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Mary Jean,
At UNE, we do provide, with instructor permission, extended time for test taking for ELL students. While students and profs like the service, I think that it could be challenged because ELL students are not a protected class.
There was listserv discussion on this topic a while back. I summarized the discussion and shared it with some of my staff. I have pasted that info. below. My apologies to those who posted since I didn't list their names. The vomplete info. would be in the listserv archives.
Post:
Several times over the last few years I have had requests from both
students and faculty members to ask if I could accommodate ESL students
with extra time on tests due to their slower processing speeds because
English is not their primary language. Is there a policy regarding this
anywhere since it could not be covered under the ADA law? I would be
most interested in as much discussion as possible so a proposal for
accommodations due to something other than disabilities could be made to
our academic council.
Replies:
1) As a large state institution, we serve many international students and
our institutional policy requires complete proficiency in English.
Therefore ESL students are not considered eligible for ADA
accommodations.
2) If you were to allow ESL students to have extra time in a 'regular' college level course you are opening yourself up to a whole can of worms. These students should be held to the same standards of any other student in the class. Should you allow extra time to a tired student, a sick student, a slow reader, a person who says they have text anxiety? ADA is also firm on these rules, that a student should not receive special consideration unless appropriate documentation is given from the Disabilities office to the instructor. We are clearly told that no accommodations should be made to any student without appropriate documentation.
3) There is no official policy allowing ESL students extra time for testing. However, you can argue that it is a best practice and institutionally you may be able to provide a best practice statement for faculty. Testing is a tricky business. Many faculty allow extra time for testing for ALL students, which includes ESL. These faculty take into account sick students, slow readers, and students with test anxiety issues. As long as faculty provide extra time for ALL students, ESL students can benefit from that option. A best practice statement allows faculty to determine if the test should require a time limit or not. Generally speaking, time limits on test are established for convenience, not necessarily because the test should have a time limit. This is not the case for an Emergency Medical Technician test, for example. However, many tests do not need to be timed and it's perfectly reasonable for faculty to allow extra time for ALL their students - some student opt for extra time and some do not.
4) I agree with an earlier reply- that the ADA does not consider ESL as a
valid reason to allow academic accommodations. However, that being said,
what if you proposed untimed tests for all students, not just those with
English as a second language.This is along the lines of what "Universal
Design"is all about- modifying our teaching and classroom strategies so
that all students benefit.
Students who don't need any extra time will finish the test "in time",
those who need longer will have that option. Unless the purpose of the
test is to assess the "speed" or time it takes one to complete a task,
giving untimed tests to the whole class will not skew the outcome, whereas
giving one group (ESL students) extra time at the expense of native
speakers of English, can easily be seen as an "unfair" advantage.
The issue of ADA accommodations should not even enter the dialog, as the
law is very specific about what constitutes a disability.
5) Since ESL status is not a disability, it doesn't make sense to accommodate under that umbrella.
We have professors who arrange to be in the classroom half an hour early and if students want to start earlier, they may. (I realize this would be a logistical impossibility sometimes.) This helps the students whose anxiety is triggered by "everybody else being done."
6) We've overcome most of the timing issue by having students test in our testing center where tests are not timed unless there is a specific requirement to do so. The testing center system allows faculty to spend their entire class time teaching and students can test when it's convenient for them. As a result, most faculty use the testing center.
7) Hi, Diane. It may not be relevant to your question about institutional
accommodations, but ETS accommodates (with extra time) examinees whose
first language is not English. Ironically, the information is hidden
away on the page for Test Takers With Disabilities:
Maura
Maura O'Connor
Director of Learning Assistance Services
University of New England
11 Hills Beach Road
Biddeford, Maine 04005
[log in to unmask]
207-602-2561
>>> "Stanton, Mary Jean" <[log in to unmask]> 1/7/2010 11:46 AM >>>
Does anyone else allow ELL students to use alternative testing such as extended (not unlimited) time and language assistance or dictionaries, and word processing for essay exams? We've been offering this service to second language students for years; faculty refer many of our ELL students for this service. We also have the testing program for our students with documented disabilities (in compliance with higher education law) and we offer various other accommodations for students such as access to scanning text or alternative texts. Accommodations are determined on a case by case basis.
We've also recently admitted students with questionable TOEFL scores so I believe the service is more important than ever. These are bright students but the language is a barrier.
Any information from my colleagues on why offering these services for ELL students would be considered inappropriate or "breaking compliance" would be greatly appreciated. Many of us here at MMC are puzzled as to why someone is questioning the fact that this service is offered - not how it's being supervised or managed but even offered. ( I suspect it all has to do with budgets as I do not report to the person who has the problem)
This simply amazes me because I've been very careful about staying current with higher ed law and have never heard such a thing.
Any thoughts from my fellow learning center directors?
MJS
Mary Jean Stanton
Director, Instructor
Academic Center for Excellence
Adjunct Faculty of Communication
1330 Elmhurst Drive NE
Mount Mercy College
Cedar Rapids, IA 52402-4797
319-363-8213 ext. 1204
319-363-6474 Fax
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