Seeking accommodation ideas

[Uptowngirl12121]

Hi,

My son is a 10 year old 5th grader with adhd who is doing well academically. During the recent family/teacher conferences it came to light that whenever there is a long online assessment test he has been known to speed through to his detriment. His teachers all say that when he does the test work on paper he gets 100% correct however, when he does the long online assessment, his work is substantially lower at only 50% correct.

He gets the homework right and participates easily in class. There is no question that he knows the material. He already gets extra time as a test accommodation. As I write this its not entirely clear if the problem lies with the online test format or the length of the assessment. Would anyone happen to have any creative ideas of accommodations that we could ask for that might help in this instance?

[Aspen797]

What pattern does the teacher notice when looking at his online tests? Is he getting early ones correct and then marking more randomly at the end like he is losing focus or rushing because he is being kept in to finish while others have moved on (if a slower worker generally)? Is it on a particular subject or test style ( short answer vs multiple choice)? Has he done well on any online assessment and if so, how was that different than the others? Is there a keyboarding issue? Issue understanding what is being asked or how to respond on computer? Maybe drilling down a bit more with the teacher can help clarify what the issue is and help come up with a solution?

I just read more closely and see you said he rushes through. Can they break the assessment up into smaller timed chunks? Could he chew gum or have a bouncy band on his chair leg? Hopefully others will have some good suggestions.

[Uptowngirl12121 in reply to Aspen797]

Thank you so much. These questions are immensely helpful and I'm going to take these forward to see what info comes back. These teachers can probably tell me because they appear to be very diligent, observant, and helpful.

[Onthemove1971]

Great question. I know I could have written this about our son when he was that age. One of the benefits ( some may say the opposite) to online testing is that when a child answers the question correctly the next questions steps up to a harder level. If they answer wrong it will/may go to an easier level.

So each test is trying to find out where the individual child is at.

Knowing that, it is really hard to compare a paper version to an electronic becuase the paper can only test one "track".

Believe it or not these longer assessments also place kids in certain programs ( like gate/AP or a high SAT score later in high school).

It seems like it might help to shorten the sessions. I know our son just wanted to get it over and no matter how many times we said, "Don't be the first done", he always rushed through.

So unlimited breaks, fidget tools, maybe even the elastic band on the chair for his feet and rewards. Maybe testing in another location? All this things can help now and as he grows he can learn how important these assessments really are.

Our son just said to us " I wish I had done AP... classes", I almost fell on the floor. But he is now realizing how important these are ( he is 5 months from graduating)..

Good luck

[Uptowngirl12121]

Thanks. Each comment gives me more prespective.

[PonderingPapa]

If our son finishes an online test quickly his math teacher unlocks it and sends him back to review it. That has greatly helped. She has a non neurotypical child herself and is always extremely helpful.