The Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) today wrote to schools, colleges and training providers about support for students amid continuing Covid disruption.

The letter appears to make it clear that, barring a major worsening of the pandemic in the coming months, the 2022 SQA’s national exams are likely to go ahead this year, for the first time since 2019.

The statement comes after education secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said at the weekend that a final decision on whether the 2022 SQA exams will take place might not be made until late March.

Here are some of the key messages in the SQA letter:

SQA exams

It remains “the clear intention for the 2022 SQA exams to take place”. They will only be cancelled “if public health advice restricts physical gatherings at the time of the exams”.

The SQA adds that “clear contingency measures and plans, to deal with the kind of disruption currently being experienced, have been in place since the start of the 2021-22 session”.

On clarity over whether exams will go ahead, the SQA says: “Clearly this decision cannot be taken until nearer the time when the public health situation is clear, but the Scottish government has indicated that this will be the end of March at the latest.”

The SQA also makes clear that the timing of exams will not be changed to give schools, colleges and students time to catch up if they have been badly affected by illness or Covid isolation measures. It says: “The timing of the exams cannot be moved for a range of reasons, including allowing sufficient time for marking and informing learners of their results in good time to make decisions about their next steps.”

Modifications to exam papers are also not an option, the SQA says.

If the exams are cancelled, the SQA advises schools and colleges that “the evidence you are gathering through normal in-year assessment to determine your learners’ estimates can be used to form the basis of their provisional results”. For more details on what this means, the SQA recommends looking at its “refreshed estimates guidance”, which can be read here.

Revision support for students

The SQA is “actively monitoring levels of disruption across the country, including levels of learner and staff absence”, adding: “If significant levels of disruption continue, we will soon move to what has been referred to in previous communications as ‘Scenario 2’, which means supporting learners with their final revision in the immediate run-up to the exams.”

This could mean, for example, guidance on specific topics “to help learners maximise their exam performance and reduce exam stress”, but there “will not be any further changes to courses or course assessments, over and above those already in place”.

If the SQA moves to Scenario 2, “revision support will be issued in March for most courses, to allow as much time as possible for learning and teaching”. Students would be given their support materials at this time “to aid their revision ahead of the Easter holidays”.

The SQA says: “It is important that this information is not provided too far in advance to avoid the narrowing of learning and teaching which will negatively impact learners’ breadth of course knowledge [and] understanding and the next steps in their learning.”

On advice for schools and colleges that have been “impacted by significant staff and/or pupil isolation”, the SQA says: “It is important to remember that the significant modifications already made to courses this year are designed to address the ongoing disruption to learning and teaching.”

Teaching union reacts

In response to the SQA letter, Larry Flanagan, general secretary of the EIS teaching union, said: “Providing students with a heads-up regarding exam content to aid revision will assist exam performance, but it’s neither a substitute nor a solution to disrupted teaching and learning which could mean, in some instances, that not all coursework will have been overtaken by May.”

Mr Flanagan added: “Councils and agencies such as Education Scotland need to address the ongoing disruption being experienced by students now. Come April, there will need to be measures and resources in place to ensure that all students have equitable access to revision support - and not only those whose parents can afford additional tuition or the SQA’s guidance could actually widen the equity gap.”