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Secondary education

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Original poster

Reasonable adjustments for inability to tell the time?

37 replies

Clymene · 02/03/2023 10:07

My son has autism and is sitting his GCSEs this summer. He gets additional time in his exams.

He has a mock today and we were going through a past paper which says 'you should spend about X on this part of the paper' and I was explain that would a bit longer for him as he has extra time and then remembered that he can't read a clock! Believe me I've tried but he just can't do it. I'm ashamed that it hadn't crossed my mind before.

I don't think you're allowed to wear a watch. He can't be the first autistic child who has an issue with this.

Any suggestions?

OP posts:
Regularsizedrudy · 02/03/2023 10:11

when I worked as an invigilator we were allowed to verbally prompt the students that needed it how much time was remaining at certain points. However this was about 20 years ago so things might have changed, wearing a watch was always fine then too

Dogsitterwoes · 02/03/2023 10:26

Can he understand a digital clock? Would they allow him to bring one?

Original poster
Clymene · 02/03/2023 10:38

Dogsitterwoes · 02/03/2023 10:26

Can he understand a digital clock? Would they allow him to bring one?

Yes he can understand a digital clock a bit better (he's terrible at estimating time passed) but I'm not sure if he would be allowed one. I guess if it was on the table?

I shall ask. I can't believe I've only just realised this is going to be an issue

OP posts:
CatOnTheChair · 02/03/2023 10:51

He CANNOT wear a watch.
Ask them about providing a digital clock (for him or for all).
It has to tell the actual time - you can't have a count down or count up "stopwatch"

StopGo · 02/03/2023 11:01

Invigilator here. You need arrange a meeting with SENCO and exams officer as soon as possible.
Watches are banned in the exam room. A clearly visible clock will be provided and this is usually digital, request that it is.
Prompting and any other reasonable adjustments should be put in place.

I specialise in invigilating exams where candidate/s have complex extra needs. Your DS's needs seem straight forward and time prompting is easy.

ElfDragon · 02/03/2023 11:01

I don’t know if this would be ok for GCSE, but my dd used to have similar time issues, and also couldn’t estimate the passing of time, and used to zone out and then not know how much time she had ‘wasted’. She has ASD, and has an extra time allowance (also a laptop user, so has a digital clock visible, I guess).

anyway, she was allowed (at secondary, went via the SenCo as didn’t want to start anything that wouldn’t be allowed in formal exams if still needed, but haven’t tested this) to take in a sand timer - idea being se would flip it when she started zoning out, and so would only ‘lose’ 2 minutes at a time. I wonder whether a longer sandtimer would be allowed - a 10 or 20 minute one might help keep track of time passing.

dd has managed to keep track of timings more recently, and so now doesn’t need anything like this for her GCSEs, so I don’t know whether it would be even a remote possibility.

I hope you can find something that helps - have you spoken to the SenCo? Do they have any suggestions? Is your dc in isolation/a quiet room for exams? Is a prompter a possibility (deadlines for stating cases has passed, presumably, and generally it is supposed to be proven as ‘usual way of working’ or similar)

Original poster
Clymene · 02/03/2023 11:32

StopGo · 02/03/2023 11:01

Invigilator here. You need arrange a meeting with SENCO and exams officer as soon as possible.
Watches are banned in the exam room. A clearly visible clock will be provided and this is usually digital, request that it is.
Prompting and any other reasonable adjustments should be put in place.

I specialise in invigilating exams where candidate/s have complex extra needs. Your DS's needs seem straight forward and time prompting is easy.

Thank you so much. I haven't asked him what the clock is like in the room but if I can ask for it to be digital, he'll be able to largely read that and I can prep a table with times elapsed to help him plan his time in each exam.

I'll get in touch with them today.

OP posts:
viques · 02/03/2023 15:01

Clymene · 02/03/2023 11:32

Thank you so much. I haven't asked him what the clock is like in the room but if I can ask for it to be digital, he'll be able to largely read that and I can prep a table with times elapsed to help him plan his time in each exam.

I'll get in touch with them today.

Show quote history

Would he be able to remember the prompts? I don’t think he would be allowed to have a prompt sheet in the exam room.

BertieBotts · 02/03/2023 15:03

Would he be allowed something like the Time Timer that he can set to appropriate length? It's not internet connected.

viques · 02/03/2023 15:03

Though if he could work out from the start time how much time to allow for particular questions he could jot these down on the exam paper before starting to write, might help him to keep track .

Original poster
Clymene · 02/03/2023 18:05

BertieBotts · 02/03/2023 15:03

Would he be allowed something like the Time Timer that he can set to appropriate length? It's not internet connected.

