Exam passes reach record levels in Scotland

Record numbers of Scottish teenagers opening their exam results this morning will have passed.A total of 98.5% of the nearly 160,000 15- and 16-year-olds were successful in their standard grade exams, with one in five pupils achieving the top level – grade 1 – and more than a quarter reaching grade 2.Nearly three quarters of the 167,635 higher exams taken by 16- and 17-year-olds this year resulted in passes, as did 77.8% of the advanced higher papers, sat by the brightest 17- and 18-year-olds.

The success rate is the highest since the exams were introduced in the 1970s, the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) said. Last year, pass rates were 98% for standard grade exam papers and 73.4% for higher papers. For advanced higher papers, the rate was 75.8%. The number of pupils who sat advanced higher papers rose by 4.2% this year to 19,645.But the pass rate for a qualification sat by 15- and 16-year-olds in basic literacy and numeracy fell by 4.7 percentage points, to 63.5% from 68.2% last year. The number of entries for this qualification, known as access 2, fell to 2,457 from 3,049 last year.

The number of pupils who sat standard grade papers this summer compared with last dropped by 28,398 to 358,459. SQA said this was because of a drop in the number of 15- and 16-year-olds in Scotland – and possibly because pupils may be taking other qualifications.The number of pupils who took higher and advanced highers this summer was the highest for five years.Janet Brown, Scotland's chief examining officer, said: "Individual results will determine what the future will hold for individual candidates and, for the vast majority, that future is bright."

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