Calls to scrap exams for S4 pupils in Scotland have been dealt a significant blow after a major consultation found a majority of teachers oppose the idea.

A total of 57 per cent of respondents to a survey of school and college teachers “disagreed” with the recommendation, which was made in a key report by Professor Louise Hayward last year.

The consultation, which was commissioned by education secretary Jenny Gilruth and reached more than 10,000 people, found staff were “concerned” that pupils would “struggle with the transition to Highers” if examinations were removed for the likes of National 5.

They also had questions about how internal assessments could be marked “fairly and consistently” across the country and whether internally assessed qualifications would be seen as “credible” by employers and further and higher education institutions. Meanwhile, those surveyed noted the “workload implications for teachers” if they were to be responsible for internal assessment.

A total of 31 per cent of those surveyed listed removing external assessment at Level 5 as among the most important proposals.

The finding comes despite the Hayward recommendations, which were published in June last year, winning strong backing from the Educational Institute of Scotland teaching union, School Leaders Scotland, and the Association of Education Directors in Scotland.

The recommendation to end exams below Higher level was made after concerns were previously raised about the “two-term dash” in schools, with pupils in Scotland said to be among the most heavily examined in the world.

Critics of the move to cut exams have included the likes of Scottish Qualifications Authority chief executive Fiona Robertson, and Lindsay Paterson, emeritus professor of education policy at the University of Edinburgh, who feared it would “widen inequality and weaken rigour”.

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