Candidates struggled with the new National 5 and Higher exams, as well as Advanced Higher, the qualifications authority said in a series of reports.
“It was noted that the numeracy skills of many candidates appeared to be lower than would be expected,” the SQA wrote of the National 5. “This impacted on the range of marks gained by candidates. As this is a new course, teachers still appear to be coming to terms with the levels of numeracy, interpretation, reasoning and communication required.
“Some candidates performed well in this component, but many did not produce the required level of numeracy skills to succeed. This was particularly evident in questions involving ratio, proportion ... percentages.”
The new Higher, which was marred by controversy after thousands of pupils protested that it was too hard, generated the following response: “Candidates made considerable effort in generating solutions but many responses required greater clarity in presentation, layout and communication.
“Candidates had clearly learned processes, but some fell short when it came to the use of equation-solving and working with fractions.” They identified the strategies required but their numeracy skills often prevented progress to the correct solution, it concluded.
For Advanced Higher, the SQA suggested too many candidates had “not covered all areas of the course”.
Dr Gill Stewart, director of qualifications, said: “As we do every year, we consider what went well and where we need to make improvements for the future. Our external assessment and course reports, which are provided for all subjects at all levels, also highlight ways in which recent exams and coursework may have differed from those of previous years. This is to ensure standards remain high.”
In August chief executive Dr Janet Brown admitted the new Higher maths was “too hard” after the SQA lowered the pass mark to 34 per cent, while 60 per cent was enough to secure an A grade.
Last year a marked decline in numeracy levels was reported in primary schools, raising questions over Curriculum for Excellence. The proportion of P7 pupils doing “well” or “very well” dropped to 66 per cent in 2013 from 72 per cent in 2011, according to the National Numeracy Survey.
At secondary, only 42 per cent of S2 pupils were performing at those higher levels in 2013, roughly unchanged from two years before.
In response, the government announced an extra £1 million for school numeracy hubs.