Exam Accommodations
AU is committed to provide effective and efficient services at a distance; by facilitating equitable access to education for students with disabilities. Exam accommodations provide access when functional or cognitive limitations exist to standard assessment technology and methods. Exam accommodations facilitate the student’s functional ability to meet course outcomes.
Many exam accommodations do not require additional academic approval and have minimal impact on evaluation procedures and requirements.
The following accommodations are included in this category:
- location or environment (i.e. private room, distraction-free, natural lighting)
- support aids (ergonomic chair, footrest, pillow, ear plugs)
- health related supports (drinks, snacks, medications)
- extended time
- support services (reader, scribe, personal aid, sign language interpreter)
- alternate format of exam (oral, braille, word processor, paper)
- use of assistive technologies or literacy supports such as a dictionary
Some accommodations require prior discussion with Accessibility Services and approval of the appropriate academic (usually the Course Coordinator) as such accommodations may necessitate revisions to the structure of the exam, format of questions, delivery, or evaluation procedures.
Accessibility Services will seek to recommend accommodations or find optional solutions that provide an alternative means for a student with a disability to fairly demonstrate the acquired knowledge and skills specified in the course learning objectives.
The following accommodations are included in this category:
- exam structure or procedures: split the exam, revise the order of questions, number of days to write the exam
- question types (i.e. multiple-choice, essay, etc.) or exam (i.e. oral exam, take-home exam, paper)
These examples of accommodations are not all inclusive due to the individual nature of accommodations that may be required. In addition, it is important to note that additional measures may be instituted for exams with accommodations to ensure exam security.
Updated January 11, 2021 by Student & Academic Web Services (sas@athabascau.ca)