The Scottish Secondary Teachers’ Association (SSTA) has said that thousands of teenagers will be put under “unnecessary pressure and stress” by the reintroduction of full pre-Covid requirements for national qualifications in 2023-24.
The SSTA has criticised the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) for the reinstatement of coursework and exam requirements that were removed as a result of the pandemic.
The union said that its pleas to the SQA fell on deaf ears at a meeting last week, and that the organisation needed to listen to the views of more than 2,000 SSTA members surveyed on the matter.
However, the SQA said in response this afternoon that schools were “getting on with the reintroduced assessment arrangements” and that “It’s time we all did the same and showed our support for learners”.
SSTA general secretary Seamus Searson said: “The SSTA met with senior officials of the SQA last week and made a plea for the SQA to listen to secondary teachers delivering examinations in schools. We asked that the SQA board of management and the National Qualification 2023 Review Group reconsider their decision and delay the return to full exam requirements in 2024.”
An SSTA survey of 2,124 members found that only 19 per cent of practitioners wanted a return to national qualifications in full in 2023-24.
SQA challenged over exam arrangements
Mr Searson said: “The SSTA challenged the SQA’s plan to revert to the national qualification pre-pandemic requirements in 2024 on two fundamental grounds. The teachers are not ready and, most importantly, pupils are not ready.”
He argued that a return to pre-pandemic exam arrangements in 2023-24 was “a stubborn move by a self-interested organisation that is oblivious to the realities in secondary schools and is potentially causing thousands of young people unnecessary pressure and stress”.
Mr Searson, who also highlighted “immeasurable workload demands on a profession that is already on its knees”, added: “The action of the SQA is indefensible and it is time the SQA is replaced before it does more harm to the young people for whom it says it cares.”
SSTA president Stuart Hunter said: “The SQA officials listened politely but were unprepared to ask the SQA board to reconsider the decision. We were told that the decision had been made, it was supported by ‘all stakeholders’ and was in the ‘best interest of learners’. When we suggested the possibility of a phased return at National 4 and 5 level in 2024, this was rejected out of hand.”
Mr Hunter added: “The SQA’s own participation survey reported: that learners who are now sitting national courses do not have the same foundation of skills and knowledge or exam competence that would have been anticipated before the pandemic, and that some learners are less resilient and less able to deal with stress. Nothing has changed since 2022.”
An SQA spokesperson said: “The decision in March to reintroduce coursework was made in the best interests of learners and followed extensive engagement with teachers, lecturers, universities, colleges and unions, among others.
“This engagement highlighted concerns about the detrimental impact that the temporary Covid modifications were having on learners’ development of knowledge, skills and understanding and on their progression into further or higher education or employment. Similar concerns were also raised by many of SQA’s senior appointees during last year’s awarding process.”
The SQA spokesperson added: “The decision was supported by stakeholders from across the education system, including the [SQA] Advisory Council and National Qualifications Group. These groups include representatives from the teaching community and its professional bodies.
“Schools are now getting on with the reintroduced assessment arrangements ahead of the summer break. It’s time we all did the same and showed our support for learners.”
