Geography teachers have written to the Scottish government warning that children with additional support needs could suffer due to the longer Higher exams to be introduced next year.

A Tes Scotland investigation earlier this year found that out of 40 subjects at Higher, 31 would have longer exams. For example, those sitting Higher PE next year will have an hour’s worth of additional questions to answer compared with those who sat the exam earlier this year.

Already educationalists have hit out at the move, claiming it is a backwards step and a return to high stakes assessment. The Scottish Qualifications Authority, however, argues that longer exams are necessary to “protect the integrity, breadth and standards of national courses” in the wake of the removal of the unit assessments.

Now it has come to light through a freedom of information request that Highland Council geography teachers wrote to the education secretary John Swinney earlier this year warning the changes would disadvantage additional support needs (ASN) pupils, who could spend up to four hours answering questions in next year’s Higher exam.

They wrote: “Pupils will also suffer from these proposed changes, in particular those with additional support needs. If a pupil requires 33 per cent additional time then in some cases their Higher exam in total will last for four hours!”

However, Tes Scotland understands that some students could be in exam halls for longer, given Higher geography is not the longest exam and some pupils get more than 33 per cent additional time.

Come next year, Higher philosophy will take a total of four hours to sit and according to the SQA website a pupil with a visual impairment might be entitled to 50 per cent additional time. It is possible therefore that some pupils will be sitting exams that last more than four hours in total.

The SQA said that the changes to the exams came about as a direct result of the removal of the unit assessments - a move that was called for by teaching unions who blamed the tests for excessive workload and over-assessment. It said the additional time spent sitting exams was small “in comparison to the time that candidates would have previously spent completing their unit assessments”.

The body also said as part of its work to “strengthen course assessments at N5 and Higher” it had carried out an equality impact assessment.

An SQA spokesman continued: “We have had no reports of specific disadvantage to candidates with additional support needs, who took National 5 courses in 2018.

“Throughout the awarding process, we did look out for indications of any impact that the extension of question papers might have had on candidates. There was no evidence of candidates being unable to finish the assessments or of missing out responses, and feedback from some principal assessors and teachers was that the time extension had given candidates the opportunity to fully answer a wider range of questions.”   

The SQA said it would continue to monitor the situation.

Next year pupils who sit the exam will sit two question papers lasting for a total of three hours. The Higher geography exam in 2018 had one question paper, which lasted for two hours and 15 minutes.

Candidates also had to pass the three units that made up part of the course, as well as undertake an assignment task.