Scotland is gearing up for its annual school exam season, as over 132,000 candidates prepare to sit National 5s, Highers, and Advanced Highers in the coming month. Recent years have brought challenges to Scottish education, with concerns about declining standards and a persistent attainment gap. Last year, Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth expressed disappointment in the results, stating they were “not good enough.”
The marks from last year dropped to levels lower than pre-Covid times, indicating a long-term decline in educational attainment in Scotland. The gap between the academic achievements of the wealthiest and poorest students has remained wide, unchanged from a decade ago. To address these issues, Gilruth has pledged to increase teacher numbers, invest in reducing classroom time for teachers, reform the curriculum, and address behavior concerns in classrooms. However, proposals to reduce the number of exams have not been fully embraced at this time.
This year’s exam season will follow a familiar structure, with millions of papers set to be distributed to students in silent school environments over the next month. The first exams on the schedule are computer science and psychology, with the final one being Religious, Moral and Philosophical Studies (RMPS) on 30 May. National 5s are available in over 50 subjects, predominantly taken by S4 students aged 15 or 16, while Highers and Advanced Highers offer a similar range of subjects for older students in S5 and S6. The Scottish government is hopeful that this year’s results, set to be released on Tuesday 5 August, will show improvement from the previous year.
In 2024, English, maths, physical education (PE), history, and chemistry were among the most popular Higher subjects, while English, maths, applications of maths, biology, and PE were the top choices for Nat 5s. Last year, more girls than boys entered for both Higher and Nat 5 exams. Teaching experts anticipate a return to “normal” marking this year after disruptions caused by the pandemic. The adjustments made during Covid-19 exams saw significant increases in pass rates and percentages of pupils achieving top grades. The Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) has faced criticism over recent years, leading to a planned replacement with Qualifications Scotland, with reforms pending approval in the Scottish Parliament
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