** Page Under Construction**
What are access arrangments?
As well as reasonable adjustments in the classroom, schools must put in place Exam Access Arrangements, which are reasonable adjustments for candidates who have the required knowledge and skills, but who can’t demonstrate this knowledge or skills in exams due to their disability. These arrangements must not affect the integrity of the examination or give the learner an unfair advantage.
Exam Access Arrangements can include:
Extra time
A reader
A scribe
The use of an exam reading pen, a word processor or assistive software (screen reader/voice recognition)
Exam papers printed on coloured paper
Supervised rest breaks
A separate room to take the test in
Why is getting the right access arrangements so important?
From personal experience, my son went from getting D’s to getting A's once appropriate access arrangements were in place.
He is now predicted to get 3 A* in his A-level exams and he plans to study Pure Maths at university.
Had these access arrangements not been in place, he would have given up on education a long time ago as his exam grades never reflected his ability or the amount of effort he put into revision.
His future would be looking vastly different (non-academic), as might his contribution to society.
Without appropriate exam accommodations, exam grades don’t accurately reflect a student’s ability.
Given that qualifications can have an enormous impact on future opportunities, it is wise for parents to invest time to become knowledgeable in this area.
Will my child’s school organise the necessary exam accommodations?
Some schools are really on the ball with this. Sadly, many are not. It can require significant resources to build the evidence required to obtain access arrangements.
It is wise for parents to research and have an early dialogue with the school, to ensure that adequate access arrangements are in place early enough for students to become expert at using them before taking formal exams.
Don’t assume your child's school will automatically get appropriate access arrangements in place
As every dyslexic is different, it's hard to give generic advice. The British Dyslexia Association have helpful information on their website.
Having a reader in exams
If you know a student who has significant difficulties reading, I would strongly recommend reading this article.
It contains 7 IMPORTANT FACTS that anyone wanting to help dyslexic students achieve their potential in formal exams MUST be aware of.
It details how having a reader in formal exams can make a dramatic difference in grades achieved by certain students.