Image copyright Getty Images

Scotland's class of 2020 are getting their results, but for the first time in history they will not be based on exams. The coronavirus pandemic led to the closure of schools and an abrupt end to the 2019/2020 academic year.

Pupils in Scotland will be the first in the UK to find out their grades. So how have these results been worked out - and what can pupils do if they are unhappy with what they get?

When did it all change for the class of 2020?

As the number of Covid-19 cases continued to rise in March, the extent of the impact the pandemic would have on Scotland's education system became clear.

On Wednesday 18 March, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced that all the country's schools would close by the end of that week.

The following day, Education Secretary John Swinney said exams were being cancelled for the first time in history. Scotland's pupils had sat exams in May and June every year since 1888, including during the two world wars.

Mr Swinney said the move showed "the gravity of the challenges" created by Covid-19 - and that he wanted the class of 2020 to "hold their heads high and get the qualifications they deserve". But the 138,000 students who had been preparing for their National 5, Higher and Advanced Higher exams were left wondering how that was going to happen.

With no exams, surely coursework mattered a lot?

In the weeks before the schools closed, many pupils had rushed to finish coursework and sit hastily-arranged tests.

Even in the days after the schools were told to close, some were still encouraging pupils to return and complete coursework the following Monday - until Ms Sturgeon and Mr Swinney intervened and warned students not to do so.

It became clear that while projects and assessments may have been completed in some subjects in certain schools, that was not the same for all students. Many still had work to finish and submit.

Within weeks, the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) had announced that coursework would not be marked for National 5, Higher or Advanced Higher courses.

SQA chief executive Fiona Robertson, who is also Scotland's chief examiner, said it had not been possible to mark this work "in a safe and secure manner that maintains the integrity of national standards".

Instead, the exams body said teachers should use their professional judgement to estimate a grade and band for each pupil.

So, how have the results been calculated?

In April, the exams body published its guide for teachers on how they should produce those estimates.

It said this should be a judgement based on all of a pupil's activity over the school year, not just the result of one prelim or one project.

Teachers were told to take account of any available work completed throughout a course, and use their knowledge of that work and a pupil's progress to estimate the grade they would have achieved under normal circumstances.

The existing bands for each subject were subdivided, with teachers asked to place candidates within those narrower bands - and also to rank their pupils in order. The SQA said it would then "check and validate" that information, and could moderate it to "ensure consistency across schools and colleges, and with results from previous years".

The exams body said it would look at each school's previous history of estimating results and attainment, and could change the estimates if necessary. A student's performances in previous years could also be taken into account.

The Scottish Greens voiced concerns that some pupils from deprived communities could be marked down because of the previous performance of their school. Ms Robertson was questioned by MSPs in May, and denied that the previous record of a school should put some candidates at either an advantage or a disadvantage.

Can a grade be appealed?

There is a free appeals process for those who are given a lower grade than was originally estimated by their teacher or lecturer.

The appeal must include alternative evidence, and should be submitted by the school or college rather than the candidate. It is only possible to review a grade, not a band.

Priority reviews - for those pupils who have a conditional offer for university or college - must be submitted by 14 August. The deadline for all other appeals is 21 August.

The SQA says that the alternative evidence which can be submitted can include any completed coursework which had already been sent to the SQA, as well as coursework which could not be completed.

It can also include prelims or mock tests, class work and commercially-produced question papers - but not past papers which were in the public domain.

The evidence must be from work produced before the 29 May deadline for submitting the estimates. Grades can either be increased, lowered or remain the same.

What about the rest of the UK?

Pupils in England, Wales and Northern Ireland will find out their grades later this month, with A-level results to be published on 13 August and GCSEs on 20 August.

As in Scotland, exams were cancelled this year and teachers were asked to estimate pupils' grades.

The watchdog Ofqual says the number of students getting good grades in England is expected to be 2% higher at A-level and 1% at GCSE this year.

The predicted grades suggested by teachers would have been far higher, but were knocked back down by exam boards.

Students who are not happy with their results will be able to sit exams in all subjects in the autumn.