I don't think they're allowed to take any devices into the room

@viques - I wasn't going to give him a sheet to take in. Just tell him that for eg in the nonfiction/transactional writing paper, he needs to finish section A by 10.15 or whatever. He'll be able to remember that. I can just do that every morning where it's relevant and text him at lunchtime for the afternoon exams if he has 2 in the same day (think there's only 5 instances of that thankfully)

OP posts:
SpyouttheLand · 02/03/2023 18:08

We use digital clocks in all our exam rooms. No need to make life harder than it need to be, for anyone!

Doremisofarsogood · 02/03/2023 18:11

I invigilate for college exams (GCSE and Btec) and we're allowed to give prompts for those with additional time,..ie 25 minutes left, 10 minutes etc.

PlaitBilledDuckyPuss · 02/03/2023 18:17

Back in the day before watches could access the Internet, the first thing you did when you took your exam desk was take off your watch and prop it in a suitable position in front of you. It's a shame children aren't allowed non-smart watches in exams.

RedHelenB · 02/03/2023 18:24

Clymene · 02/03/2023 10:07

My son has autism and is sitting his GCSEs this summer. He gets additional time in his exams.

He has a mock today and we were going through a past paper which says 'you should spend about X on this part of the paper' and I was explain that would a bit longer for him as he has extra time and then remembered that he can't read a clock! Believe me I've tried but he just can't do it. I'm ashamed that it hadn't crossed my mind before.

I don't think you're allowed to wear a watch. He can't be the first autistic child who has an issue with this.

Any suggestions?

He xan wear a watch as long as it isn't a smart watch. So am old fashioned digital one would be OK.

peanutbutterandbananas · 02/03/2023 18:29

A promoter can remind him to stay on task and he can have a visual pie char- style timer (on an iPad screen, for ex) that will visually count down time (it's a free online resource). He may also be allowed a separate room so the promoter isn't disturbing others. These access arrangements are common. Speak to his SENCI.

CatOnTheChair · 02/03/2023 18:29

He can't wear a watch of any type, Helen.

CaptainMyCaptain · 02/03/2023 18:34

I was invigilating until Covid and students could keep normal watches but had to take them off and put them on the desk. Smart watches etc would have to be handed in with phones. So unless the rules have been changed in the past couple of years, which is possible, he could have his own watch. We only had analogue clocks on display but that's not a rule.

Some students with access arrangements were allowed time prompts from the invigilator.

veryverybored · 02/03/2023 18:36

CaptainMyCaptain · 02/03/2023 18:34

I was invigilating until Covid and students could keep normal watches but had to take them off and put them on the desk. Smart watches etc would have to be handed in with phones. So unless the rules have been changed in the past couple of years, which is possible, he could have his own watch. We only had analogue clocks on display but that's not a rule.

Some students with access arrangements were allowed time prompts from the invigilator.

They rules have changed- no watches of any type allowed

CaptainMyCaptain · 02/03/2023 18:38

veryverybored · 02/03/2023 18:36

They rules have changed- no watches of any type allowed

Show quote history

OK.

Quartz2208 · 02/03/2023 18:41

Yes it is definitely no watches anymore.

is he in the main hall or a separate room. I would say his needs suit a separate room - exams officer and senco will be able to advise as there is a lot they can do to help.

clocks are digital now he is not alone in struggling with analogue

BeckettandCastle · 02/03/2023 19:04

At my DCs school, all the clocks for exams are digital as apparently lots of kids can't tell the time on an analogue clock anymore. Even mine, who I taught years ago, are too lazy to do it.
Definitely check with the exam officer at the school though.

StripyHorse · 02/03/2023 19:34

Dogsitterwoes · 02/03/2023 10:26

Can he understand a digital clock? Would they allow him to bring one?

Y11 daughter tells me they can't wear a watch.

When I did my GCSEs a watch was a watch. At most they might have a calculator (but calculators were allowed for all maths papers anyway) or a remote control, but neither of those were problematic.

Now even some watches that look like a analogue watches are smart watches with capacity for messages etc. I guess that's why they are not allowed.

Whether any exceptions can be made as a reasonable adjustment, I don't know.

Elisheva · 03/03/2023 09:55

I wasn't going to give him a sheet to take in. Just tell him that for eg in the nonfiction/transactional writing paper, he needs to finish section A by 10.15 or whatever. He'll be able to remember that. I can just do that every morning where it's relevant and text him at lunchtime for the afternoon exams if he has 2 in the same day (think there's only 5 instances of that thankfully)

Exams never start at their published time so this would disadvantage him if, say, the exam started at 10:08 and he thought he needed to finish the question by 10:15.

veryverybored · 03/03/2023 09:58

OP- what has happened in mocks/ other exams so far? He must have sat some already?