FOI22/23 148 National 5 Art and Design Appeals and Marking Information

How many appeals were there for the exam year 2022 for National 5 Art & Design?

Of those appeals how many were successful in changing the grade and how many were refused?

Of these appeals how many resulted in a grade one grade above the initial grade, two grades above the initial grade, or three or more grades above the initial grade?]

Of the appeals refused in how many of them were the school estimated grades above the final SQA grade?

Of the appeals refused, were all estimated teachers grades above the SQA initial award? If not please provide the number that were not.

What was the marking system applied to the portfolios?

Was that marking system applied consistently throughout the marking period?

How did the SQA ensure that the making system was applied consistently throughout the marking period?

Was that marking system applied consistently across Scotland and what steps were taken to ensure it was applied consistently?

What proportion of SQA markers were new to marking National 5 Art & Design in this current year (2022) by geographical marking area/section?

What if any account was taken for 2022 candidates, for the loss of practical supervised time with qualified Art teachers that the 2022 candidates lost (approx 1 academic year) due to lockdown?

How many appeals were there for the exam year 2022 for National 5 Art & Design?

There were 894 appeals for National 5 Art & Design

Of those appeals how many were successful in changing the grade and how many were refused?

Of the 894 appeals submitted. 285 were upgraded and there was no change to 609.

Of these appeals how many resulted in a grade one grade above the initial grade, two grades above the initial grade, or three or more grades above the initial grade?]

There were 279 with a 1 grade increase and 6 with a 2 grade increase.

Of the appeals refused in how many of them were the school estimated grades above the final SQA grade?

To be eligible for an appeal, a candidates estimate must have been higher than their certificated grade, therefore all 609 unsuccessful appeals.

Of the appeals refused, were all estimated teachers grades above the SQA initial award? If not please provide the number that were not.

To be eligible for an appeal, a candidates estimate must have been higher than their certificated grade, therefore all 609 unsuccessful appeals.

What was the marking system applied to the portfolios?

We have robust quality assurance systems in place to ensure that marking of Art and Design portfolios is carried out to the national standard. This begins with the senior examining team selecting benchmark portfolios that are used for marker training prior to marking taking place. These are used, along with a selection of portfolios from previous years, to train markers on the standards.

All examiners receive full training before they assess any candidate portfolios, and quality assurance measures are put in place to ensure all work is assessed fairly and to the national standards. For Art and Design, this includes the ‘double-blind’ marking process. This means that all portfolios are independently assessed by two different examiners. If there is a discrepancy between the two examiners’ final judgements, a senior examiner will assess the work for a third time to ensure the candidate receives the correct mark. Senior examiners also carry out sampling to further ensure the national standard is being applied.

Senior examiners complete a quality assurance log for each day of marking. This QA log is where senior examiners track the assessment judgements of each examiner, including any discrepancies. They also record discussions and support they have put in place for the examiners in their team, where appropriate.

The Principal Assessor and Depute Principal Assessor carry out daily checks on these QA logs to ensure they are regularly updated and reflect the examiners performance accurately. They also complete QA logs for each of the senior examiners, and on each other, to ensure all assessment judgements across the whole team are being carried out consistently.

Our examiners are monitored and supported by the Principal Assessor, Depute Principal Assessor, and Qualifications staff throughout the marking process.

Was that marking system applied consistently throughout the marking period?

Yes, the double-blind marking system and further quality assurance was carried out each day of the central marking meeting.

How did the SQA ensure that the making system was applied consistently throughout the marking period?

Qualifications staff from SQA attended the central marking meetings, and they carried out daily checks with the PA, DPA, and senior examiners to ensure that quality assurance was carried out and any issues that may have arisen were dealt with appropriately.

Was that marking system applied consistently across Scotland and what steps were taken to ensure it was applied consistently?

When markers are assessing Art and Design portfolios, the centre details are not visible, and each portfolio is treated and assessed in the exact same way. The ‘double-blind’ marking system and further quality assurance was carried out for each centre across Scotland. Daily checks from the PA, DPA and Qualifications staff were carried out to ensure these processes were carried our fairly and consistently.

What proportion of SQA markers were new to marking National 5 Art & Design in this current year (2022) by geographical marking area/section?

The information for the proportion of markers new to marking National 5 Art & Design is contained within the  spreadsheet. The figures in the sheet represent the proportion of new markers for 2022 against the total number of markers for each educational area and also against the total number of markers for Scotland overall.

What if any account was taken for 2022 candidates, for the loss of practical supervised time with qualified Art teachers that the 2022 candidates lost (approx. 1 academic year) due to lockdown?

A package of support was put in place to help mitigate the impact of the pandemic. For National 5 Art and Design, this included a 50% reduction of the question paper component as well as revision support for the question paper. For the portfolios, guidance was provided to show how candidates could submit concise portfolios and still access the full range of marks. SQA also took a generous approach to grading, with the objective to fall in an intermediary position between 2019 and 2021 awarding outcomes.

FOI22/23 148 Information Sheet