Course Handbook

National 5 Mathematics
C847 75

SCQF Level 5

2022-23

Version 1: February 2020 1 Scottish Highers Online

Change Log
This handbook has been created to provide students with important information about studying
with Scottish Highers Online. The document will be reviewed and updated annually to reflect
any changes to the centre’s policies and procedures. Changes are recorded below.

All students enrolled with Scottish Highers Online will be issued with a copy of this handbook
during induction and encouraged to read it carefully. Further versions will be issued as
necessary.

Date Change By Whom

August 2021  Updating of delivery / ED
assessment dates
 Minor changes to
sections 6 and 7 to
reflect revised
teaching and
assessment methods.

The information contained in this handbook is, as far as possible, accurate and up to
date at the time of printing.

Version 2: August 2021 2 Scottish Highers Online

Contents Page

1 Welcome

2 Scottish Highers Online

3 Awarding Body

4 Course Aims, Objectives and Skills

5 Course Structure, Content and Management

6 Learning and Teaching

7 Assessment

8 Learning Support

9 Course Team

10 Student Code of Conduct

11 Your Voice

12 Complaints Procedure

13 Progression

14 Declaration

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1 Welcome
Welcome to Scottish Highers Online. The purpose of this handbook is to provide you with
important information about studying with SHO and about your course. We hope it covers
everything you need to know but if there is anything we’ve missed, please do not hesitate
to contact us by email. Contact details for your personal tutor, course invigilator and
course administrator are provided in Section 9 of this handbook.

2 Scottish Highers Online – who we are

Scottish Highers Online was launched in August 2019 in response to diminishing
educational opportunities for adults living in Scotland. It is an independent school
operated by a small team of fully-qualified and highly-experienced tutors, who are
supported by an equally skilled team of volunteers. SHO does not receive any funding or
educational grants and is therefore funded solely by its students.

Course tutors have many years’ experience of delivering the SQA’s National
Qualifications within their respective subject areas and of carrying out marking duties in
the exam. Our dedicated volunteers bring a range of skills to complement the teaching
process and to support us and you throughout the SHO journey.

Our mission is to provide wider access and flexibility to Scotland’s learners by offering
relevant, high-quality online learning packages at affordable prices.

3 Awarding Body – who will accredit your studies

All our courses are supported and validated by the Scottish Qualifications Authority
(SQA). Our tutors work closely with the SQA to support qualification design, delivery and
assessment. Scottish Highers Online is an SQA-Approved Centre with approval to teach
our current range of National Qualifications courses.

4 Course Aims, Objectives and Skills – what will you get out of
studying this course
The course develops important mathematical techniques which are critical to successful
progression beyond National 5 in Mathematics and many other curriculum areas. The
skills, knowledge and understanding in the course also support learning in technology,
health and wellbeing, science, and social studies.

Using mathematics enables us to model real-life situations and make connections and
informed predictions. It equips us with the skills we need to interpret and analyse
information, simplify and solve problems, assess risk and make informed decisions.

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5 Course Structure and Content – what you will be studying
Throughout this course, candidates acquire and apply operational skills necessary for
developing mathematical ideas through symbolic representation and diagrams. They
select and apply mathematical techniques and develop their understanding of the
interdependencies within mathematics.

The National 5 Mathematics course has ten areas of study:

 Significant Figures and Scientific Notation

 Percentages and Fractions
 Geometric Skills
 Algebraic Expressions
 Linear Equations
 Trigonometric Skills
 Quadratic Functions
 Vectors
 Statistics
 Surds and Indices

The course consists of 24 SCQF credit points which includes time for preparation for
course assessment. The notional length of time for candidates to complete the course is
160 hours.

6 Learning and Teaching – how you will be taught

The course content is delivered entirely online. Each unit of study is divided into
manageable sub-sections to allow you to focus on specific skills and tasks. The learning
materials are presented through a series of Word documents which can be accessed on
screen or printed off. Lessons are structured to allow you to practise and self-check each
skill or technique before receiving feedback and guidance from your tutor.

