Coronavirus: Parent and carer
support
SQA 2020 exams and coursework assessments are cancelled. However, your child will still receive their results by 4 August.
Our decisions are based on three principles:
- Fairness to all learners.
- Safe and secure certification of your child’s qualifications.
- Making sure the qualifications your child achieves are equal to any achieved in the past, or in the future.
How we will provide your child’s results
1 Estimating
Teachers and lecturers tell us what estimated grade they expect your child to achieve. Estimated grades are based on teaching knowledge and experience of your child's' performance through the year.
2 Awarding
We check and validate your child’s estimated grade, adjusting if necessary to be consistent across schools/colleges and with results from previous years.
We use the estimates to produce your child’s result.
3 Results
Tuesday 4 August
We issue your child’s results. (They can sign up to MySQA for results by text/email).
4 Appeals
After 4 August
If your child disagrees with their result, speak to their school or college who may use the free appeals service.
More information on the process
Step 1 - Estimates
Your child’s results will be based on estimate grades, which their teacher or lecturer will send to us by Friday 29 May. Schools and colleges have information on how to do this.
An estimate grade is what teachers or lecturers would expect your child to achieve. They will use their professional knowledge and experience of how your child has performed through the year. An estimate grade is not just the result of one prelim or one project. It’s an overall judgement based on all activity across the year.
Step 2 - Awarding
- We check and validate the information sent to us and adjust it, if necessary, to ensure consistency across all schools and colleges and with results from previous years.
- We use the estimated information, as well as previous results your child may have achieved, to produce their 2020 results.
- We will produce your child's results, using our national grades for each subject and level.
Step 3 - Results and Certification
- We process your child’s results and issue them by 4 August. Please encourage your child to sign-up to MySQA, so they receive their results by text and/or email.
Step 4 - Appeals
- If your child disagrees with their result, they should contact their school or college who will be able to use a free appeals service. This will enable the school or college to question your child's result. The school or college must have evidence to support their estimate.
- The evidence will be reviewed by senior examiners. We will provide schools and colleges with further details on this service, as soon as we can.
Keep up to date with the latest news
Student questions answered
Which qualifications are covered by the guidance in this section?
The guidance in this section is currently relevant to the following SQA qualifications:
- National 2 to National 5 courses
- Highers
- Advanced Highers
- Scottish Baccalaureate Interdisciplinary Project unit
- National Certificates (NC)
- National Progression Awards (NPA)
- Skills for Work courses
- Awards
Why did SQA take the decision to cancel the exams?
This is an unprecedented situation and as the Deputy First Minister outlined in Parliament on 19 March, the exam diet in 2020 cannot go ahead. The decision was made by The Scottish Government, using the latest medical and scientific advice.
What about pushing the exam timetable back to later in the year?
This was considered as an alternative however, with no clear timeline for when schools and colleges would be reopened, the Deputy First Minister asked SQA to develop an alternative certification model.
How will National Courses be certificated this year?
Experienced teachers and lecturers will review all the evidence that is available to them to assess whether you have met the course aims. They have a strong understanding of your performance and know how you compare to other learners in each department, and in previous years.
Your teachers and/or lecturers will take account of any available work that you have completed throughout the course. Using their professional judgement, and their knowledge of your work and your progress so far, they will make an estimate of the grade and band you would have achieved under normal circumstances.
Estimate grades will be based on your demonstrated and inferred attainment of the required skills, knowledge and understanding for each course at National 5, Higher and Advanced Higher.
We will then have the information we need to adjust estimates where necessary, and to ensure consistency — both across the country and in comparison, with previous years.
When and how should schools and colleges supply estimate grades to SQA?
We have given schools and colleges detailed guidance on how to determine and submit the required estimate information. This guidance was made available to schools and colleges on Monday 20 April 2020. We are also extending the existing estimates deadline by a month from Friday 24 April to Friday 29 May. This will give teachers and lecturers the time they need to access evidence, and have departmental and faculty discussions, to provide this information.
Do I need to do any further work?
No. There is no requirement for schools and colleges to set any more prelims or mock exams, or homework tasks for the purpose of determining an estimate grade. It’s also important to remember that it is not necessary for teachers and lecturers to mark any other work that would have been externally marked by SQA.
