Potentially discriminatory extra time exam rules?

[Aleiha]

Just really wanted to sense check this.

DD is at a top ranking University and is entitled to extra time in exams due to having a disability. This is not disputed by the University which has given her 25% extra time. This is also what she had during A levels and GCSEs.

She is studying an essay based subject (history) and has had her first exam today and discovered that the university have extended the four hour exam to five hours. This is fine but they have applied the extra time to all students sitting the exam. This includes those with a disability and those without. The rationale from the university is that those who don't need the extra time won't use it and those who do need it can then use it.

Its a online open book exam (two essays) and so clearly everyone will use the extra time.

Is this a correct application of the rules? My understanding was that the extra time is supposed to alleviate any disadvantage she suffers due to her disability.

Does this inclusive approach also apply to coursework deadlines? My DCs (one dyslexia, one ADHD) both had extra weeks to complete coursework but the same time frame as everyone else for exams. With coursework carrying more marks than exams and the possibility to submit an essay days after an exam rather than days before, this was a much better way to differentiate.

Policies vary widely. The routine extra time for assessment offered to many students has really changed the rhythm of the year, since you can't assume you have everyone at the same stage for preparation, feedback, application of feedback to other tasks and assessments. We deal with three categories - extended deadlines as permanent adjustment, extended deadlines granted (or expected, or possible) for one-off events or illnesses, extended deadlines offered to all students up to a certain number of times a year because of pressures on the system from category 2 and the difficulty of documenting some ailments and problems.

We have seen in the last couple of years at my institution several assessment points where more students submit late than not. My observation is that, once you reach this point, people are likely to relax deadlines anyway, because they seem pretty much meaningless. It's not an entirely satisfactory situation. People seem also much much more prone to "use" their authorised extensions for written assignments (not in exam conditions) than for anything else. I have tended to "game" that issue I suppose with more tests than continuous assessment, and the rise of AI is pushing that trend too!

DD's university gives no extra time for coursework (on the basis that they have weeks to do it anyway and are clearly not working solely on that coursework 24/7 for 4 weeks)

If they are getting the right support, and getting it promptly, I believe that this is the best arrangement in most cases. "Trailing" deadlines and working out of sync with classmates is a huge source of stress in itself, though it's sometimes the only option.

I think its fine as other students grades dont affect your daughters grades.

I was always done with exams well before the allotted time. If non disabled students know that the actual exam time is 4 hours and they've read through their work and feel they've done the best they can, they aren't going to hang around an extra hour

I also think this is good for students who dont have an official diagnosis of anything but have difficulties. Imagine the many "pseudo ADHD" students getting extra time because they have some kind of online official diagnosis. But yoh could be a student who has actually clinical ADHD but never got diagnosed, and you would miss out on extra time that a neurotypical person with a diagnosis got

Really interesting. I think on balance I think this is a good way forward, certainly for Humanities having more time is not necessarily helpful for an underprepared student - you want to give the impression you do actually know it all but haven’t had time to put it down, rather than enough time to put it down on paper…

The uni is then applying the same principle to exams then - allow plenty of time for everyone. If your DD feels that she is under time pressure where others are not, that is an issue, for which a solution would be to extend the examination time further.

Which is exactly what the OP is saying, is she not? That it should have been extended further but the university refused.

I cant work out why the time others get effects your daughter? Does it slow her down them having more time?

Timed exams do reflect the world of work! Many employers want people who read and assimilate into quickly. Why does anyone get extra time if not to make up ground with other students? Some will obviously do better with even more time as it’s research and essay! No wonder employers don’t trust university degrees.

This is a really interesting thread and I'm very appreciative of all the insightful responses that Mumsnetters have taken time to write. I hope the OP can forgive the wider discussion that her DD's specific situation has provoked.

My children are not quite at uni yet, and my experience of extra time has to date been negative. My kids are at an above average (but not exceptional) state school in a small town serving a wide demographic with a wide range of academic abilities. All kids sat the "extra time test" of which I was naive until I heard the outcome. Two of my daughter's friends were awarded extra time for "slow processing" after this test, with no diagnoses or prior academic struggles. One was even in line for straight 9s, as was my daughter. I did try to keep an open mind, but when my daughter would tell me that she would not manage to get to the end of a maths paper whereas her friend would, I did feel that there was an advantage being awarded rather than a levelling of the playing field. And later, reading threads here on Mumsnet, I wonder whether or not it is a coincidence that both friends with extra time have parents who teach at private schools.

