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Do you think extra time in exams is fair?

Some people do deserve extra help but just having an autism diagnosis is no reason the person must have issues related to the autism which prevents them from completing the exams in normal timing. I am sick of people using autism as an excuse for extra time.

That doesn't make any sense whatsoever. You clearly know nothing about autism. A common anomaly that most people on the autistic spectrum tend to have is difficulty with COMMUNICATION. Writing is a form of communication. You have to write in an exam. Hence help such as a scribe or extra time etc. Maybe read some more about autism than the NHS definition you copied and pasted into one of your previous posts.

Very confused as to who I am talking to now! Sorry - part of this comment and the next one are directed at another poster as you replied to the post that I sent them.

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 141

Larissa14

15

Yeah, most people that get it really need the extra time.

Reply 142

EdwardBarfield9

20

Original post by cherryred90s

Why don't you get extra time?

I was just never offered it or told I could have it. I honestly don't mind and I would probably not want it anyway. To me it's a matter of principle.

Reply 143

sue99

10

Original post by Tinka99

Curious about your thoughts.

It really depends on why the extra time, such as someone having a condition that means that they don't process things as quickly, or they write slowly, or have dyslexia and so on. But I think some people really don't need it. One of my friends has Asperger's so he gets 15 minutes more in each exam he does but I honestly don't think he needs it; he is just unbelievably clever -to be honest I need it more than he does, and I don't have any condition that I know of!
Another friend of mine gets 15% extra time because she writes slowly, and I sort of think it's a poor excuse, but it must be a medically recognised condition because otherwise it would never be allowed.

Reply 144

Mazzy95

8

Original post by Tinka99

Some people do deserve extra help but just having an autism diagnosis is no reason the person must have issues related to the autism which prevents them from completing the exams in normal timing. I am sick of people using autism as an excuse for extra time.

Also - when you say you are 'sick of people using autism as an excuse for extra time' - how often does this actually happen? And how many of those occasions have YOU made the judgement that they 'shouldn't' have extra time. What do YOU know about their personal lives and condition/s? Stop judging that you know best just because you think so highly of yourself doesn't mean you have the right to make the entitled opinion that they don't 'deserve' extra time. It's incredibly arrogant to believe that you are medically trained to make that decision.

Oops sorry Tinka99 tagged the wrong quote! Wasn't talking to you was talking to X - got confused cos you replied to the post that I sent to another poster. But the part about being sick of people using autism as an excuse still stands just not the rest.

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 145

ivybridge

6

Yes, I do. However, for those who genuinely need it.

I think they need to be a lot more strict with it. I know people who literally just fake things and end up getting 25% extra time and computer usage - wrong. Unfair advantage.

Reply 146

Tinka99

OP

13

Original post by Mazzy95

Also - when you say you are 'sick of people using autism as an excuse for extra time' - how often does this actually happen? And how many of those occasions have YOU made the judgement that they 'shouldn't' have extra time. What do YOU know about their personal lives and condition/s? Stop judging that you know best just because you think so highly of yourself doesn't mean you have the right to make the entitled opinion that they don't 'deserve' extra time. It's incredibly arrogant to believe that you are medically trained to make that decision.

I suffer from Autism and severe ADHD myself and have 25% extra time, a reader and a quieter room for my GCSE exams this summer. I write very slow, have severe difficulties concentrating so a having a reader helps, can get very disruptive so can't go in a hall full of 300 people and rush reading through the questions due to severe anxiety and a reader helps with that. I know more than most people about Autism as it has literally affected my entire life so I know what I am speaking about.

I never said extra time is wrong but I have just seen some kids purposely fail those extra time tests with similar conditions as well as Autism and this irritates me. I really need the time as I would fail without it, but just having Autism does not entitle you to extra time there should be something related to it that limits your ability. I don't like seeing a disability purely being used for extra time

Reply 147

cherryred90s

20

Original post by EdwardBarfield9

I was just never offered it or told I could have it. I honestly don't mind and I would probably not want it anyway. To me it's a matter of principle.

If you feel like you don't need it then fine, but I'm sure if your brought it to their attention, you'd be entitled

Reply 148

Mazzy95

8

Original post by Tinka99

I suffer from Autism and severe ADHD myself and have 25% extra time, a reader and a quieter room for my GCSE exams this summer. I write very slow, have severe difficulties concentrating so a having a reader helps, can get very disruptive so can't go in a hall full of 300 people and rush reading through the questions due to severe anxiety and a reader helps with that. I know more than most people about Autism as it has literally affected my entire life so I know what I am speaking about.

