyStudyPlan app to help them plan their revision time.
“As we reach the opening of this year’s exams, I would like to wish all pupils and students the very best of luck with their qualifications – I know you have been working incredibly hard to get to this point today.
“I’d also like to take the opportunity to thank all the parents, carers, teachers, lecturers and support staff whose valuable support has helped each and every young person throughout this period.”
Jenny Gilruth, Education Secretary
All candidates will receive their results by post on Tuesday 6 August, but there is still time for them to register for a MySQA account to receive results by text and/or email on Results Day. Learners should log onto www.mysqa.org.uk and register for the service with their unique Scottish Candidate Number by 5pm on Wednesday 17 July.
110159
447
08-MAY-2024
Wed, 8 May 2024 11:27:40 +0100
UPDATED
Research examines 2023 approach to National Courses
Research reflecting teachers' and learners' experiences of National Courses in 2023 is published today.
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Research examines 2023 approach to National Courses
27
March
2024
Qualifications
Wednesday 27 March 2024
Almost 5,000 learners, teachers, lecturers and senior examiners have reflected on their experiences of National Courses in 2023 in research published today by SQA.
The research package of reports examines views and experiences of the approach to awarding used in the 2022-23 session, analyses the use of dual presentation at National 4 and National 5, the relationship between teacher estimates and results and the performance of National 5 Maths, where A-C performance in 2023 fell below pre-pandemic levels.
The research findings have helped SQA to make decisions about the approach to awarding in the 2023-24 session, announced earlier this month. Key findings from the research have also been shared with the wider education community to inform their decision making. The findings have also contributed to Scottish Government plans for reviewing the Maths curriculum, its education reform programme and its reminder to schools on the appropriate use of dual presentation.
Among the key findings:
71% of learners and 66% of practitioners agreed that how qualifications were going to be assessed was communicated to them effectively.
76% of learners and practitioners agreed that they had understood how grades would be determined.
58% of learners and 50% of practitioners agreed that the assessment process was fair for learners and 55% of learners and 53% of practitioners agreed that they were satisfied with it.
66% of practitioners thought that the grades awarded in 2022-23 were either very credible or credible.
78% of practitioners and 59% of senior examiners agreed that the national standard was consistently understood and interpreted by practitioners.
95% of senior examiners agreed that the approach used for awarding in 2022-23 ensured all relevant factors were considered when setting grade boundaries.
Martyn Ware, Director of Policy, Analysis and Standards at SQA, said: “We are committed to hearing what our stakeholders, in particular teachers and learners, have to say about their experiences of our qualifications and assessments. This research, following the evaluations published in 2022 and 2023, is vital to ensure that we continue to deliver for Scotland’s learners, the economy and wider society by bringing practitioners and learners into the heart of our decision making.
“We are immensely grateful to the learners, teachers, lecturers and senior examiners who gave their time to share their experiences. It is particularly encouraging to see the 67% increase in the number of learners engaging with us, compared to last year, including those with disabilities, with additional support needs, with a range of equalities characteristics and from different SIMD quintiles.
“The research findings have helped to build a picture of the experiences of learners, teachers, lecturers and senior examiners from across Scotland in 2023 as we continued to work through the long-term impact of the COVID pandemic on our education system. They reflect the diverse and often differing experiences and views of our education community.
“It is important that we share the findings of this extensive research with the wider education community and explore with them the implications for our future approaches. The research will add to the other sources of insight into how the 2022-23 session performed, such as national attainment data, published last August.
“Understanding the benefits and challenges of different arrangements is invaluable and creates a record and evidence-base to support continued dialogue and decision-making as Scotland continues to consider the scale and scope of education reform.”
Ten reports have been published today, including an overall and a learner summary of the research findings.
In addition, SQA has published its annual reports into malpractice. In the 2022-23 session, there were 145 cases of candidate malpractice in National 5, Higher and Advanced Higher courses, up from 76 in the 2021-22 session. This represents 0.027% of the 540,950 entries for these courses.
Any kind of malpractice is totally unacceptable. SQA has a duty, in the interests of fairness and equity for all candidates, and to maintain the integrity and standards of the qualifications, to investigate where concerns of malpractice are raised.
SQA will continue to work with schools and colleges, the teaching profession, and its markers and invigilators, to ensure that its approaches to malpractice are applied.
SQA has also published centre malpractice information for 2023. This covers SQA activity across all qualification and centre types. Through the year, a total of 212 concerns were logged, of which 56 were investigated to a conclusion. Of these 42 led to a finding of malpractice, down from 45 in 2022. These relate to fewer than 3% of the centres registered to deliver SQA qualifications by the end of 2023.
The research and the malpractice reports are available on our website.
109903
447
23-APR-2024
Tue, 23 Apr 2024 12:32:56 +0100
UPDATED