SQA forced to review Scottish exam timetable amid backlash over Higher English scheduling clash

Pupils were left “shocked” when it emerged that the exams for both Higher Psychology and Higher Childcare and Development would begin just one hour after the end of the Higher English exam on May 7 this year.

Some fear it could even derail their hopes of gaining the grades needed to secure places on university courses.

Furious parents questioned the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) about the timetable following its publication last year, while schools have also been in contact.

The exams body has now confirmed to The Scotsman that it is considering steps to “address these concerns”.

It is the latest headache for the SQA, which continues to face questions over its response to a drop in the pass rate of the Higher History exam last year.

The exact number of pupils impacted by the scheduling is unclear, but last year there were 36,300 entries for Higher English, a total of 2,495 for Higher Psychology, and 245 for Higher Childcare and Development.

It is not unusual to have exams in more than one Higher subject on the same day, but it is uncommon to have others on the day of Higher English, which has by far the highest number of entries at that level.

The only other recent occasion is thought to have been 2022 when the Higher Fashion and Textile Technology exam, sat by 360 learners, was on the same day as Higher English.

Under the current 2025 timetable, the Higher English paper on “reading for understanding, analysis and evaluation” is sat between 9am and 10.30am on May 7, followed by the “critical reading” paper between 11am and 12.30pm.

Then, another four exams get under way at 1.30pm on the same day - Higher Psychology, Higher Childcare and Development, National 5 Psychology, and the Advanced Higher in Mathematics of Mechanics.

Sam Pringle is a parent of one of the many students who require extra time when sitting exams as a result of their additional support needs.

Her child expects to start Higher English at 8.30am, before finishing it at around 1pm, and then faces having to almost immediately start setting up for the Higher Psychology paper, which will not be completed until around 4pm.

Ms Pringle contacted SQA to raise concerns about the scheduling in September last year, when the timetable was published, and has also lodged a formal complaint with the exams body.

She said: “Exams are hard enough anyway, and I think the way in which the exams authority has placed the exam has made it even harder, and it disproportionately impacts people who struggle to do exams and study for exams.

“It’s not going to lead to the best outcomes for all students. I would like to see the evidence of how this is the best for the children. How is this timetable giving learners the best outcome?”

The timetable issue has emerged amid growing concern over the mental health pressures faced by young people, with the SQA’s own survey recently revealing 76 per cent of teachers believed pupils find external assessment more stressful than the cohorts before the Covid pandemic.

Edinburgh-based parent Katharina Strobel has a daughter who is due to sit both Higher English and Higher Psychology in May.

“The first response was disbelief that this was actually their proposal, to schedule these together, especially Higher English, which is such a significant exam, together with another subject that also involves a lot of writing, memorising,” she said.

“To have them on the same day, I just could not believe it. I really could not believe this was a serious proposal.

“My daughter and everybody else at the school who are in the same position, taking those two subjects, they were shocked. They basically thought, ‘well that’s it for us, we won’t get a fair chance, we will never get to university’. You know, feeling really, really let down.”

Ms Strobel said the SQA could resolve the issue by moving Higher Psychology to June 2, which currently has no exams as it is set aside as a “contingency day”.

She said: “We obviously don’t want to just put the problem onto somebody else. We don’t want any other pupils to be affected by this if they move one and another set of exam takers have to sit two on the same day.

“I wouldn’t want anyone to go through this. I would love for the SQA to consider using the contingency day that at the moment is a free day, there are no exams scheduled on that day, so why not move Higher Psychology onto that day?

“That would solve the problem, and it wouldn’t impact any other pupils, and it seems like a fair solution. I don’t really understand why they haven’t considered this in the first place.”

An SQA spokesperson said: "The exam timetable is created by SQA in partnership with a number of different stakeholders.

“We agreed to a delay to the planned start date following a request from School Leaders Scotland and the Association of Directors of Education Scotland to allow for more study time after the Easter holidays.

“Unfortunately, this change increased the number of coincident and consecutive exams.

“A number of concerns have since been raised and we are in active discussion with stakeholders to consider what steps might be possible to address these concerns.”

The exam period is shorter this year as a result of the change, running from April 28 to May 30. Last year, it was from April 22 to May 29.

School Leaders Scotland general secretary Graham Hutton said it had wanted more time for the young people to ensure they were exam ready, but on the understanding that the exam diet would last the same amount of time.