Is there anything you can do if child doesn't get allocated scribe/reader/coloured paper etc in an exam for GCSEs please?

[Spookydollshouse]

When they have been assessed and given one?
It's happened more than once now.
Once in an exam and once in a controlled assessment.
Due to the type of course some exams are official now not just mocks.

DC has various SN and didn't speak up about it (speaking up is an issue normally never mind in a huge silent room) but should have done .
They would have still lost exam time waiting for this to be sorted either way however.

Can anything be done?

They would have still lost exam time waiting for this to be sorted either way however.

If pointed out before exam started then no they shouldn't lose time.

I guess the school should do whatever they do if eg there has been an interruption to the exam, and apply for special consideration? Does the school know this happened, or has your DC only told you?

I'd email school to get it in writing and ask for the school's exams officer to ring you.

Ahh I didn't think they would have held the entire exam up for one student tbh .

School know, DC told them after (sigh) the exam.

They woukd start the exam and then start your DC later but they would still have the amount of time they should have including any extra time. However the invigilators will not have been aware of the school hadn't flagged it so the onus is on your child to speak up I'm afraid. There are some children who have aids or extra time for some types of exam but not for other types.

It shouldn't be necessary, but:

How about giving your child a note to hand in as she enters the hall saying the considerations she needs at that she's unlikely to speak up if there is an issue?

e.g. Spooky's Child Exam considerations:

• 25% extra time all exams
• scribe: English & History
• coloured paper - all except maths

Then if they don't tally with what the invigilator has been told it can be checked? Even better a card which the school's exams officers has signed?

Can you get in touch with the schools exams officer and fire a rocket up their arse? Could dc be asked to sit the exam in a separate room where hopefully they'll be happier speaking up? You also need the exams officer to contact the exam board ASAP to let them know your dc didn't get the required arrangements in place. Hopefully their mark can be adjusted.

Just phone or email the Exams office. Just say they’ve missed it twice and child was too shy to speak up. The student should say and keep reminding them to.
Sometimes things slip through and exams would rather have a polite reminder than the student miss out. It may also lead to them identifying a wider issue of how these students are monitored.

We have systems to guard against missing stuff like this at our school - the exams officer double checks the seating plan against permanent reminder cards we have for each student. The seating plan is marked up and the invigilators know who has special access. Your kid's school really needs to deal with this better.

We would usually only provide this for formal exams in the Hall. Not for tests sat during lesson time. We simply don’t have the room or staffing. We usually allow for this in results.

Superram OP has stated this has happened in formal exams.

Op who assessed your dc - a member of school staff?
Perhaps you could email the exams officer and copy in the assessor/SENCO with your concerns.

Thanks all , will drop and email to them .
DC usually does exams in a separate room so not sure what happened here. I know there was some pressure a couple of months ago from a staff member for DC to take the exams in the room with the others as they didn't have enough staff but I presumed that was just for mocks and dc said she really didn't want to (there has been past issues with DC being told the noise they make as part of their Sen will get their grades voided if in the big room...)

iwantatattoo they have properly diagnosed conditions but in terms of exams I'm not sure. I was just told that DC qualified for a scribe and a reader etc and that it would be put in place.

I've tried to ram home to DC that they MUST say something in the main GCSEs (this was a vocational course hence the early exams.)

Oh no it’s not for dc with needs to remind staff. Staff should know their pupils and should have this sorted. Email ASAP to exams officer and head of year/form tutor / senco. My DS severely dyslexic and dyspraxic was made to do a mock in a room without his scribe as the teacher didn’t think he needed it, (just randomly made this decision and ds didn’t argue ) unsurprisingly he got a u. I contacted senco for an explanation and teacher got a bollocking off him for not following ds plan. Do not let this go. Senco first get them to put the rocket up the exams officer.

This is really poor. If they are taking exams this year then all the paperwork should have been done. Deadline for applications was up a while ago. Speak to SENCO asap.

If you are using a scribe or a reader, let alone both, you can't possibly do your exams in the main hall - far too disruptive to other students. And it is pointless giving students supports only in their actual exams, they need practice working with that support if they are to benefit from it!

Hope you get the right response and it gets sorted pronto.