Fixed Timed Assessments: The accommodation for “extra time on exams” is intended for assessments in the form of multiple choice, short-answer, and/or essay formats with a fixed time. This can apply to quizzes, midterms, and finals. The exam may take place physically in-person or remotely.
Take-Home Assessments: If an exam is created as a take-home exam with an extended period of time to complete, the extra time accommodation is not generally relevant. A take-home assessment that is structured to take place over multiple days will need to be assessed for accommodation needs on a case-by-case basis. Please contact the CAE counselor to ensure the student is adequately accommodated.
Remote learning environment:Remote courses have prompted many faculty to change their method of administering exams. If you have a student in your course who is registered with the Center for Accessible Education and approved for extra time on exams, this may cause some confusion about whether or not to provide extra time. Some professors are utilizing the same exam they typically gave in a class period, but providing extended time for all students to take the exam, taking into consideration the various challenges students might be facing. Other professors are modifying their typical exams and giving them as take-home exams. These are some factors we consider in determining if the extra time accommodation need be applied.
Please refer to the following questions for more information, and consult with the students’ CAE counselor to confirm whether the extra time should or should not be given to your student(s).
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How long is the exam structured for? Is the exam one that was created to be completed in a typical class period (1-3 hours), or did you develop it specific for a longer period of time due to the remote learning environment?
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Are students able to use the entire time [hours/days] provided to work on the exam, or is it that they can access it during that time period, but the student has a more limited time to complete the exam?
Examples:
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Remote administered, Time-flexible: An assessment that is taken remotely and created to be given in a fixed time (i.e., 3 hours), but students are given 24 hours or more to complete it in the remote environment. Once the students begin the exam, they are allowed to pause the exam and complete the unfinished portions at their convenience. In these types of exams, the total time given provides the student with their extended time accommodation. This exam format would not likely require the additional time adjustment, so long as students are able to return to complete the exam within extended time.
Ex. If the exam was created to be administered in a classroom setting (e.g. 1-2 hours), but is now being provided an extended time for all students (e.g. 24-48 hours), with the opportunity for students to begin the exam at any time in this period, take breaks, pause, come back, etc., than the extra time being provided would meet the extra time accommodation approved by the CAE. Because the exam was structurally intended for a 1-2 hour period, not 24-48 hours, allowing this extended time to complete the exam would exceed the time for the exam that the CAE would have provided. In these instances, no percent time is needed and the accommodation will be met. -
Remote Administered, Time-fixed: An assessment that is taken remotely, and is a time-fixed exam, in which students are given a 24-hour window to start and finish it in a more limited time. In this type of exam, the student can begin the exam at any time in this 24-hour window, but once the student begins the exam, they must complete it in its entirety in a smaller time window. Students are not allowed to exit the exam and return to complete the unfinished portion. This is a fixed-time exam. The accommodated additional time must be applied.
Ex. The exam begins at 1pm and it is available for 24 hours, closing at 1 pm the next day. However, once students begin the exam, the student only has 1-3 hours to complete it, with no pauses or breaks. If that is the case, then the percent time does apply. -
Fixed-time exam that is modified for remote environment: An exam that was typically given in a fixed period, and was modified or made different for the remote environment (i.e. added questions, or modified structure to give as a take-home exam). It is likely that the student will need to be accommodated by adding the extra time accommodation, as the amount of time needed and possible barriers to completing the exam on time are unknown. Please contact the CAE counselor to ensure the student is adequately accommodated.
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Remote Administered, Time-fixed, limited extra time provided to all students: An assessment that is taken remotely, and is a time-fixed exam, in which the exam was initially created to take a certain amount of time, and it is determined by the professor to provide a small amount of extra time to all students (e.g. double time). This is a fixed-time exam, and adding a limited window of extra time can still allow for inequities in test-taking. Our standard guidance that in these situations is that the CAE student still be provided their extra time accommodation. Please contact the CAE Disability Specialist to ensure the student is adequately accommodated and if you have questions or concerns.
Ex. Professor created the exam to be 1.5hrs and gives the whole class double time (3 hours). Questions that need to be answered to determine if the extra time should be applied to the student:- Did the student, in fact, require additional time, or feel rushed to complete the exam in the allotted time?
- How did the professor determine that the initial amount of time was adequate for this exam (i.e. did they give this exact exam during a 1hr 15 min class time in the past? etc.)
- Were any changes made from the original exam used on-campus or during past quarters that would suggest that this exam could take longer?
- Were the majority of students in the class able to complete the exam in the initial expected time period? (suggesting that the student did, in fact, have their extra time accommodation met through the blanket extra time) OR
- Did students seem to take up the majority of total time allotted for the exam? (this would suggest that the student, then, was not properly accommodated if most of the students in the class were needing most of the test time).