I give the above background in the interest of full disclosure of my bias on this topic.

In my view, it's all about whether working at pace is part of the test or not. Exams need to have a time limit for practicality. Coursework needs a deadline for the same reason. In the vast majority of cases, I don't think we are testing working at pace. So just give everyone plenty of time and it's all good.

I do think there are situations where extra time shouldn't be allowed. The example from my experience is the UCAT, which is the aptitude test for aspiring medical (and dental) students, which my daughter sat last summer. Doctors need to be fast processors, to think quickly and clearly under time pressure, so the test - which is incredibly time pressured - should reflect that. The time pressure is a key part of the test.

I can't run as fast as Keely Hodgkinson despite training really hard. Presumably my genetics will never allow it. But I don't expect a 2-minute headstart on her to help me qualify for the 800m in the next Olympics. And yet most of us would be capable of running a marathon if we put in the training, and celebrate covering the distance rather than the time it took.

I also would sometimes forget who I was/wasn’t supposed to ask questions to. What I found was that, almost always, they could in fact speak in class. Their anxiety was such that they thought they couldn’t and so were afraid to be asked. But in the event, they actually could and did.

I didn't read it that way, rather that it's unfair that everyone gets 5 hours for the exam rather than just her DD. My point is that everyone gets plenty of time for coursework, and now everyone gets plenty of time for the exam. Apologies if I've misunderstood you or the OP.

I think the OP said this part way through the thread "in this exam it was two essays on two very different topics in five hours. DD was barely finished and was pushed for time and says her second essay was far worse than her first." - so sounds like she was still pushed for time.

I think we are in agreement. I also wrote in my earlier post that if the OP's DD is still under time pressure then that is an issue. But the spirit of what the uni is trying to do (I think) is to allow plenty of time for everyone.

As long as your dd has enough time to complete her exam why does it matter to you if the other students use the extra time or not? Their exams and grades are none of your business.

For essay based exams I think this gives others an advantage. It means you have longer to plan and structure your answer, critique your thinking, misread the question and start from scratch etc. yes sometimes you make it worse by writing too much etc but in general longer is better for essays. So people who use the time productively are more likely to get a better grade than OP’s daughter.

It’s not graded on a curve. Above a certain percentage is a first , then 2.1 etc . Won’t make a difference to your child if others get the extra time .

They probably have so many students entitled to extra time that it’s just easier to give it to everyone

You need to not worry about everyone else! Just concentrate on your DD. She's an adult, let her adult FFS!

@Aleiha She needs to get in touch with the exams officer at Uni, presumably there is one. Alternatively, contact the exam board directly. I did this during GCSE’s .. they directed me to who I needed to speak to about the specific issue.

To those saying it’s fine, doesn’t matter .. you clearly don’t have disabled children/adults. It does matter.

Yes - there are situations where fast (or at least not below average) processing is what's being tested, and as long as that's something you are transparent about and it's relevant to the test or qualification, it makes no sense to allow extra time.

On the other hand, what I think should be avoided is making the speed the main discriminating factor in cases where it's not relevant. It's so easy to grade papers if you give tasks that you don't expect most people to finish without honing a highly artificial exam technique. I have the impression that grammar school testing works that way. But what are you actually testing?

I think this sounds fair and my dd gets 25% extra time. They are moving away from testing how quickly you can do things and making it fair for everybody. If it normally takes 4 hours then those that don't need the extra time will finish in 4. Those that need the extra time can take longer. They're not in competition with each other at degree level.

Yes. Our disability support office is very reluctant to grant that particular accommodation and strongly encourages students to see themselves as working towards participating more confidently in class. We also offer clinics on social anxiety in the classroom for staff and students, look at the importance of repeated exposure to minor stresses, and build in mock seminars and supervised small group work. I can only think of one student with this initial accommodation who didn't end up thriving in classroom discussions.

My dd has 25% extra time and I think this is fair. They are not being tested on speed. They are being given an extra hour. I think it's hard to get out of the mindset that it's a speed test when it's not. And they are not competing with each other.