I never said extra time is wrong but I have just seen some kids purposely fail those extra time tests with similar conditions as well as Autism and this irritates me. I really need the time as I would fail without it, but just having Autism does not entitle you to extra time there should be something related to it that limits your ability. I don't like seeing a disability purely being used for extra time

Sorry - read the section I added at the bottom of my previous two posts. I was talking to another poster not you. I got confused as you replied to the comment I gave to the other poster when we were posting back and forwards to each other ... my mistake I apologize. However the part about you saying that you are sick of people getting extra time because of autism I don't agree with. Now I know that that comment was from you and not the poster I thought I was talking to and you've explained the context I can see where you are coming from in terms of your own personal experiences of people abusing the system so perhaps your extra time/help may be compromised because of their choices etc. however it is still a very general comment to make about autism. The people that you go to school with may have abused their diagnoses but it doesn't mean that autism as a whole should be put in a box. I can understand what it is like to perhaps have a biased opinion due to personal experiences though. I was in care for several years when I was younger due to mental health and I spent a lot of time with autistic people, living with them, amongst other people with a wide variety of difficulties. Due to the place I was at people would abuse their conditions ALL THE TIME, it drove me insane. However I know that that doesn't mean that all autistic people are like that it was just the environment. So I have to ignore my personal experiences when making an informed judgement about others with the same conditions.

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 149

Андрей

6

Exams in general are an inefficient and unfair way of assessing people.

There are also far too many examination points throughout compulsory education. The SATS and GCSE examinations are essentially nonsense and could easily be abolished with few to no complications arising. We know the general ability of students who attend my school simply by being with them in the classroom; seeing their work and listening to their verbal reasoning. We already have a deep insight into how organised a person's thoughts are, how they perceive and respond to information, just by being with them in the learning environment.

To answer your question, no, it is not unfair if the student has a genuine learning difficulty that effectively slows them down.

(edited 8 years ago)

Reply 150

Mazzy95

8

Original post by Андрей

Exams in general are an inefficient and unfair way of assessing people.

There are also far too many examination points throughout compulsory education. The SATS and GCSE examinations are essentially nonsense and could easily be abolished with few to no complications arising. We know the general ability of students who attend my school simply by being with them in the classroom; seeing their work and listening to their verbal reasoning. We already have a deep insight into how organised a person's thoughts are, how they perceive and respond to information, just by being with them in the learning environment.

To answer your question, no, it is not unfair if the student has a genuine learning difficulty that effectively slows them down.

I agree - a perfect response.

Reply 151

Tinka99

OP

13

Original post by Mazzy95

Sorry - read the section I added at the bottom of my previous two posts. I was talking to another poster not you. I got confused as you replied to the comment I gave to the other poster when we were posting back and forwards to each other ... my mistake I apologize. However the part about you saying that you are sick of people getting extra time because of autism I don't agree with. Now I know that that comment was from you and not the poster I thought I was talking to and you've explained the context I can see where you are coming from in terms of your own personal experiences of people abusing the system so perhaps your extra time/help may be compromised because of their choices etc. however it is still a very general comment to make about autism. The people that you go to school with may have abused their diagnoses but it doesn't mean that autism as a whole should be put in a box. I can understand what it is like to perhaps have a biased opinion due to personal experiences though. I was in care for several years when I was younger due to mental health and I spent a lot of time with autistic people, living with them, amongst other people with a wide variety of difficulties. Due to the place I was at people would abuse their conditions ALL THE TIME, it drove me insane. However I know that that doesn't mean that all autistic people are like that it was just the environment. So I have to ignore my personal experiences when making an informed judgement about others with the same conditions.

It's ok mistakes happen it's in the human nature. I was not saying that all autistic people are the same and abuse the system as it would be an insult to myself as well as to those people who really require that extra time. I was just saying that you must have difficulties related to the Autism or any other condition which prevents you from finishing the exam in normal timings.

Some kids are so hostile towards me because of my extra time as they feel I don't need it as I have a high IQ and I am academically gifted, but I would never have the grades I have without the extra time and support I receive.

Reply 152

juliabennett

2

Original post by Андрей

Exams in general are an inefficient and unfair way of assessing people.

completely agree with this, it is no real testament to the intelligence of a person and is all just a game of memory retention. if you learn to play the game you can do well regardless of actual thought.

but i think extra time is fair depending on the severity of the case. the smartest girl in my school had slight dyslexia that didn't really affect her but in spite of this got an extra 1/3 of the time. she got an a* in every exam she ever took as a result, doubt she would have if she had the same amount of time as everyone else

Reply 153

Tiger Rag

22

Original post by xylas

I'm pretty sure coordination disorder is the inability to perform certain motor tasks quickly not processing information.

