To ask about this situation at school?

[MrsGoldberg]

My dd is a well behaved pupil and really tries most of the time but has a diagnosed additional need amongst other things, part of which means she fidgets. She can't physically help it, we have fidget toys to help but obviously not in exams. She finds exams stressful anyway.

This week they have been doing exams to determine sets next year. She had had hours and hours straight of different exams every day which make it even harder for her. The exams have all been done in full exam conditions.

In one of the exams today dd was tapping, this is annoying and distracting I know but she physically came help it. I'm presuming this has happened all week but exams have been done with other sen children and no one had said anything today the exam supervisor picked up on it?

She's ended up being reported by the exam supervisor to the head of exams at school who has reported to another member of staff because of this and is upset and now worrying she is going to get her marks null and void on her actual exams as this is what she seems to have been told.

So I want to know what happens if a child can't physically help it, what can I do to help, what CAN she has in exams to aid fidgeting to as not to distract and what should if anything school be doing to help?

How old is your daughter and what were the exams.?

It's the invigilators' and exams. officer's responsibility to ensure that the conditions in the exam. room are appropriate so if your daughter was not behaving in a way they felt was appropriate they should have asked her to stop or moved her to a different place. Anything they do after the event won't make any difference if there were any students who were disadvantaged by the tapping.

Does your daughter have a IEP or similar? I'd contact the SENCO to ask about special access arrangements for exams.

I had my exams in a separate room due to other SN from college onwards. It sounds like a good option for her. Are they worried it is some sort of cheating code or is it purely about distracting others? It sounds like you may need to raise it with the school and make sure any invigilators are aware of your DDs SN. It could be a case of the information not being passed on and reasonable adjustments not being made.

I would arrange a meeting with the school SENCO to discuss this. As she has a diagnosis, could you ask for exams in future to be in a small room away from other pupils?

I wouldn’t worry too much about the exams being ‘null and void’. As they’re internal exams (rather than public ones), what does that mean anyway? They’re only for the school’s benefit to assess progress. She’s not going to be put in the bottom set for everything as a result of this.

I imagine come her exams she will get seperate invigilation under access arrangements. Is there a SENCO at the school? Her actual GCSEs are nothing to do with the tests she’s taking now, the exam
Boards won’t even know she exists at this stage. Don’t panic

Agree she should be able to have her own room, or be in a room with others where it won't necessarily be silent.

Why couldn't she have a silent fiddle toy- blutac, bungee tied to the desk legs etc??

Thank you.
She's 15.
It was end of year internal exams so just for school.
She was in the sen room.
I appreciate it is distracting!
She used to have an IEP but the year six teacher 'didn't believe in them'
She is on the sen register, has extra time, coloured paper, reading pens (she has recently tested as some signs of dyslexia too but that's not be main sen) and all kinds.

Thank you, x posted with people.
Will ask about blutac as that seems a reasonable request.
She actually has some processing and sensory issues herself but she has headphones for her reading pen so it's possible that was cutting the noise of others out but not making it so she could hear how loud SHE was.

I had it is a separate SEN room at first but then I had a room with just me and an invigilator. It sounds like she may need that.