To think school have to make adjustments?

[bingbangbongding]

Hi, DD11 has her SATs next week.

She is autistic. Diagnosed last year.

She's been in contact with the SENDCO over the past few weeks after advocating for a space where she can be alone as she finds it hard to understand questions unless she reads them out loud. Obviously she will disrupt other kids if she does this.

Admittedly I haven't been involved (my mistake) as she was updating me every step of the way.

Last night the class teacher emailed me that they would be unable to meet her request because (paraphrasing) they had run out of teachers/assistants/rooms to accommodate everyone who requested or needs adjustments.

I've checked the gov.uk site and it simply says 'children are entitled to adjustments' blah blah, not 'entitled to adjustments if the school can accommodate'.

DD usually scores very well on exams but is so stressed out over the SATs. It doesn't matter that we've told her that they are a measurement for the school there's a lot of self pressure. I think the schoo think 'she's doing fine, doesn't need the adjustment'

Can I push this? I have emailed the teacher to express my disagreement over this approach and suggested that we can provide an independent (my friend does exam invigilation and will sit with her).

Advice needed. Please.

there is nothing in the OP posts to suggest she is entitled to any of these adjustments

Except she’s ASD and therefore has a disability which means she is entitled to adjustments to help her reach the same standard as her non disabled peers.

So, yeah, she’s not entitled 🙄

Shes got a recognised disability. How ‘entitled’ does she have to be?

When my dd was diagnosed we received a letter from her school saying she was entitled to all exams in separate room. We didn’t even have to request it.

but that is not related to the diagnosis.

Being diagnosed with a disability or not has no bearing on this at all

it is related to normal way of working, and diagnosis is irrelevant

Does DD have actual access arrangements in place? Diagnosis itself may not mean anything for exams need to be done differently.

Ds didn't have an ehcp but got extra time & to use a laptop for his Sats. You have to keep pushing, school won't want her to get a low mark as it will bring their average results mark down. Some of the pupils did their tests in the headmaster's office.

School sound appalling though.
Why are they doing mocks the week before? That’s insane.

You do not have to prove it’s a “usual way of working” for separate rooms or breaks. You only have to apply in advance for extra time (need to evidence this) or early opening for colour photocopying.

We use every room and every available member of staff to ensure all the children can be comfortable. We have children using laptops, coloured copies, quiet rooms with less children, a room for those who need breaks and anything else they need within the rules. They need it- we find the room and staff. We do mocks in March using the same rooms so the children know what it’s like and we can adjust if needed. Why would they not want her to do well? It’s their results!

Re the EHCP suggestion- children who are cognitively YEARS behind are being turned down several times and most of them do not get any 1:1 hours specified. If she’s sitting the tests she’s very unlikely to get one.

Credentials: year 6 senior teacher of several years.

Not OPs problem.

I really do think you've dropped the ball here. To have left an 11 year old with additional needs to sort their own reasonable adjustments is beyond lax.

what do you realistically expect to happen if parents make impossible demands on the school? Realistically? come on.

However, in this case, taking them late would probably mean taking them in a room on their own, which would solve the problem!

Just as an FYI, at college level the rules on seperate rooms have changed significantly, and significant medical evidence is now needed. Things have been tightened up a lot over the last few years. So at A-level/GCSE, a parent "fighting" without the correct evidence unfortunately gets nowhere.

Would your daughter be alright about sitting them after the other children, which would mean that she has to keep away from them until they’ve done their tests? . The assessments don’t last all day, she could maybe do their after play in the heads office and get a space to herself that way. Plus the school has to be flexible about timetable variations if there are children off ill, so surely they can be flexible for your daughter.

The trouble maker part of me says that if she arrives late, then that’s what they’ll have to do anyway or risk her not getting any marks at all, which the school won’t do, so you could force their hand if they won’t compromise.

ASD have sensory issues. This is why they are offered a separate room.

It was an automatic adjustment at the school l worked at, and automatic at my daughter’s school. So it is related to the diagnosis.

