Types of Accommodations in the Instructional Process

Formative assessment is essential for successful learning. Many students with specific learning difficulties benefit from multiple modes of assessment. Feedback on their work is important. For exams and other forms of summative assessment, it is vital that students with disabilities have the opportunity to experience exam conditions in advance. This is especially important for all the students who must use assistive technology. Students should never use any tool for the first time under the stressful conditions of an examination. Therefore, they should be encouraged to use all necessary technologies during their learning.

Over-reliance on one or a limited number of assessment methods restricts students' opportunities to demonstrate the full extent of their knowledge. For example, students may be required to complete assignments such as essays, tasks, or practical exercises under supervised conditions, often at the end of a course or program. However, a range of other assessment tasks, conditions, and timings can promote an inclusive mode of assessment within a course or program, and can assess the same or similar skills and understanding.

Clear assessment criteria for different tasks are an important element of quality assessment. Assessment criteria clarify expectations for submitted work to both assessors and students, depending on the time and conditions under which they are completed.

Accommodations during examinations for students with mental health difficulties may relate to factors such as room size (smaller room, fewer students), specific student placement within the space (closer to the exit, at the edge of a row or near a window), individual settings (being in a room with five or fewer students), temporal adjustments (breaks, extended exam time) and computer use (due to tremor caused by anxiety) (Jokić Begić et al., 2015).

Task: Look at the video presentation, Adjusting to university with autism and anxiety about the experiences of a student with autism and his recommendations for support. Subtitles and a transcript are available for the video presentation.