If you needed accomodations for SAT / ACT

[BlsdMama]

what documentation did you provide?  How did the submission go? Tips?

[Julie of KY]

I had a formal diagnosis with testing by psychologist for learning disorders. I also provided my own educational plan that summarized by grade testing and accommodations given year by year. I filled out the required paperwork.

I did not have any problems. SAT takes notoriously longer than ACT to approve the accommodations. I did this before they revamped the paperwork for SAT.

 

[BlsdMama]

19 minutes ago, Julie of KY said:

I had a formal diagnosis with testing by psychologist for learning disorders. I also provided my own educational plan that summarized by grade testing and accommodations given year by year. I filled out the required paperwork.

I did not have any problems. SAT takes notoriously longer than ACT to approve the accommodations. I did this before they revamped the paperwork for SAT.

 

 

 

SO... this particular child has diagnosed learning disorders -but where we did it opted to give her a diagnosed WRITING disorder.  She's had some pretty heavy OG remediation and so "passed" (barely) the reading test in the allotted amount of time so she explained to me they do not take into account remediation or anything else - just passing the minimum in the time frame. They also don't take into account genetic history (father, grandfather, and two sibs at that time diagnosed dyslexic.)

So instead of a reading disorder (dyslexia) we got a writing disorder for her (because of spelling and prosody) - don't even get me started on my opinions of this archaic process.  We knew better than to go her for a diagnosis but it's what I have.  Are they (College Board) going to throw a fit? She does have an actual 504 drawn up by the school system.

[rdj2027]

My son has had a 504 and several evals by (neuro)psychs since 8th grade.  Two different high schools and I have tried to get accommodations for AP and SAT.  They refused at all times.  ACT on the other hand was very generous.  He received what we asked for and they came back telling us if he needs anything else, it would be no problem.  It also only took two weeks for them to process our request.

[Julie of KY]

3 hours ago, BlsdMama said:

 

 

SO... this particular child has diagnosed learning disorders -but where we did it opted to give her a diagnosed WRITING disorder.  She's had some pretty heavy OG remediation and so "passed" (barely) the reading test in the allotted amount of time so she explained to me they do not take into account remediation or anything else - just passing the minimum in the time frame. They also don't take into account genetic history (father, grandfather, and two sibs at that time diagnosed dyslexic.)

So instead of a reading disorder (dyslexia) we got a writing disorder for her (because of spelling and prosody) - don't even get me started on my opinions of this archaic process.  We knew better than to go her for a diagnosis but it's what I have.  Are they (College Board) going to throw a fit? She does have an actual 504 drawn up by the school system.

 

Well, my oldest got accommodations of time based on disorder of writing (dysgraphia) and slow processing speed.

IF her reading is now better because of remediation, then she might not fit the criteria for accommodations. Family history should not play a part in whether or not someone should get accommodations. Accommodations should be based on current abilities (after all past remediation) and this is why testing must be done within a certain time frame for both College Board and then again possibly for college.

I "think" if you have the school recommending accommodations it is now easier than in the past to get them.

[BlsdMama]

2 hours ago, Julie of KY said:

 

Well, my oldest got accommodations of time based on disorder of writing (dysgraphia) and slow processing speed.

IF her reading is now better because of remediation, then she might not fit the criteria for accommodations. Family history should not play a part in whether or not someone should get accommodations. Accommodations should be based on current abilities (after all past remediation) and this is why testing must be done within a certain time frame for both College Board and then again possibly for college.

I "think" if you have the school recommending accommodations it is now easier than in the past to get them.

To clarify: family history should have played a part in her dyslexia diagnosis.  I understand completely what you are saying though. ?❤️ 

[Jilly]

6 hours ago, rdj2027 said:

My son has had a 504 and several evals by (neuro)psychs since 8th grade.  Two different high schools and I have tried to get accommodations for AP and SAT.  They refused at all times.  ACT on the other hand was very generous.  He received what we asked for and they came back telling us if he needs anything else, it would be no problem.  It also only took two weeks for them to process our request.

My son was also denied for accommodations at the College Board the first few times we requested. They finally agreed on our fourth attempt. They are so hard to work with. The ACT, on the other hand, was the complete opposite. They approved all his accommodations within two weeks of requesting them. 

[EKS]

I got someone with tons of experience doing evaluations specifically to generate documentation for SAT/ACT/college accommodations to update my son's diagnoses when he was in 9th grade (he had also had an evaluation by the same person in 5th grade, and others too).  I think I just submitted a copy of this report to the College Board.  To the ACT people, I submitted the report, a copy of my son's 504 plan in 8th grade, and a copy of his "accommodations plan" in 10th grade (he was enrolled in a public "homeschool school" in 8th part time and went to a private school full time for half of 11th).  I wrote a cover letter and explained that he had received accommodations as a homeschooler and referenced the 504 plan, accommodations plan, and I also told them that he was receiving accommodations at the community college.  For both colleges, he just made an appointment with the disability services office, handed them the report, and got the accommodations.

[Corraleno]

If she has a 504 with the school, they will generally give her accommodations that match the 504. If the 504 does not include extra time, that will be much harder to get.

My son got time-&-a-half with diagnoses for ADHD, dyslexia, and slow processing speed. I submitted the full reports of testing done in 4th and 10th grades, highlighting the sections that listed the specific disabilities, the specific supporting evidence for those disabilities, and the specific recommendations for accommodations (which included extra time and extra breaks). I also provided a letter from the MD who originally diagnosed him with ADHD in 6th grade, listing the specific diagnostic criteria he met and recommending extra time; a second letter from his current MD stating that he still met all the diagnostic criteria and needed extra time; and a letter from me detailing the difficulties he had in school prior to 4th grade, and listing the accommodations he was provided as a homeschooler (e.g. audio books, oral testing, untimed tests, breaks whenever needed, etc.). He was approved by both the ACT and College Board, although as others have mentioned it only took about 2 weeks for ACT and I think it was a couple of months for the SAT.

[MerryAtHope]

SAT--If the exact accommodations are specifically mentioned in both the test results and in the 504, you have a much better chance. Asking for something mentioned only in the 504 tends to be harder to push through--expect to need to appeal. Start the process early. They are not fast (likely 6 weeks or more to get the first response--at least it was that way before they revamped. I haven't heard a lot of feedback since they changed some things up though.)

ACT was easier and faster (response often in 10 days-2 weeks.) ACT accommodations also offer a bit more flexibility. For extended time, the student has a maximum amount of time for the entire test, but can break that up however they want--so you just need to help your student have some time goals going in so they pace themselves. SAT has a specific amount of time for each section, and if the student finishes early, they still have to sit there and do nothing. Mine thought that would be a fate worse than death, LOL! Some kids might not care though :-). 

Any chance you can revisit the dyslexia designation through another place--maybe Scottish rite or Children's Dyslexia Centers?