Students ‘judged on postcode not ability’
MSP says exams fiasco saw pupils treated as statistics
A Green MSP has claimed local pupils were treated as “statistics” after new information revealed the true extent of exam re-grading in the region’s schools.
The SQA data, acquired by the investigation website The Ferret, showed that pupils at St Modan’s High in Stirling saw their original teacher estimated results downgraded by 30 per cent, while Bannockburn High’s rate sat at 29.9 per cent.
It was a similar picture across the region’s six secondaries, with Balfron High having the fewest grades adjusted downwards at 13.9 per cent of their total.
The other Stirlingshire school in the region, Mclaren High in Callander, saw 23.3 per cent of its original estimated grades revised downwards, with 5.9 per cent of those turning the grade from a pass to a fail.
Mid Scotland and Fife MSP Mark Ruskell blasted the Scottish Government’s handling of this year’s exams, saying: “These figures reveal just how unfair this system was, just as the Scottish Greens had warned of for months.
“Students at St Modan’s, Bannockburn and many other schools were treated like statistics rather than people, with many being judged more on their postcode than their abilities.
“Fortunately, Green MSPS were able to negotiate a solution which saw all 124,565 grades restored and the independent inquiry we secured has now published its findings, so there is no excuse for this to happen again.
“This is the power of constructive opposition with a minority government. If the SNP had a majority in
Parliament, I doubt we would have seen such a clear resolution to this shambles.”
This summer’s exam diet was forced to be cancelled as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, with teacher-estimated grades submitted to decide grades.
Following the discovery that thousands of grades had been downgraded by the SQA, Scottish ministers were forced to reinstate the original grades under pressure from parents and teachers.
Stirling MSP, the SNP’S Bruce Crawford, told the Observer: “The whole country was and remains in an unprecedented situation, and Scottish authorities were right to speak to counterparts across other UK nations to share ideas about how best to manage a situation where we needed to get young people through their courses, but couldn’t risk having them physically sitting exams.
“There was no solution to this that was perfect, but what is important is that a government shows leadership when a situation can be made better.
“The Education Secretary listened to the concerns of parents, teachers, and pupils on this and the moderated grades were reversed. This was the right decision.
“This was a simple matter of a government listening to people and, before long, the UK government was forced to follow the Scottish Government’s lead on this south of the border.”
Students at St Modan’s and Bannockburn were treated like statistics rather than people