Special needs and extra time

im sure my son would happly trade you his extra time, if you promised to take away his diability at the same time.

students can be awarded more than 25% extra time if the need is severe enough - look at the JCQ website. Not all students get 25% anyway - some get 10%

When I was at school you got different amounts of extra time for different issues. I got 1/3 extra time, which makes your exams really, really long. Other people got 10% extra time. It seems odd to have changed it to a standard 25%.

That unfairness comes from the assessment process. Despite severe dyslexia and mild dyspraxia, where it was obvious there was a problem from year 2 and with me asking for help and assessment from that time, nothing was actually done (apart from scribes etc at KS2).

We ended up paying privately £400 for an Ed Psyc over the summer of year 6/7 so that on entry to secondary they had a detailed report. We could only just afford that. No way could we afford to have that done - nor could the school - to assess the level at every exam sat.

I absolutely dread my sons GCSEs.

There is unfairness in the extra time allowed. There is no allowance for the severity of the disability - all students get an extra 25%.

DS1 was diagnosed at 15 with dyslexia, by the school. We had no idea - he can read and write fine. Without looking out his assessment, I couldn't tell you which of the functions tested are deficient.

He gets the same amount of extra time as someone who is really struggling.

One other thing.

My son, when in class, has a head full of ideas. Give him a lesson where interaction is the activity and he thrives. Give him writing as the form of expression and his brain is flooded with processing requirements. He can no longer think of his ideas as his mind is taken with processing data. His body stresses and panic starts to setin. He has to grab the side of his chair and undertake stress relief techniques to disperse the pressure. Then he can try writing more.

Can you even come close to imagining what life is like in an academic environment when exams are involved. 100% writing for hours?

You cannot say what a dyslexic can and cannot do. That is for a professional to determine.

My son - like another on here - has a processing speed on the third centile. His intelligence is circa 75th centile.

He has a music exam coming up where he is given 'extra' time for sight reading. However, in reality, his processing speed is so low and the time given for sight reading so short, even that won't make him equal. He has to work harder to nail the rest of the test because, basically, 10% of the test is close to out of his reach. Problem? No, he gets on with it and realises that a bit of extra time is all he can expect (after all, if you are musician in real life you can expect nothing more). To argue someone with a proven condition ought not get this, just shows your ignorance.

Isn't it a shame that these poor people with SN envy do not have the opportunity to acquire some SN of their own to enjoy the benefits?

At least people who whine about benefit scroungers do have the option of leaving their jobs and going off to enjoy the high life in a council flat in the slums. Though you don't often seem to see them doing it.

ADHD is not laughable.

What is laughable is people being jealous of someone for having SN and whining about it on the SN board..

The OP is in Scotland, which is a massively different system and a different awarding body.

To have modified exam arrangements you need to have a cause, with evidence (usually medical) and a reason, also with evidence.

So no condition automatically qualifies you to extra time, schools need to show that the pupil actually needs it on top of dyslexia/dyspraxia/ whatever the ASN is, which will involve sitting practice exams with and without extra time and only if that extra time makes a significant difference to the result will it be allowed.

With most candidates, extra time does not improve results, they just finish earlier or write more waffle.

To be able to use a scribe or computer, again there needs to be evidence and it needs to be their usual way of working - if they don't use it in class, they've got no chance of getting it in an exam, the same with readers and prompters

Also exam arrangements need to be applied for well in advance, you can't just ask for them a month beforehand - in fact a lot of pupils miss out on them because a lot of teachers don't realize this, try to do it too late and without evidence.

I would be very interested in seeing which part of the country doles out all these totally unneeded dyslexia diagnoses.

My own experience as a university teacher is that dyslexia is underdiagnosed in schools; I've had several experiences of looking at a student within the first few weeks and thinking "how on earth did noone notice this when it's absolutely staring you in the face?"

These students are often suffering from depression and anxiety, no doubt the result of years of unsupported struggling. Yes, they've made it to university- because they're bright and determined- but at a terrible cost.

It's as if a wheelchair bound student was made to crawl on her hands and knees during PE lessons so as not to get an unfair advantage over the other children. Perhaps a very determined and athletic student might keep up by crawling, but why would you think it right? Why not want to see what a disabled student can do when properly supported to make the most of their abilities?