This, how does she cope in classroom settings, how has she managed with the interminable SATs practice under exam conditions? It is of course fair that children whose needs are identified are given fair conditions, but it does sound as though this is something that could have been addressed and dealt with long ago, well before next week. It begs the question if she has not previously been able to access written work in the curriculum - and in Y6 most of the content is presented in written form for most subjects - without reading it out loud then why hasn’t this been raised before?

2023 key stage 2 access arrangements guidance (publishing.service.gov.uk)
I suggest you read it again,poormeg experienced or not.
You do not need to notify in advance if sensory breaks/alternative room is the normal way of working. (Section 4)
but you should have evidence that it is what usually happens with the student in question (classroom plans etc) in case you are monitored.

Read the ‘Autistic Girls Network’ article entiltjed ‘Keeping it all inside’ One of the contributors is Head of Limpsfield School. An Ofsted outstanding school for ASD girls.

They mask until it bursts out. Or it bursts out under pressure (SATS).She ‘coped’ by holding it all together as long as she could. Girls are massively under diagnosed because they are quiet and fly under the radar. Just because she appeared to be coping doesn’t mean she doesn’t need further support.

The ignorance on this thread is appalling. In my 25 years teaching secondary, no ASD chikd was put in the main exam room.

She has ASD. A recognised disability within a wide ranging spectrum. She is entitled to adjustments, however we’ll she’s done before. She’s 10/11 years old. How much ‘before’ is there?

Girls are diagnosed much later than boys.

What exams officers need to show if monitored is that the reasonable adjustments they make are longstanding practice or that new needs have emerged - they had until 24th April for applications. A diagnosis of ADHD you'd be best off applying for extra time even if you don't end up using it but some kids with anxiety or ADHD won't benefit - they race through the paper then have the pain of sitting there with extra time they don't use and which can cause more distress...hence why it is imperative the teachers know what their kids need and do what their usual routine is.

At GCSE and A-level, you can have a disability, and not be entitled to specific access arrangements- for example, you have to prove slower processing, or need a letter from a professional saying specifically why the student needs a small/quiet room. Some students with ASD can do their exams in the hall, some need rest breaks, some qualify for extra time, and so on. Sometimes students can qualify for access arrangements without a specific diagnosis. It's about proving need, not diagnosis (which is good, given ASD diagnosis wait times locally!).

For SATs, none of the guidance I can find mentions separate rooms at all- which may mean it's not an allowable access arrangement as such, but would only be used to facilitate other arrangements, like a scribe.

So I don't think it's quite as clear cut as you think.

At GCSE/A-level, the rules around separate rooms have been tightened up a lot in the last couple of years, and now significant evidence is needed, a diagnosis is not enough.

She will have done many, many old papers on the lead up to the real thing. Presumably those went okay

Separate rooms is in alternative accommodation in section 4 of the link above.

The ignorance on this thread is appalling. In my 25 years teaching secondary, no ASD chikd was put in the main exam room.

The rules on small rooms for secondary exams have significantly tightened up in recent years. I have students with ASD who now do sit exams in the main hall, as there is not sufficient evidence to do otherwise.

We explain the requirements to parents clearly, but obviously we cannot contact medical professionals about this, so they have to source the evidence.

At GCSE/A-level, the rules around separate rooms have been tightened up a lot in the last couple of years, and now significant evidence is needed, a diagnosis is not enough

Except my dd 16 was diagnosed in November and offered a separate room in March. We didn’t ask, we just received a letter based on the diagnosis.

SATS 2023
Schools must make an application to the Standards and Testing Agency (STA) to request permission in advance for some arrangements (section 2). Some arrangements do not require permission, but schools must notify STA of their use once all tests have been administered (section 3). Other arrangements may be used without prior approval, or the need to notify STA, provided they reflect normal classroom practice (section 4).

During a monitoring visit3, local authorities (LAs) may ask to see evidence that any support given to pupils in the tests is regularly provided as part of normal classroom practice. Schools must ensure they have documentation to show that a pupil is eligible for access arrangements. Evidence will vary according to the type of support and may include:
• notes recorded in teaching plans
• individual pupil support plans
• a pupil’s classwork

@SequinsandStilettos that’s why we do the mocks with the same arrangements. It’s not hard to prove.