Family of Farr High School pupil in anxious wait for resolution over Scottish exam results fiasco
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A North Coast family are anxiously waiting for the Scottish Government to announce how it is to resolve the country’s schools exam results fiasco.
Bettyhill based paramedic Murdo Gordon has already written to First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, Education Secretary John Swinney and local MSP Gail Ross in protest about his son Sean’s National 5 exam result.
Fifteen-year-old Sean, a pupil at Farr High School, was amongst more than 120,000 pupils across Scotland to have their grades moderated by the Scottish Qualification Authority (SQA).
The youngster, who hopes to become an instrument technician, received an A in his History prelim but was given a D grade by the SQA.
His father said: “Sean was gutted. It was as if someone had punched him.”
The family have now asked that his grade be appealed.
Pupils did not sit exams this year because of the coronavirus pandemic and instead teachers assessed pupils’ work and submitted estimated grades to the SQA.
But the SQA then applied a methodology that saw the submitted grades taken down.
And it has emerged that pass rates for pupils in the most deprived data zones were reduced by 15.2 per cent in comparison with 6.9 per cent for pupils from the most affluent backgrounds.
Mr Gordon said: “It's nonsense and does not make any sense. You would assume in my son’s case that maybe his grade would have gone down from an A to a B but not a D. To come down four grades from the top is nonsensical.
“If they (SQA) were not sure about a grade, I would have thought they would have asked for information from the teachers rather than just make a stroke of their pen and say - there you have now got a D.
"It's an utter disgrace. They are ruining kids' lives and should not be allowed to get away with it."
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon yesterday apologised for the fiasco following a national backlash and student protests. She admitted the Government had got it wrong.
And she said that "every young person would get a grade that reflected the work they had done".
Education Secretary John Swinney is expected to perform a major U-turn in a bid to sort out the current situation.
It has been reported that he is set to announce changes to the grades appeals process for pupils, with officials said to be examining ways to automatically review the results of downgraded pupils without each having to lodge an individual appeal.