What does this mean for National 2 to National 4 courses and the Scottish Baccalaureate Interdisciplinary Project?
National 2, National 3 and National 4 qualifications are made up of units (including an Added Value Unit at National 4) which are internally assessed as pass or fail by the school or college, and externally quality assured by SQA. Schools and colleges will continue to send us your unit results based on either existing evidence from assessments that have already been completed, and/or by using their professional judgement of your work from through the year. The same arrangement applies to the Scottish Baccalaureate Interdisciplinary Project unit.
What about other internally assessed qualifications, such as National Certificates, National Progression Awards and Skills for Work courses?
For National Certificates, National Progression Awards, Skills for Work courses, and other Awards, we are asking schools, colleges, employers and training providers to provide us with the results of their internal assessment decisions (where some evidence from the course already exists but further progress is not possible) using their professional judgement of your work through the year.
Why aren’t you marking my coursework?
Coursework for Higher and Advanced Higher courses are submitted later in the year, so as a result of the current public health advice on social distancing, you may not be able to complete it and we would not be able to receive it and mark it. While considering the required arrangements to mark National 5 coursework that we had already received, it became clear that we could no longer go ahead with marking it in a way that was safe and secure for the hundreds of markers who work with us over the course of the exam diet, or that maintains the integrity of national standards. We know this will be disappointing news. But we have taken this difficult decision to be as fair as possible to all learners, whilst responding to and following the latest public health guidance.
When will we receive our results?
Everyone at SQA is working to ensure that learners expecting their results for National Courses and awards, National Certificates, National Progression Awards and Skills for Work courses, will receive their results no later than Tuesday 4 August. We strongly recommend that you sign-up to MySQA to receive your results by text and/or email. If you have already received your results through MySQA previously, you will continue to do so, and we recommend that you review your profile to make sure your contact details are up to date. A free appeals service will be available, to ensure that schools and colleges continue to have a mechanism to question any result.
Will I be able to progress to the next stage of my education or employment with the grades I receive this year?
Yes. SQA is in regular discussion with UCAS (the University and College Admission Service), Colleges Scotland, and Universities Scotland, who are fully aware of the situation and will help learners to progress on to the next stage of their education or employment. We are also in close discussion with Skills Development Scotland, to ensure employers and their representatives are kept aware of the decisions being made.
Will schools and colleges still be able to question results, and use SQA’s Post-results Services?
Everyone at SQA is doing everything possible to ensure learners’ hard work is rightly and fairly recognised. A free appeals service will be available, to ensure that schools and colleges continue to have a mechanism to question any result.
Can I sit my exams next year and use whatever result is better?
Yes, as in any year, learners can sit the exams next year if they wish. All results will be listed on their SQA record of attainment.
Resources
With the closure of schools, you may want to explore home schooling. Below is a range of free resources and guidance you may find useful.
Home learning support and resources
Past papers for National 5, Higher and Advanced Higher
Past papers are useful to confirm your understanding of subjects - and you don't need a teacher to check answers as marking instructions are included too.
Download past papers and marking instructions
Ushare
Brings you links to learning resources that have been recommended by teachers and learners that support SQA's qualifications.
Browse learning resources on Ushare
BBC Bitesize
Use BBC Bitesize to help with your homework and learning - find videos, step-by-step guides, activities and quizzes. Bitesize also has daily lessons in a range of subjects.
Education Scotland - Learning at home
Help support your child's home learning - including creating a home learning environment.
Access Education Scotland learning from home resources
The National Parent Forum of Scotland (NPFS)
NPFS have put together a wide range of educational resources that offer you and your child options for lessons at home.
Educational resources for parents and families
Connect
Connect work with parents and educators and have a wide range of useful links and resources for you.
Mental health and wellbeing support
If you’re worried about coronavirus and how it may affect you and your child, you’re not alone. Find information on how to protect yourself and others and tips on talking to children about the virus.
Parent Club
Parent Club offer tips and ideas by age and topic on how you can help support your child.
Find out more about Parent Club
Education Scotland - Supporting health and wellbeing
Education Scotland has some simple ideas and activities to help you talk to your child about mental, emotional and physical wellbeing.
Read more about Education Scotland's tips
Gov.uk
The UK Government has guidance for you on looking after the mental health and wellbeing of children in your care, including those with additional support needs.
