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SQA National 5 Physical Education: complete guide to the factors impacting on performance, the performance and the portfolio

A complete guide to SQA National 5 Physical Education, an SCQF level 5 qualification. Covers the factors impacting on performance (mental, emotional, social and physical), collecting information on those factors, developing performance through training and planning, and how the award splits across the performance (60 marks) and the portfolio (60 marks).

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SQA National 5 Physical Education is a one-year course at SCQF level 5, building on National 4 and preparing learners for Higher Physical Education. It is graded A to D from two equally weighted components - a practical performance and a written portfolio - both set by the SQA. The course teaches you to perform in physical activities and, at the same time, to analyse what makes a performance effective and how to develop it. This page is the index: below is a map of the course content, the assessment structure, and how to study each part.

The content of SQA National 5 Physical Education

The course is built around the factors impacting on performance and the cycle of analysing and developing it. This site presents the content as three topic guides.

Factors impacting on performance
The heart of the course. The SQA groups every influence on a performance into four factors: mental (concentration, decision-making, problem-solving, anticipation, arousal, anxiety, mental toughness and motivation), emotional (confidence, self-belief, resilience, optimism, anger, fear and trust), social (communication, co-operation, roles and responsibilities, etiquette, relationships and inclusion) and physical (fitness, skills and techniques, and tactics and composition). Every feature can have a positive or negative effect, and the factors interact.
Collecting information
Why and how you gather information on the factors impacting on your performance: observation schedules and standardised tests, matching a method to each factor, qualitative versus quantitative data, and judging methods by reliability, validity, practicability and appropriateness.
Developing performance
Turning that information into improvement: selecting approaches and setting SMART targets, the principles of training (specificity, progressive overload, FITT, reversibility, rest and recovery), the fitness and skill methods of training, and how to plan, phase, monitor and evaluate a programme of work.

Course assessment

The National 5 Physical Education award is graded A to D and is assessed by two equally weighted components, both set by the SQA.

  • Performance - 60 marks (50 per cent). You are assessed in two single performances in physical activities, each marked out of 30, demonstrating skills, decision-making and control in a challenging, competitive or demanding context.
  • Portfolio - 60 marks (50 per cent). A written component, externally marked by the SQA, in which you analyse a factor impacting on your performance, gather and interpret data, and plan, implement and evaluate a programme to develop performance.

The two components total 120 marks and are combined to give the final grade. There is no traditional written examination paper; the written, examinable work is the portfolio. Always confirm the current mark allocations and conditions against the SQA course specification, because they are set by the awarding body.

The skills the portfolio tests

The portfolio rewards analysis and a clear chain of reasoning, not just recall:

  1. Analysing a factor. Explaining how a feature of a mental, emotional, social or physical factor affects a real performance.
  2. Collecting and interpreting data. Choosing an appropriate method, gathering reliable and valid information, and reading what it shows.
  3. Planning a response. Setting SMART targets and selecting methods and principles of training to address the factor.
  4. Evaluating. Monitoring the programme, judging whether performance improved, and explaining what you would do next.

How to study SQA National 5 Physical Education

National 5 Physical Education rewards detailed practical performance and clear, cause-and-effect written analysis.

  1. Work from the specification. The four factors and the develop-performance cycle in the SQA course specification are your checklist.
  2. Rehearse two performances. Build skills, decision-making and tactics in two activities until they hold up under pressure.
  3. Learn the four factors in detail. Know the sub-features of each and have prepared examples from your own performances.
  4. Practise the development cycle. Analyse a factor, set SMART targets, choose methods and principles of training, plan and phase, then evaluate.
  5. Turn describe into explain. Add the cause-and-effect link from a factor to its impact on performance, because that earns the higher marks.

Topic by topic

Each topic guide has answer pages with worked examples, model points and cross-links. Browse the full set from this hub.

For the official course specification

The SQA publishes the full National 5 Physical Education course specification, assessment task documents and past course reports at sqa.org.uk. Always revise from the current specification, because structure and assessment are board-specific.

Physical Education guides

In-depth written guides with paired practice quizzes.

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Physical Education practice quizzes

Multiple-choice drills with worked answer explanations. Your scores stay on this device.

The SQA-NATIONAL-5 system, explained

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Common questions about Physical Education

How is SQA National 5 Physical Education structured?
National 5 Physical Education is an SCQF level 5 course built around one big idea: the factors that impact on performance and how to develop it. The SQA groups every influence on a performance into four factors - mental, emotional, social and physical - and the course teaches you to understand those factors, to collect information about their effect on your own performance, and to plan, carry out and evaluate a programme of work to develop performance. It pairs this knowledge and understanding with practical performance in physical activities, so you both perform and analyse.
How is SQA National 5 Physical Education assessed?
The course award is graded A to D from two equally weighted components set by the SQA. The performance is worth 60 marks (50 per cent): you are assessed in two single performances in physical activities, each marked out of 30, in a challenging context. The portfolio is worth 60 marks (50 per cent): a written component, externally marked by the SQA, in which you analyse a factor impacting on your performance, gather and interpret data, then plan, implement and evaluate a development programme. The two components total 120 marks and are combined to give the final grade. Always confirm the current mark allocations and conditions against the SQA course specification.
What are the four factors that impact on performance?
The SQA organises every influence on a performance into four factors. Mental factors are the thinking and mindset features: concentration, decision-making, problem-solving, anticipation, level of arousal, anxiety, mental toughness and motivation. Emotional factors are feelings and their control: confidence, self-belief, resilience, optimism, anger, fear and trust. Social factors are about working with others: communication, co-operation, roles and responsibilities, etiquette, relationships and inclusion. The physical factor splits into fitness, skills and techniques, and tactics and composition. Strong answers always link a feature of a factor to a clear positive or negative impact on the performance.
What does SCQF level 5 mean for National 5 Physical Education?
SCQF is the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework. National 5 sits at level 5, broadly equivalent to a GCSE grade C and above, and is the standard senior-phase qualification usually taken in S4. It is more demanding than National 4 (level 4) and below Higher (level 6). National 5 Physical Education carries 24 SCQF credit points and is the usual entry route to Higher Physical Education, as well as a foundation for careers and further study in sport, coaching, fitness and health.
How should I prepare for SQA National 5 Physical Education?
Prepare for both components. For the performance, rehearse two activities until your skills, decision-making and tactics hold up under pressure in a challenging context. For the portfolio, work from the SQA course specification: learn the four factors and their sub-features, practise collecting information using observation schedules and standardised tests, and rehearse the development cycle - analyse a factor, set SMART targets, choose methods and principles of training, plan and phase a programme, then monitor and evaluate it. Practise turning a describe answer into an explain answer by adding the cause-and-effect link from a factor to its impact on performance, because that is where the higher marks are.
How does SQA National 5 Physical Education differ from a GCSE in PE?
National 5 Physical Education is a one-year SCQF level 5 Scottish qualification assessed by a performance (60 marks) and a written portfolio (60 marks), with no traditional written exam paper, whereas GCSE PE used in England, Wales and Northern Ireland combines a practical performance with one or more written examination papers. National 5 frames its knowledge around the SQA's four factors impacting on performance (mental, emotional, social and physical) and the cycle of collecting information and developing performance, rather than the anatomy-and-physiology-heavy theory papers of a GCSE. The skills overlap, but always revise from the current SQA specification, because structure and assessment are board-specific.