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Good practice in assessment - Scots Language, SCQF Level 6 - Kirkwall Grammar School

Benefits of delivering the award

This award enables us to teach our candidates about aspects of Scots language and history that are not taught in other parts of the Senior Phase Curriculum. It also facilitated broader learning, learning with community links, and making connections between learning and community language and history.

Specific benefit for candidates

It is a relaxed atmosphere without pressure of an end of course exam, and led to genuine enjoyment of learning for learning’s sake.

Here are comments from two candidates who achieved the Scots Language Award:

Candidate evaluation 1:

In terms of the Scots writing course, I found it to not only be surprisingly enjoyable, but an insightful and helpful course as well. As someone who has grown up knowing bits and pieces of Scots language, it was a very good experience to finally expand and elaborate upon the knowledge I had prior. The final writing task in Scots seemed daunting at the start of the course, but by the end I found writing it to be relatively easy, and even quite fun (I even used this piece as part of my Higher English folio). This writing task was my personal favourite part of the course, but the history of the language was also very interesting to look at. The Scots course can help with other academic areas like History and English.

Candidate evaluation 2:

The Scots Language Award allowed us to analyse and fully and better understand hundreds of years of Scots poetry and prose. I feel it’s important for people to be taught the Scots Language so that these many great texts can continue to be understood and appreciated by a modern audience, and so modern/future Scots texts can also be appreciated by a broader audience. Overall, I enjoyed as well as learnt from this course. It allowed me to gain a better understanding of the Scottish perspective through history.

Specific benefits for staff

It has provided the opportunity for teachers to teach to personal enthusiasms and given short course time a real focus and purpose. It has also provided more breadth for Senior Phase learners and opportunities to try out new resources from Education Scotland.