Scotland examination outcomes: John Swinney insists U-turn was not about saving his job

Scotland’s schooling secretary has denied his faculty outcomes U-turn was motivated by saving his job slightly than the considerations of pupils.

John Swinney introduced on Tuesday that tens of hundreds of pupils would have their outcomes upgraded.

It adopted days of protests, with Mr Swinney additionally dealing with the prospect of dropping a Holyrood vote of confidence.

Mr Swinney insisted that he decided to improve the outcomes “as shortly as I presumably might”.

However he mentioned he had waited till yesterday to announce the adjustments – every week after the outcomes have been issued – as a result of he had an obligation to tell the Scottish Parliament first.

Mr Swinney additionally continued to insist that the moderation system put in place by the Scottish {Qualifications} Authority (SQA) had been “completely truthful”.

About 75,000 pupils had their outcomes downgraded by the SQA from the grades that had initially been put ahead for them by their academics.

It sparked claims of a “postcode lottery” that unfairly hit pupils from extra disadvantaged backgrounds as a result of the SQA took into consideration the earlier efficiency of faculties when allocating ultimate outcomes.

Mr Swinney and First Minister Nicola Sturgeon spent a lot of final week defending the method, claiming that basing outcomes purely on academics estimates would have broken the credibility of the {qualifications} system.

Opposition events had appeared prone to win a vote of no confidence in Mr Swinney later this week.

However his U-turn means the Scottish Greens will now again him – which might give him sufficient votes to win.

Chatting with the BBC’s Good Morning Scotland programme, Mr Swinney was requested whether or not it was the specter of dropping the arrogance vote – slightly than the times of protests by pupils – that had made him change his thoughts.

He replied: “No”, and insisted he had recognised final week that there was a “downside” with the outcomes and that one thing would must be finished.

He mentioned he had waited till yesterday as a result of it was the day the Scottish Parliament returned from recess.

He added: “The people who find themselves now calling for my resignation would have complained if I had not introduced what I introduced yesterday to parliament.

“I mentioned final Thursday what I used to be going to do to parliament and make an announcement, so it was apparent we have been going to do one thing in regards to the exams”.

Mr Swinney continued to insist that the SQA’s moderation course of had been a “completely truthful mannequin” which had “emphasised closely the significance of sustaining requirements from earlier years to this yr”.

However he mentioned he had modified his thoughts after listening to the “heartfelt pleas” and “anguish” from younger individuals who had been affected.

He added: “The reflection that I got here to, having listened to younger folks, was that we had to have a look at 2020 in a different way.

“We needed to recognise that younger folks have had a major disruption to their lives in 2020 due to Covid-19, and we should always not emphasise the necessity to keep requirements – which was the course I had given to the SQA again in March.”

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon mentioned final week that accepting instructor estimates with out moderation would result in an exceptionally excessive move fee in comparison with earlier years, which she mentioned wouldn’t be “credible”.

And Mr Swinney beforehand mentioned he believed academics have been typically “optimistic and aspirational” about their pupils’ skills, whereas an examination system “does one thing completely different”.

The adjustments introduced on Tuesday imply that this yr’s Increased move fee will now sit at 89.2%, up 14.four proportion factors on 2019, whereas the Superior Increased move fee is at 93.1%, up 13.7 factors from the earlier yr.

SQA chief Fiona Robertson informed Holyrood’s schooling committee on Wednesday that she was “keenly conscious of the energy of feeling” in regards to the outcomes – however mentioned it felt “important” to “keep requirements” between completely different colleges and years.

She mentioned the SQA handled instructor estimates with “utmost respect”, however there was a “clear and unequivocal case for some moderation” as a result of they have been “not all the time correct”.

Ms Robertson mentioned there was proof that the accuracy of instructor estimates of ultimate outcomes have been “under 50%” in earlier years.

She mentioned she accepted that the moderation “felt very private” to some college students, however insisted that colleges have been “not seen as postcodes in any respect” by the system.

The SQA says colleges will obtain the brand new, confirmed outcomes “as quickly as doable and no later than the tip of subsequent week”, with recent certificates additionally being despatched out to affected candidates.

The federal government has additionally pledged to make sure there are ample locations in universities and schools, in order that “nobody is crowded out of a spot they might in any other case have been awarded”.

Scottish Labour nonetheless intends to carry a vote of confidence on Mr Swinney this week, accusing him of leaving pupils “twisting within the wind for every week”, and urging him to “take full duty for it occurring within the first place and resign”.

They are going to be backed by the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats – however the Scottish Greens mentioned Mr Swinney’s announcement met their calls for, and they might now assist him within the vote.

It means Mr Swinney could have sufficient votes in parliament to win.

A-level and GCSE college students in England have been promised that their ultimate outcomes shall be no decrease than their mock exams.

It means pupils getting A-level outcomes this week can settle for that estimated grade, change it for a mark gained in a mock examination or select to take a written examination within the autumn.