Hi Claire
Had not read that far yet. It seems to me totally unworkable. Suppose the SENCO says a total of 10 minutes but the candidate has a good day. Are we then liable for not giving rest breaks?
I think we go by the procedure we have now. It is candidate driven. We never had a candidate who made misuse of the arrangement.
Does the JCQ talk to invigilators and SENCOs?
Kind regards
Marjanne
Marjanne Worsley
Examinations Officer
Phone: 01444 446844
e-mail: [log in to unmask]
Central Sussex College - Sixth Form College
Harlands Road
Haywards Heath
RH16 1LT
>>> Claire Willis <[log in to unmask]> 09/10/2014 16:33 >>>
Hello all
Can I canvass your ideas and planned approaches please to the new instructions from JCQ on page 21 par 5.1.3 where it states that the duration of the supervised rest break should be determined by the SENCo and that this must take place before the start of the examination series?
We have approximately 70 students with rest breaks for various needs and there is a concern that it is impractical to determine a suitable rest break time for every student for each exam.
We have queried with JCQ the scenarios of students with CP or anxiety/panic attacks and the difficulties encountered by the SENCo in trying to predetermine a time scale for rest breaks. JCQ agreed that if it's the candidate's normal and established way of working is to seek a supervised rest break during the course of an examination when their pain or discomfort begins to manifest itself, or their stress or anxiety levels begin to rise, then having variable amounts of time for rest breaks would be perfectly acceptable.
Would you consider that this caveat almost seems to make the directive in the JCQ guidelines impractical? Perhaps this requirement for predetermined amounts of rest break time can be applied to those with ADHD etc who know in advance how long they need to refocus?
I know what I think we should do but some others aren't so sure so I'd appreciate your feedback if you can spare the time.
Many thanks
Claire
Exams Manager
Peter Symonds College
Owens Road, Winchester, SO22 6RX
01962 857500
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