No extra time any more

[user1487671808]

DS14 was finally diagnosed as dyslexic in yr7 and we eventually managed to get extra time and mentoring in place though just getting that was an uphill struggle.

He’s now in yr10 and we’ve now been informed by the SENCo that as his grades have improved to the minimum expected for ‘normal’ he will no longer qualify for anything because of his dyslexia. This means that he will sit final exams only for everything but with no extra time to assist with his processing problems, speed of writing etc. Is this right? I mean it’s great that he’s now considered not to need extra help but he will without doubt struggle in his GCSES and will not get the grades he potentially could do. He’s not severely dyslexic but it’s always been something I questioned and was told he was a lazy daydreamer etc through juniors. When he started secondary school he’d never actually written more than a paragraph or two at one time. There are lots of kids being allowed extra help because of anxiety etc (also have experience of this with another DC) so how come this doesn’t count.

My y10 DS lost his dyslexia extra time by the end of y7

He had reached average grades, and once you reach "average" you cannot be dyslexic, apparently

We had more time than you, but he is now y10 and looks ok for English (dropped all humanities/languages though which I know will make some people ) but he chose his strong subjects instead.

Basically, being told he was now an average kid and being put in the middle set for English really boosted his self esteem, and he started to believe he could do English, and keeps surprising me.

Maybe your DS can see it as a boost that he does not qualify for extra time any more? That the school believe he does not need it?

Extra time is not given for "dyslexia" but should be given after tests for things like "processing speed". I would be asking whether my child had been assessed using these and what the results were.
But two of my DC had/have extra time and it doesn't cure all, they haven't always used their extra time, and more time doesn't always help.

I think average just means not in the bottom 15%. You could be 16th centile for writing speed (for example) and be classified as normal.
You can ask for a retest and ask for it to be closer to exam conditions e.g. Anyone can write relatively fast for them in a 20 minute test, but can they write at that speed for 2 hours?

Hint: Tell your dc to go slow for the assessment

Thank you for the replies. Yes it’s boosted his confidence that he no longer ‘needs’ help but his grades are still below average it’s just that based on the low grades in his yr6 sats he is on target but it’s a low target. The trouble is that he still would be the equivalent of a D I think on most subjects which will not get him very far. His difficulties are writing and processing speed so he doesn’t ‘get’ complex questions and his answers are too simple much if the time. His spelling isn’t good either and he will still miss words out but when he reads it back to himself he reads it as though they were there.

I’ve told the school that if I see his grades slipping I will be talking to them again.

I don't understand this. DD got extra time at school and will get extra time at University yet she is above average. I think it was based on the gap between her high overall ability and her very low processing speeds. But there needed to be a lot of evidence both in terms of ed psych reports and teachers confirming there was a marked difference between classroom and exam performance. She almost always used all of her extra time. She knew her stuff but was slow in getting it down and so really needed the time in order to get the marks she was capable of.

Her CAT scores were awful. Luckily she was at a private school, otherwise she probably would have had targets based on these and her school may have been happy with an average performance. Though her ed psych reports had indicated she was able it took till about year 10 for her maths and science abilities to show.

Read the (very long) thread on extra time running on this board at the moment.
You will see
a) criteria has tightened up as to who gets it
b) there are particular tests, and if he scores under a threshold for them then he should qualify.

Go back to the school and clarify that they have retested and if so what the threshold and his results were.

That doesn't sound right to me. My DS is year 9, dyslexic and in top sets at his comp, so above average. We've been told he will get extra time for GCSE's.

Right, user, that does not sound right then.

In that case I'd keep talking to the school, and what they are going to do to get those Ds to Cs!!

Hi my dd is in top sets for all subjects, is mildly dyslexic but has poor working memory, processing speed and spelling. She will have 25% extra time in her GCSEs as do a couple of her friends in similar situations. I would suggest you go back to the school.

DS2 YR7 has just been tested for processing speed at secondary school; he has an ASD, and possibly Dyspraxia; the ASD is only recently diagnosed.

Primary school had been saying for years he was under achieving = when he got to Secondary they were brilliant and picked up on him not achieving his potential when doing written tests/work.

His results mean he is going to get extra time on exams.Which will make a huge difference to him.

Definitely go back to the school

mmz is referring to standard tests used to assess whether pupils qualify for extra time (or not). My suggestion is that you contact the SENCO and find out your ds scores for these tests.
I think the differences in parents opinions are different because requirements have changed i.e. been tightened up over the past few years.
If your ds still doesn't qualify for extra time would he qualify for any other form of support e.g. use of laptop or reader (some dyslexic pupils can use reading pens) or supervised rest breaks? It's possible that other forms of support could be more beneficial than extra time tbh.