Exam Arrangements for Candidates with Special Needs
If your child has a special need, you must plan early for any examinations he will be sitting. The fact that a student has a Statement of Special Educational Needs; is on School Action or School Action Plus; has attention, behaviour, emotional or social difficulties; or another disability may or may not qualify him for Access Arrangements (previously called Special Arrangements) and Special Considerations (in the event of “adverse circumstances beyond their control”) .Assessment and reporting arrangements (for Key Stages 1, 2 and 3) are publications from the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority. They contain full details of Access Arrangements, teacher assessments etc and can be downloaded from their website at www.qca.org.uk or you can contact them at the address overleaf.
Access Arrangements and Special Consideration, Regulations and Guidance Relating to Candidates who are Eligible for Adjustments in Examinations (covering BTEC’s, GCEs, VCEs, GCSEs and GNVQs) is published each September for the approaching academic year by The Joint Council for Qualifications, who are the overseeing body of the Awarding Bodies, and a downloadable copy is available at their website www.jcq.org.uk. The Awarding Bodies, all mentioned overleaf, have booklets applicable to themselves and also deal with general day to day personal enquiries.
Each autumn these booklets are circulated by the English Examining Bodies to all examination Centres (i.e. schools, colleges). It describes the Access Arrangements that are acceptable for students with special needs, what criteria have to be met and how to organise these Access Arrangements in examination situations. The booklets contain all the information and forms that the Awarding Bodies require schools, educational psychologists, Specialist Teachers or others to complete for each candidate.
If in the final year of Key Stages 1, 2 and 3 your child is working below the required levels and will still be below at the time of the statutory key stage tests he will not be entered for them and will undergo teacher assessment. Some children who are working at the required level of the tests may, for various reasons, be unable to take their key stage tests and they too will be assessed.
In relation to GCEs, VCEs etc the Principle of the Centre should choose the qualification which is most appropriate to the candidate who has a known long-term or permanent disability or learning difficulty.
There is a clear requirement for continuity between the classroom and the examination room: "the candidate's usual method of working in the classroom will be considered … when Access Arrangements are being made".
Establishing and agreeing the nature and extent of the student's difficulties must begin early enough for the student to receive support and for Access Arrangements to be made in the classroom well before the request for Access Arrangements in examinations and assessments is submitted to the Examining Body. Therefore assessment of your child’s special needs and organising what on-going help he should receive in the classroom must begin as early as possible. The resulting documents and reports will then be available to support an application to the Examining Body when the student starts on his examination courses.
At Key Stages 1, 2 and 3 most decisions for Access Arrangements and not being entered for tests are made in November - December preceding the tests.
For Key Stage 4 and above all requests for Access Arrangements, where the decision is not delegated to the Centre, must be supported with evidence in the form of a report or an assessment from an appropriately qualified Specialist Teacher OR from a qualified psychologist. All reports and assessments should have been completed or updated and signed within 2 years of the start date of the examination series. There is a strict timetable of dates for application.
It is vital that Heads of Examining Centres submit their requests on the appropriate forms as early as possible. Unless sufficient notice is given to an Examining Body it may not be possible to provide special versions of question papers, or to agree to any other arrangements.
Centres may themselves now award: up to 25% additional time if they have a report from a qualified psychologist or qualified Specialist Teacher or if pupils have a Statement that points to this type of extra requirement ; supervised breaks/rest periods if a medical/psychological need has been identified; coloured overlays, amplification equipment, a prompter, reading aloud to themselves, CCTV – if it is the normal way of working; bi-lingual dictionary if criteria met; low vision aid/OCR scanner if visually impaired; transcript if handwriting problems; separate invigilation if permission for reader/scribe/WP/medical.
The main change (from Sep 2004) is in the criteria for allowance of a reader or 25% extra time for students who regularly have reading support in the classroom (in most cases reading age is much lower than actual age) and who have difficulties with reading independently, this now includes those who have trouble with comprehension when decoding at the same time and slow readers who lose the sense of the text.
Access Arrangements can be applied for to cover the following: extra time above 25% for visual/hearing impairment, physical and learning disabilities; 1 hour early opening of papers for copying onto coloured paper for dyslexic pupils; for visual impairment: modified,enlarged paper/ voice activated computer/ word processor/ reader/ tactile diagrams/ unmodified A3 question paper; for hearing impairment: modified language/ communicator/ live speaker/ BSL to sign questions/ transcript of tape/ additional tapes,CD; Practical Assistant for physically disabled.
See the booklets highlighted in the second and third paragraphs above for full details of all arrangements and allowances. It is crucial to make sure that your child’s school, especially if it is a mainstream (ie not a special needs) school is fully aware of all these implications: early assessment of needs, on-going classroom intervention to address these needs, early requests for any Access Arrangements required during examinations backed by the appropriate forms and reports.
Patoss (Professional Association of Teachers of Students with Specific Learning Difficulties) produces a guide for teachers:
Dyslexia: Assessing the Need for Access Arrangements during Examinations.
Cost is £7.50 + p&p. from Patoss, PO Box 10, Evesham WR11 1ZW.
