Qualifications Scotland · 2026 Higher Mathematics
The 2026 Higher Maths Paper 1 was not simply hard — it was poorly worded, inconsistently structured, and out of step with every previous paper students had used to prepare. We call on Qualifications Scotland to conduct a full, transparent review.
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This is not a complaint that the paper was too hard. Students expect to be challenged. The problem is that the 2026 Higher Maths Paper 1 used language and phrasing that was confusing, ambiguous, and inconsistent with every past paper students had revised from. Questions were not simply difficult — they were worded in ways that made it genuinely unclear what was being asked.
Past SQA Higher Maths papers have followed a recognisable style: clear command words, standard notation, and questions that test understanding rather than the ability to decode unusual phrasing. The 2026 Paper 1 departed from this in ways that penalised well-prepared students simply because the wording did not match the conventions they had been taught to expect.
Higher Mathematics is a gateway qualification for university entry in STEM, medicine, finance, and many other fields. When a paper's wording is inconsistent with established standards, it does not test mathematical ability — it tests whether a student can interpret unusual language under exam pressure. That is not a fair assessment, and it is not what students trained for. Every signature here represents someone who deserves to be assessed on their maths, not on their ability to decode an oddly worded question.