National 5 pass rates should be “of deep concern to us all”, a former head teacher has said as data showed fewer than 40% of pupils achieved an A-C pass in English and maths.
The Commission on School Reform, the education arm of the independent think tank Enlighten, found through freedom of information requests that A-C pass rates in Stem subjects in 2026 continued to be low, and they were still below the level recorded before the pandemic.
The data found 39.7% of pupils received an A-C pass in mathematics compared with 44.5% in 2019; 26.2% passed biology compared with 29.4% in 2019; and 21.3% passed chemistry compared with 25.1% in 2019.
The data also found a decrease in pass rates in physics, 17.9% compared with 20.1% in 2019, and computing science – down to 8.8% compared to 9.3% in 2019.
This is much more revealing and accurate data, because it measures all pupils, not just those who sit the examination
The FOI data analysed SQA examination figures based on the number of pupils in the cohort, rather than the number which sat the examination, aiming to give a more accurate interpretation of the performance of pupils as a whole.
Carole Ford, a former head teacher at Kilmarnock Academy who is a member of the Commission on School Reform, said the Stem results should be “of deep concern to all of us”.
She said: “We are talking here about a generation of children whose outcomes have been suppressed because there is no national push towards academic excellence.
“Most exam data is presented by the Government as a success, but that is based on those who take the exam. This is much more revealing and accurate data, because it measures all pupils, not just those who sit the examination.
“We must stop sweeping the realities of school performance under the carpet. We have an obligation to ourselves and to future generations to face up to our problems.”
The data shows overall A-C pass rates for English climbed to 78.3% from 74.6% in 2019.
However, the proportion achieving an A-C pass in both English and maths was 38.9% – down from 42.9% in 2019.
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “The approach taken towards measuring achievement in exam results in Scotland is long-established and well understood.
“It is important to note that not all pupils take their National 5s in S4. It is more appropriate to measure attainment at the point of leaving school rather than in a single year, as we do in our annual school leaver attainment statistics.
“Pass rates for National 5, Highers and Advanced Highers increased this year, including a record number of National 5 passes.
“Learners also achieved a record number of vocational and technical qualifications, up by 121% on pre-pandemic levels.”