MORE than two-thirds of teachers and headteachers lack trust in Scotland’s examinations board, a new survey has revealed

And 65 per cent said they believed guidance issued by Education Scotland – the body tasked with improving Scotland’s education system – was of “little or no” benefit to pupils.

The online survey, which attracted more than 1,000 responses, was commissioned by the Scottish Parliament’s Education Committee as part of its scrutiny of public bodies.

Overall, respondents said they felt universities and colleges were contributing “a great deal” to a successful education system.

Nearly three-quarters agreed that Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) exams helped pupils progress to further and higher education once they left school and nearly half backed the role of inspections in improving education.

However, some 50 per cent either disagreed or disagreed strongly that the SQA delivered a “comprehensive and high-quality school qualifications system” with similar concerns about whether exams prepared young people for work.

The survey results come at a difficult time for the SQA and Education Scotland which have both been criticised in recent months for their work in supporting the roll-out of the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE).

Education Scotland has been tasked with producing fresh guidance for schools by John Swinney, the Education Secretary, after concern the aims of the curriculum have become confused by a flood of support documents.

Last week, there was a fresh red- tape row after teachers were sent 154 new pages of guidance supposedly as part of moves to reduce bureaucracy. The SQA has also had a difficult year after being forced to admit a computing exam sat by thousands of Scottish pupils contained coding errors.

The body has also been asked to effectively scrap internal assessments for pupils sitting National 5, Higher and Advanced Higher exams after complaints they took too long and added little value.

A total of 1,171 responses were received across the surveys with most from teachers although parents and pupils also took part.

A spokesman for the SQA said: “It is interesting that nearly three quarters of respondents feel our qualifications allow learners to access further and higher education opportunities.

“Similarly, around half of respondents felt SQA qualifications contributed to successful learners, and to individuals in Scotland being better educated.

“SQA is keenly aware of our responsibility to establish and maintain the standard and quality of qualifications for the benefit of learners across Scotland.

An Education Scotland spokeswoman said the survey authors warned that their work may not be representative and say the findings do not chime with their own research.

She said: “Feedback through post-inspection questionnaires in 2015/16 was very positive, with 92 per cent stating the inspection findings were helpful in identifying areas for improvement within the school.

“In a recent survey of directors with responsibility for education, almost all agreed that inspection activity had had a positive impact on learning and teaching within their authority.”