As well as offering feedback and guidance through tutor marked assignments (TMAs),
your tutor will support you throughout your studies. If you find any lesson particularly
difficult and feel you need additional guidance or support, simply email your tutor for help.
Your tutor will also offer regular drop-in surgeries to allow you to raise any problems or
concerns and to help you overcome them.

Although your tutor will do whatever he or she can to guide and support you, it is your
responsibility to plan your studies effectively and meet the deadlines provided for
submitting assignments. The notional study time for this course is 160 hours which is
approximately 5-6 hours of study per week.

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 Submission Deadlines

Below is a list of the Tutor Marked Assignments (TMAs) you will submit to your tutor
during the course. You should aim to meet the deadlines where provided. They will
assist you in progressing through the course in a timeous fashion.

Assessment Details Type Deadline

TMA 1 Significant Figures and Short questions October
Scientific Notation
TMA 2 Percentages and Fractions Short questions October
TMA 3 Geometric Skills Short questions November
TMA 4 Algebraic Expressions Short questions November
TMA 5 Linear Equations Short questions December
TMA 6 Trigonometric Skills Short questions January
TMA 7 Quadratic Functions Short questions January
TMA 8 Vectors Short questions February
TMA 9 Statistics Short questions March
TMA 10 Surds and Indices Short questions March

* You must decide where you would like to sit the exam and make the necessary “sitting
at” arrangement with that school or college. The SQA can help you to identify appropriate
centres near you. However, it is your responsibility to make the arrangement and inform
Scottish Highers Online of your choice by completing a “sitting at” form.

SHO will pay your exam fees directly to the SQA and there should be no additional
charge for the “sitting at” arrangement.

*This exam arrangement is dependent on ongoing government and SQA guidance concerning 2023 exams.

7 Assessment – how you will be assessed

There are two types of assessment for this course: formative (for practice) and
summative (for the award).

You will be formatively assessed at various stages of your studies through Tutor Marked
Assignments (TMAs). The purpose of these formative assignments is to allow your tutor
to measure the effectiveness of your learning and offer guidance for improvement. There
is a TMA for each section of the course.

The summative course assessment has two components:

Component Marks Duration

Paper 1 (non-calculator) 50 1 hr 15 mins

Paper 2 (calculator) 60 1 hr 50 mins

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 Course Assessment

You will only be allowed one attempt at the SQA exam. There are no resits available for
National Qualifications. If, however, you feel your papers have been unfairly marked, the
SQA offers an appeals process which involves the remarking of your papers by a senior
marker. Please note, there may be a charge for this service.

If you fail to meet the deadline for submitting a summative assessment you may have to
be withdrawn from the course and SQA exam.

8 Learning Support – who can support your studies

If you have a known learning difficulty, staff at Scottish Highers Online will do their best to
support you. We are unable to provide a needs assessment but will act on any previous
diagnosis you have received and inform SQA of any alterative exam arrangements
required (e.g. extra time, use of a laptop).

If you do experience any difficulty with your studies – academic or otherwise – you
should discuss this with your tutor as soon as possible. If your tutor is unable to help,
your case will be passed to the invigilator for consideration. Staff at SHO are keen for
you to succeed so please let us know if you are having problems and give us a chance to
help you.

9 Course Team – who you can contact

Your first point of contact is your SHO Tutor who you will be in regular contact with during
your studies. Your tutor for this course is:

Kevin Lamont
kevinlamont@scottishhighersonline.co.uk

In the case of an appeal against a marking decision or if your tutor cannot help, your next
point of contact is the course invigilator. The course invigilator for National 5 Mathematics
is:

SHO Admin
admin@scottishhighersonline.co.uk

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10 Student Code of Conduct – what we expect from you
10.1 Commitment to study

Students are asked to commit to 6 hours of study per week. We understand,

however, that at times this may not be possible. It is important to keep your tutor
informed of any situation which affects your studies, especially where this may
jeopardise your ability to meet the deadlines for submitting assignments.

If your situation affects an assessment submission then you will need to submit a
claim for mitigating circumstances to get an extension to the deadline. Please note
that documented evidence will be required. If approved, then a new date will be
set for you to submit your assessment.

