Independent schools in Scotland continue to be more successful than state schools when it comes to challenging students’ exam grades, new figures show - but the sector with the greatest success rate this year was further education colleges.
Independent schools had success with 12.8 per cent of their appeals, while state schools saw 9.8 per cent of their appeals result in an upgrade.
Analysis published today by the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) also shows that 13.1 per cent of appeals from further education colleges resulted in an improved grade. However, colleges submitted a relatively small number of appeals: just 330 compared with the independent sector’s 2,700 and the state sector’s 36,590.
This year, however, the SQA found that the appeal rate “did not vary significantly” by sector.
SQA exam appeals by sector
The appeal rate in the wake of the 2022 SQA exams was higher in the independent sector, but in 2023 council-run schools had the highest appeal rate (7.4 per cent) followed by independent schools (7 per cent) and colleges (5.7 per cent).
The research also shows there was “no significant difference” in the appeal rates between the most and least deprived parts of the country.
However, whether or not an appeal was successful did vary by the level of deprivation.
When it came to National 5s, 9.1 per cent of appeals from the most affluent areas (Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) decile 10) were successful, resulting in an upgrade, but just 7.6 per cent of appeals from the least affluent areas were successful (SIMD decile 1).
The more in-depth data on appeals published today by the SQA follows figures published in November.
This year, in total, 39,660 (7.3 per cent) of National 5, Higher and Advanced Higher grades were appealed. One in 10 appeals resulted in an upgrade.
The vast majority of successful appeals (over 99 per cent) resulted in a change of just one grade.
However, 30 appeals (0.7 per cent) changed by two grades, and some appeals resulted in the grade improving by three or four grades - although this happened on fewer than five occasions.
Care subjects had the highest appeal rate (11.2 per cent) and languages subjects had the lowest appeal rate (4.5 per cent). And there were “large differences in upgrade rates between subject groupings”, according to the SQA’s Summary of Appeal Outcomes, 2023.
Appeals in science and maths were least likely to result in an improved grade (2.4 per cent and 6.9 per cent respectively). Meanwhile, the subjects where the grade was most likely to improve following appeal were home economics (22.2 per cent) and care subjects (25.6 per cent).
SQA chief executive Fiona Robertson said the appeals service this year had given students across the country a safety net so they could query an unexpected result, directly and for free.
Before the pandemic the SQA charged schools for unsuccessful appeals.
In 2019 just 11,528 appeals were made (2.3 per cent of entries), with 1,683 resulting in an improved grade.