If you can read the question fine but can't process what you have to do to answer it, this is not a disability and you shouldn't be given extra time. This is normal and just means you aren't as capable at the exam as someone else hence in a lower grade.

I disagree. I have Autism and a serious problem for me is how I process written and spoken language. One of the reasons why I need extra time is because of how I understand language. It can take me several attempts to read what to you is a fairly basic question in order to understand it. And no, it has nothing to do with intelligence. It's to do with how my brain is wired.

Reply 154

Katty3

16

Original post by richpanda

No, it's completely unfair. That's not even counting the thousands of people who are perfectly capable but get extra time!

I have dyspraxia. My handwriting is very slow and often hardly legible. I find it very painful to write and have to stop every couple of minutes because of that.

In my mock GCSEs, I got Ds Es and Us because I didn't finish the exam paper and they couldn't read my handwriting.

On my actual GCSEs, I got a room alone (I get easily distracted) a laptop and extra time. I got Bs and Cs.

To get adjustments, I had to have a full diagnostic assessment by an educational psychologist.

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Reply 155

rosie.mn

14

Yes. You can't say that extra time isn't fair just because there are a small percentage of people who may abuse it. Some people are genuinely disadvantaged and without this time would suffer. It's very easy to say no as someone who doesn't need it, but think about it in a caring way. People who have learning disabilities may find it very hard to process the questions and understand them or read large pieces of text, the extra time is given so they have more time to understand the task at hand and not put so much pressure on them - not so they have an advantage over everyone else, merely giving them the same opportunity. If you are given extra time, it's because you need it - it is only reasonable to let people have equal opportunities. Think about it this way, to read an English paper it would probably take me 2 mins, however for some it may take a lot more than the recommended time to read. It's not usually a lot of time either, merely an extra 5,10,15 minutes. This is hardly going to mean someone has a higher advantage, just that they need that time for extra reading, if they're a slow writer or to check over their work.

Reply 156

Mazzy95

8

Original post by Tinka99

It's ok mistakes happen it's in the human nature. I was not saying that all autistic people are the same and abuse the system as it would be an insult to myself as well as to those people who really require that extra time. I was just saying that you must have difficulties related to the Autism or any other condition which prevents you from finishing the exam in normal timings.

Some kids are so hostile towards me because of my extra time as they feel I don't need it as I have a high IQ and I am academically gifted, but I would never have the grades I have without the extra time and support I receive.

I agree people should only have extra time if their condition actually relates to needing extra time, not just because they have a condition which in other peoples cases relates to needing extra time. (If that makes sense.) e.g. someone having ADHD but it not actually affecting their ability to sit an exam but getting the extra time anyway because they have a condition in which with some/a lot even of people would need the extra time. I didn't mean that I thought you thought that all autistic people abuse the system I more meant the kids at your school that you were talking about. Obviously you will know a bit about their conditions if you are friends etc. but do you know for sure that they don't really need the extra help. Sometimes things can look different from various perspectives.

Reply 157

username1658559

16

Surely in some (not most!) cases, said person is just a bit 'slow'/dim and so really they are just not as sharp as most and therefore don't deserve an advantage as it is not a condition as such if they are just slow, maybe it's like giving someone extra time in maths because it takes them longer to work with numbers, or giving someone extra time in history as it takes them longer to understand a source, so they're essentially gaining an advantage for, not being 'thicker' necessary, just not as intuitive as they should be... Kinda hard to explain in words my logic...

Reply 158

username2385417

14

Original post by oli19919

Surely in some (not most!) cases, said person is just a bit 'slow'/dim and so really they are just not as sharp as most and therefore don't deserve an advantage as it is not a condition as such if they are just slow, maybe it's like giving someone extra time in maths because it takes them longer to work with numbers, or giving someone extra time in history as it takes them longer to understand a source, so they're essentially gaining an advantage for, not being 'thicker' necessary, just not as intuitive as they should be... Kinda hard to explain in words my logic...

Yeah I think there's a lot of that happening.

I haven't been tested for anything but it's obvious something's not quite right! But my processing time is fast and I don't struggle with understanding questions. My handwriting could barley be called writing and my spelling is abominable no matter how many times Ive seen a word or tried to spell it (for example, writing words back to front or not writing the first letter of every word). I can't hold a pen properly, god knows why, it just really hurts and I compose several paragraphs of answer in my head before writing it down which makes it look as if I'm just sat there staring into space for 50% of the time.

But I refuse to be tested or given free stuff or extra time. I just have to try harder. I've worked for several years now and wouldn't have been cut any slack by these companies. That's the real world, better be prepared for it.