10.2 Performance

It is important that you fully engage with your studies. This means working
regularly and consistently on your coursework, submitting all assessments on time
and attending exams. Your performance will be monitored by you tutor and
communicated to the course administrator who will contact you if your tutor feels
you are in danger of failing the course.

If you are struggling to complete coursework then seek advice and guidance from
your tutor as they may be able to help, for example by granting an extension to a
submission date or providing extra guidance on an activity or skill. Please note:
the SQA sets its own deadlines so extensions cannot always be granted.

10.3 Equality and Diversity

Scottish Highers Online welcomes and respects all students irrespective of race,
gender, background, life-style choice or breakfast preference. If you feel you have
been treated unfairly by anyone at SHO you should report it immediately.
Guidance on our complaints procedure can be found in section 12 of this
handbook.

10.4 Student Disciplinary Procedure

Behaviour
Staff at SHO are afforded the same rights as our students so we expect you to
treat us with the same respect and consideration we treat you. If you behave in an
abusive or disrespectful manner towards any member of our team SHO will take
appropriate action.

Academic Misconduct
You must produce your own work in assessments and you will be required to sign
a statement to this effect when submitting some assignments. If you are
suspected of academic misconduct such as plagiarism, collusion or cheating you
will be subject to SHO’s disciplinary measures which may result in you being
withdrawn from the course and reported to the SQA.

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11 Your Voice – we want to hear from you
As a relatively new school we are keen to hear your views on how we’re doing and how
we could better meet your educational goals. We therefore welcome any feedback and
suggestions you have at any time. However, we will also ask you to complete two
student satisfaction surveys: one about halfway through your course and another at the
end. SHO will use the information from these surveys, and any informal feedback
received, to continuously improve and enhance the service we offer.

12 Complaints Procedure – who to contact

10.1 Informal

We aim to deliver a first-class learning experience but recognise that sometimes

things go wrong. If so, we aim to resolve the issue as quickly and fairly as possible
by conducting a thorough investigation of the complaint so that we can make
evidence-based decisions on each individual case.

If you have reason to complain you should first contact your tutor with details of
the complaint. If he or she is unable to resolve the issue, they will pass it to the
appropriate course invigilator for consideration

10.2 Formal

If a problem remains unresolved, or you do not feel you can approach your tutor,
please raise your concern with SHO Admin. If your concern has not been resolved
to your satisfaction then you may make a formal complaint using the Complaints
Procedure. Copies of the Complaints Procedure are available on the VLE or from
SHO Admin.

13 Entry and Progression

13.1 Recommended entry

Entry to this course is at the discretion of the centre.

Candidates should have achieved the fourth curriculum level or the National 4
Mathematics course or have equivalent qualifications and/or experience prior to starting
this course.

13.2 Progression

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  other qualifications in mathematics or related areas, e.g. Higher Mathematics,
Skills for Work courses, National Progression Awards, National Certificate Group
Awards
 further study, employment or training

13.3 Conditions of award

The grade awarded is based on the total marks achieved across all course assessment
components.

13.4 Core Skills

Achievement of this course gives automatic certification of the following Core Skill:

 Numeracy at SCQF level 5

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14 Declaration
Before you begin studying the units on this course, it is important to make contact with
your tutor to confirm you understand and accept your responsibilities as a student.

Please tick  to accept each of the following statements, sign and date the form and
email to your course tutor before beginning your studies.

Statements Tick to confirm

I understand the recommended study time for this course is 6
hours per week.
I understand the importance of submitting assignments within the
deadlines provided.
I understand that the work I submit for assignments must be
entirely my own.
I understand my rights and responsibilities as a student of Scottish
Highers Online.
I agree to keep SHO staff informed of any difficulties I face which
affect my studies.
I agree to arrange the sitting of the SQA exam at a centre of my
choice and inform SHO of the arrangement.
I understand that I may be withdrawn from the course without a
refund if I do not adhere to all of the above.

Student Name: ______________________________ D.O.B: ______________

Signature: __________________________________ Date: _______________

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