Last Updated on October 6, 2023 by Editorial Team
The Scholastic Assessment Test is a standardized test used for college admissions in the USA. Managing this crucial test can be often stressful, especially for children with learning difficulties. It can be due to various reasons. When talking about tests and applicants who face such shortcomings, the GMAT and GRE have provided a set of accommodations for these individuals, in order to provide them the equal opportunity in the world of education.
But is there a similar criterion of accommodations when it comes to the SAT? In this post, we will explore the same, and see what all accommodations are there for people with Dyslexia for the SAT.
SAT exam- A worthy entrance test
The SAT (Scholastic Assessment Test) was created to assess candidates’ writing, verbal, and arithmetic abilities. The College Board administers the SAT, a standardized test that is mandatory for students seeking admission to college schools. It is a pencil-and-paper exam taken by students who wish to pursue college courses, mainly in the United States and Canada.
The SAT will also be available online from 2023, where it will be a 2-hour exam, rather than a three-hour one. Test takers can also keep their calculators during the exam’s arithmetic segment. However, the accommodation for both the online exams and the physical ones would remain the same.
SAT accommodations for dyslexia
While most of the crucial examinations reserve some accommodations for students who have some or the other learning disability. SAT, for that matter, also has a specific set of arrangements for people with dyslexia.
- Extra Time: While it is a known fact that individuals with dyslexia need more time to finish off a test, therefore, just like all other examinations, the SAT also provides the test takers with dyslexia with some extra time. Extra time is generally regarded as one of the most helpful test accommodations.
- Read aloud: Accessing knowledge through recordings is a common approach used by dyslexics to compensate for either their slow but accurate reading or their decoding difficulties, which limit understanding. Read-aloud is basically a tool that reads aloud a sentence, or question that has been inputted into the device or the software. Read-aloud aids both students with and without impairments.
- Enlarged Text: Individuals with dyslexia need a print size that is larger and with extra-large letter spacing. Therefore, the tests created for them have this accommodation, where the sheet is specially designed to have enlarged text with dyslexia-friendly fonts.
- Scribe: A Scribe, also known as Amanuensis is responsible for providing an accurate handwritten record of students in examinations. From writing the exam to drawing diagrams and reading back the material to the student on a one-to-one basis, a scribe can be provided to an individual during an SAT exam, depending upon the level of their compromise.
- Colored overlays: Color filters of various types can help persons with dyslexia read more easily. Colored overlays, also known as dyslexia overlays function by emphasizing words. It can be placed over white sheets of text to help dyslexic persons read more easily.
- MP3 audio test format: In this, an audio version of the test on a flash drive is delivered to the student. This allows the student to listen to the test, and answer accordingly.
- Using a four-function calculator: Students with dyslexia who are appearing for SATs are allowed to use a four-function calculator for their math part of the test. Usually, the SATs do not allow the use of a calculator. However, for people with dyslexia, this has been made a relaxation.
- Extra Breaks or Extended Breaks: Students with dyslexia are allowed extra breaks. This is so because these individuals need a break often, and cannot focus on one thing more than a specified time. However, this break time is not counted in the testing time. Students can avail extra breaks in the reading, math, writing, listening, and speaking sections of the test.
Finally, consider the following:
If you are thinking about getting accommodations for your child, we would recommend you start the procedure as soon as possible. Advocate for essential tests, and keep all educational records handy. This approach may be time and resource-consuming, however, the earlier you begin allow the individual with LD to have appropriate accommodations, especially for SAT, which is a super crucial exam for young adults seeking admission into a college.
An engineer, Maths expert, Online Tutor and animal rights activist. In more than 5+ years of my online teaching experience, I closely worked with many students struggling with dyscalculia and dyslexia. With the years passing, I learned that not much effort being put into the awareness of this learning disorder. Students with dyscalculia often misunderstood for having just a simple math fear. This is still an underresearched and understudied subject. I am also the founder of Smartynote -‘The notepad app for dyslexia’,