Better exam results for Edinburgh school pupils

The waiting will finally be over as thousands of pupils across Edinburgh receive their exam results today.

Early indications are that candidates in Scotland’s capital have improved on their performances from 2013 and that Edinburgh’s overall good performance has been maintained. In total 8,642 pupils sat 41,949 exams this year in over 70 subject areas, ranging from Mandarin to Woodwork Skills.

Highlights from the results include:

By the end of S6 59% of all pupils have got Highers – a 4% improvement on last year and a 15% improvement since 2008.

By the end of S5 51% of all pupils have got Highers – a 10% improvement since 2008 and maintaining last year’s good results.

Craigroyston High School and Wester Hailes Education Centre have shown particular improvement in the number of pupils gaining five or more level 3 qualifications, this year achieving 100% and 99% respectively.  This is an increase of 28% for Craigroyston and 26% for Wester Hailes Education Centre since 2010.

Peter Reid, an S5 pupil from Firrhill High School, who sat Higher exams in German, History, English, Chemistry and Physics, said:- “I’ve studied really hard for these exams and after my Advanced Highers I’m hoping to study law and mandarin at university. I’ve just got back from a course in China and loved the country and the language.”

Education Convener, Councillor Paul Godzik, said:- “Early indications from the SQA exam results show that 2013 has been another really positive year for all our pupils and I’m delighted at all their successes.

“To have nearly 60% of our pupils get a Higher by the end of S6 is a real achievement and I want to congratulate all our teaching staff on their commitment to delivering learning experiences of the highest standards. Our pupils should be very proud of themselves too – all their hard work has certainly paid off.

“Our drive to improve literacy has also proved successful with 99% of our pupils now gaining an award in English by S5.

“The Council is committed to making sure all school leavers enter a positive destination of employment, training or further education – last year a record number of 90% of them did so.

“Initiatives such as the Edinburgh Guarantee are also going a long way to making this a reality for many of our ex-pupils.  This is something we are keen to build on in the coming years and look forward to seeing many more placements and positive results.”

All candidates will receive their results by means of the traditional postal delivery this morning. Those candidates who have activated their MySQA accounts, through which they can choose to receive their exam results by text in addition to their results certificate, will also receive these by 9am today.

Our photo shows the proposed interior for the new Boroughmuire High School.