Providing test accommodations is a necessary part of administering and proctoring tests. Yet, testing offices often ignore the importance of the many facets of accessibility not only in providing accommodations for students with disabilities but also for all students they serve. This presentation will focus on the importance of universal design in making testing accessible. There will be a short discussion of the philosophy of universal design and how testing offices need to use these concepts in order to create a testing environment that is accessible. The presentation will then move toward a discussion of specific methods of how to implement universal design concepts in testing through communication (websites, scheduling systems, etc.), facilities (testing rooms, office arrangement, etc.), staff knowledge, test presentation, content and validity, and leadership.

Conference Track: Accessibility in Testing

This session will speak to the following outcomes:

• Developing a process/template/framework for Testing Center staff who manage on-line students' requests for accommodated testing within the Consortium of College Testing Center network (addressing testing fees/accommodation paperwork/scheduling of resources/ developing memos of understanding between colleges).
• Talking points for faculty who teach on-line at your institution for directing their accommodated students to testing resources.

Sources: The ADA Coordinator's Guide to Campus Compliance and CCTC Guidelines.

Conference Track: Accessibility in Testing

As testing administrators, we have spent our lives translating between the two worlds of mainstream and accommodated testing, attempting to bridge the comprehension gap between the two. On the front lines of testing, we find that we are often dealing with how political, socioeconomic, and cultural privileges may affect how and if a student will disclose the need for accommodations and, likewise, how these same factors may affect how faculty members understand the accommodated testing process and implement the appropriate accommodations for their students. Often, many of the issues we have had with students not using their accommodations go back to the misunderstanding of accommodated testing on the faculty's part. Our session will use our professional experiences and faculty-student case studies to detail how we have encountered such misunderstandings in our own office and provide insight to how new policies and procedures have mediated these issues to create a more consistent, comfortable, and controlled testing experience for our students. Through our newly implemented policies, such as a new student-intake process, a more streamlined appointment process, and mandatory faculty workshops, it is our hope not only to encourage the personal agency of our students and faculty but also to strengthen the professional and educational relationship between the two.

Conference Track: Accessibility in Testing

This presentation will be a roundtable discussion about the Universal Access in Testing Special Interest Group (SIG) led by the UAT SIG steering committee. The focus will be on what the current SIG workplan consists of and where the SIG hopes to go in the future. The steering committee hopes to elicit feedback from the SIG membership on these issues and others that should be incorporated into future SIG workplans. Some topics will be suggested that we are certain will promote considerable discussion as a part of the roundtable.

Conference Track: Accessibility in Testing

In the past few years, both the legal landscape and the accessibility landscape have changed for students with disabilities who will be taking licensure, certification, and entrance exams. Following the passage of the ADA Amendments Act of 2008, organizations have seen a significant rise in requests for test accommodations, as well as requests to make their exams accessible to candidates with disabilities, especially those with visual impairments. This session will provide an overview of the legal definition of who is considered "disabled," an overview of best practices for managing accommodations requests, and practical considerations when making tests and test content accessible to candidates with disabilities.

This session will explore the range of commonly-requested accommodations and important considerations that must be factored into the decision. In addition, an increasing number of accommodations requests would seem to be unreasonable. Some of these requests may be accompanied by poor documentation and by aggressive candidates and their advocates who believe that the revised law gives them free reign to demand whatever accommodations they choose. Other requests are for accommodations that are so extreme that questions are raised about potential impacts on test validity. Finally, some requests may be unreasonable because they may potentially expose test content or result in other test security breaches. This session will present these issues and allow audience participation in grappling with these difficult issues. Actual case examples (redacted) will be used to demonstrate the concepts discussed.

Conference Track: Accessibility in Testing