Your dd has no idea how hard a dyslexic person has to work to be able to turn out a piece of work with correct spelling. Or how bright they have to be to overcome their disadvantages.

exam access arrangements can also be assessed by a specialist teacher with a relevant qualification. SENCOS in secondary school very often do not know the JCQ regulations unless they are qualified to assess themselves, so children can miss out. The OP is talking absolute crap and clearly has a chip on her shoulder about this.

b&b, ds(13) is like your dd2 - he's dyspraxic with dyslexic traits which he has largely overcome. However his handwriting is difficult to read, his hand tires easily which makes it worse or he can write less and his processing time lags well behind his thoughts. He is allowed 10% extra time and in exams with a significant written content (ie English or History) use of a laptop. However it took 2 EP reports (private, £££) and a lot of discussion to get this. OP this is to level the playing field, so his innate ability is represented, not to give him an advantage.

I disagree - according to the link posted above, this is an example of a candidate who would get extra time - 10% - despite not being terribly disadvantaged now (or no more than the OP's DC):

"A candidate was diagnosed as mildly dyslexic in Y7. He has made good progress with his reading and writing, which are now within the normal range for his age. He does make some spelling mistakes, but these are minor and do not affect the ability of the examiner to read and understand his scripts. He is allowed 10% extra time in written papers [but not multiple choice papers] to allow for any residual difficulties."

I am interested because my DD2, who is still at primary school, is the world's slowest writer - she can read OK, think very fast but physically, her hand is so slow - numerous reports have focussed on this. She's not been assessed by anyone, and at primary level it doesn't matter except that homework takes her ages - but in an exam situation, it clearly would place her at a disadvantage. So I'm marking this thread...

OP is talking rubbish. To get any extra time, you need a report from an educational psychologist - a parent can not just decide their child has dyslexia etc and lo behold the school give them extra time. The extra time given is for the student to maybe read the question a couple of times to understand what is required or give them longer to write the answers - the psychologist undertakes a series of stringent tests and recommends what the child needs to LEVEL the playing field with the other students - not given them an advantage. This has to be agreed by the examining board. Not all children with dyslexia will be given extra time / a scribe / laptop, only what is deemed essential from their assessment. BTW dyslexia manifests in different forms - it isn't just spelling , it can be deciphering words in questions , reading difficulties etc.

DD3 is dyspraxic and also has another mild learning disability. She had a scribe and extra time in her GCSE's not beciuse she couldn't read, But because she could not write fast enough and for it to be legible in the time the exam took, She was assesed by ann educatuonal pshychologist and the assesment had to be submited to the exam bord befrore she got the concensions, She is now 18 and taking A level Drama she had to have a new assesment to get the same concesions. As they only last for 2 years,
Sp a parent cannot just say that their child has dyslexia or another learning disability to get these concesions

Balls!
You sound a bit thick to be honest. Let's hope your daughter didn't inherit it.

Maybe if your DD has such problems you should fight to get her processing issues diagnosed?

Extra time doesn't help those who don't need it, as few exams nowadays use time pressure as a criteria.

You really are talking bollocks.

My ds has aspergers and has been shown through a series of tests, IQ tests and the like, by a Chartered Educational Psycologist, that he has extremelly high intelligence but also has a severe problem with processing speed. That could put him at a disavantage in timed tests.

He does not get extra time. He gets high grades because his intelligenge makes up for it.

Other children my not have been tested, and may well not be on the autistic spectrum, but could still have problems with processing speed. They just haven't been tested in that area because they don't have a diagnosed SEN.

My ds is on a level playing field when he takes his tests, as long as he is given time to settle into the room.

I could probably push for him to be given extra time, but that could well be seen as unfair. I don't think he needs it.

All children have their strengths and weaknesses. Why don't you just try and focus on your dd's progress and achievment and mind your own business about everyone elses?

you are talking bollocks OP

Are you an expert on dyslexia and what dyslexic children can and cannot do?

Well you can pretend she's got whatever you want, it'll make no difference to her Highers though, because unless she meets the criteria for extra time, she'll not get any

I had extra time in both my highers and standard grades. 20 minutes extra for every hour because of a physical problem with my wrists. I spent those extra minutes sitting, not writing, trying to give my wrists a break, just so I could finish the exam at all. I also wrote my answers using both hands as I physically couldn't do it any other way. And I took strong pain killers. Even with the 'help', I was still at a disadvantage tbh. I did very well because I am clever and had prepared well, but it would have been easier if I could have had no extra time and no problems writing. I'd probably have done better.

I tried using a scribe for my prelims too. I don't think you have any idea how difficult it is to do an exam with a scribe. It's much harder than it's is writing yourself. No one would choose a scribe if they didn't need one.

Your daughter should stop moaning about everyone else and get on with her own exams.

We were always taught at school that feeling pushed for time in a exam was a good thing. That's the way they were designed.

If you finished too quickly, then you probably had not done enough and should read over to make sure nothing had been missed.