Assessment

The latest news and analysis on exams in the UK, including key dates, timetables, results and statistics for Sats, GCSEs and A levels

Thursday

27th Feb 2025

5 common revision mistakes (and how to avoid them)
From teachers forgetting the role of parents in revision to students relying on highlighting alone, Mark Enser explores the revision pitfalls to avoid ahead of exam season
Exam revision: 5 common mistakes for teachers to avoid

Wednesday

26th Feb 2025

SQA reveals names of CEO and chief examining officer as roles are split
New interim CEO vows to ‘serve with humility’ and learn from the past ‘by being more open to criticism, challenge and scrutiny’
SQA reveals names of CEO and chief examining officer as roles are split
How a ‘white envelope’ exercise focuses minds on exam results
A headteacher explains why a simple role-playing exercise using mock exam results can work wonders to help pupils – on all results tracks – to get the best outcomes possible
How a ‘White Envelope’ exercise focuses minds on exam results

Tuesday

25th Feb 2025

Attainment gap widens for 2023-24 Scottish school leavers
Official figures also show more Scottish students leaving school earlier – over 8,000 school leavers were in S4 in 2023-24, at just over 14 per cent of the cohort
Attainment gap widens for 2023-24 Scottish school leavers

Monday

24th Feb 2025

5 tips for pastoral leads ahead of exam season
Exams may still feel far off, but the problems that might emerge then often start around now. An international leader shares their tried and tested advice
Two small boats on calm water

Sunday

23rd Feb 2025

Will Scottish curriculum reform end ‘teaching to the test’?
There is still time to ensure that reform leads to transformative changes for Scotland’s curriculum, says Nicola Kiernan
Someone painting a blue chair

Friday

21st Feb 2025

‘Clear line’ needed between school subjects and jobs, says Scottish Labour
Labour also promises to make Pupil Equity Fund money a ‘permanent’ feature in Scottish schools and to help headteachers make longer-term staffing plans
Swimmers in lanes

Thursday

20th Feb 2025

4 fundamental fixes for special schools and AP settings
If we really value the role of non-mainstream settings then we need to solve these glaring problems, says the CEO of a special-school trust
Taped up lego house

Wednesday

19th Feb 2025

SQA chair: ‘Much to be proud of - but much to do’
The way Higher history is assessed will be reviewed but there will be no independent review of pass-rate fall, says SQA – as it vows to rebuild trust
Man cutting a topiary garden hedge

Tuesday

18th Feb 2025

Where do 21st century skills go from here?
A quarter of the way through the century, are we following the right path for the core skills we want young people to have – or do we need to revisit and refine them?
Path of nature and future

Monday

17th Feb 2025

Cambridge extends Checkpoint exam series
Exam board introduces a March series for the Checkpoint tests and moves the May series in response to demand from international schools
Cambridge grounds
Short GCSE maths course should be introduced, OCR says
Exam board’s proposed short-course maths qualification would form the first half of the GCSE and be taken at the end of Year 10
OCR has recommended introducing a short maths GCSE course