Tel: 01386 712650.
Email: patoss@evesham.ac.uk.
Website: www.patoss-dyslexia.org.
The National Autistic Society has a booklet entitled ‘Exam advice for young people with autism and Asperger Syndrome’ it costs £1 and is useful to school staff, parents and students. It is available from their website
www.nas.org.uk
Skill, the National Bureau for Students with Disabilities, has several very helpful Information Sheets, which you will find on their website
www.skill.org.uk/
and an Information Service line: 0800 328 5050
HINTS FOR PARENTS / CARERS/ TEACHERS
Be aware of how your child or student’s particular difficulties may be affecting him at this time. Preparation:
1. Take an interest in the exam timetable of your child/student. Offer to help with revision; liaise with teachers; find out any concerns or stress triggers and aim to reduce these.
2. Ensure revision materials taken home at weekends / half terms are with full instructions and schedules. Do not expect your child / student to be able to decide how much they should do, what they should do, etc. Advise. Liaise.
3. BBC Audiobooks have produced SmartPass cassette and CD guides to Shakespeare, moderns and classics. There is dramatic presentation, discussion and debate, ‘live’ essays etc. Web:www.audiobookcollection.com Tel: 0800 136919
4. Where at all possible make sure exam candidates are familiar with where they will be sitting their exam. If students are on the autism spectrum, ensure it is autism-friendly.
5. Talk them through what will happen when they arrive at the examination room. Are they able to ‘line up’ quietly? Do they understand all the rules of the examination room? Do they understand that someone – possibly unknown to them - will be invigilating?
The evening before:
1. Make sure any areas of likely upset (got his/her favourite breakfast cereal?) in the approach to exams are covered.
2. Don’t plan anything tiring the night before. Make sure they have a relaxing time, have a good meal and plenty of water to drink, and get to bed early.
3. Get their clothes ready the night before – no panics first thing in the morning as to ‘what to wear!’
The morning of the exam:
1. Make sure your child/student gets up in good time to shower, dress and eat a proper, relaxed, breakfast. Cooked one is best. Too much sugary food (i.e. cereals alone) gives quick but short ‘lift’, followed by a ‘down’ mood. If exam is in the afternoon, make sure lunch too is a favourite but nutritious one.
2. Ensure they have the correct items for the exam/s they are taking that day: maths equipment, pen or pencil, eraser, ruler, calculator, etc.
Afterwards:
1. Know what time the exam finishes and how your child/student may be feeling. Consider some sort of treat … favourite cake? Let them ‘chill out’ a bit.
Other:
1. Support your child/student all the way. Care for how they are feeling. Do not leave them to prepare alone. Do not be negative.
2. Remember that with some disorders, what you see is not what you get. For example, Asperger Syndrome anxiety will magnify the effects of the disorder. They may say they’re OK and have a smiling face, but this may not be correct.
3. Help with relaxation. Watch out for obsessive tendencies and rituals taking over.
4. Send a good luck card. Send a well-done card – whatever the outcome!
The following organisations are the Awarding Bodies for various examinations/courses and have informative websites and booklets covering the various exams, some have advice for parents and pupils as well as teachers. The booklets covering Key Stages 1, 2 and 3 are available from the following,
Qualifications and Curriculum Authority
QCA Northern Ireland
Tel: 020 7509 5555 (switchboard)
Tel: 028 9033 0706
Tel: 020 7509 5556 (enquiry line)
Email: infoni@qca.org.uk
Website: www.qca.org.uk
The booklets covering BTECs GCSEs,VCEs,GCEs and GNVQs are available from the following Awarding Bodies: Assessment and Qualifications Alliance
Website: www.aqa.org.uk
Guildford: 01483 506506
Harrogate: 01423 840015
Manchester: 0161 953 1180
Edexcel
Tel: 0870 240 9800
Website: www.edexcel.org.uk
Six regional offices – see the website
v N.I. Council for the Curric Examinations and Assessment
Tel: 028 9026 1200
Website: www.ccea.org.uk
OCR
Website: www.ocr.org.uk
General qualifications: 01223 553998
Vocational qualifications: 024 7685 1809
Welsh Joint Education Committee
Tel: 029 2026 5000 (main switchboard)
Website: www.wjec.co.uk
For students in Scotland different arrangements apply:
Scottish Qualifications Authority. ‘Guidance on Assessment Arrangements for Candidates with Disabilities and/or Additional Support Needs’ - download from www.sqa.org.uk Tel: 0845 279 1000
Cambian Education Services run seven residential special schools and colleges for young people with autistic spectrum disorders, Asperger Syndrome/HFA, severe learning difficulties. OAASIS can send you their prospectuses.
OAASIS produces 8 chargeable publications entitled ‘First Guide to…’; wallet sized cards explaining 9 learning disabilities and a wide range of free Information Sheets. Please contact OAASIS for the full list, or view them on the website at www.oaasis.co.uk. All the information sheets are checked annually, please ensure you have the current version.
© OAASIS (Office for Advice Assistance Support and Information on Special needs) This article can be freely reproduced with due attribution of authorship.