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Re: Administering accommodations in on-line quizzes - has CAL changed its policy?

I guess I have a different perspective from those voiced so far.  I have always found my interactions with the people at CAL to be cordial and productive.  I don’t know if there has been a policy change, but if so it sounds like a good one.  My guess is that if students needing accommodation were not previously given accommodations for quizzes that was an oversight—they should have been.  If someone has a disability such that they need 1.5x to have the same opportunity for success on a final exam, I can’t see how they wouldn’t require the same accommodation for a quiz.

Yes, workload is a real issue, especially for teaching faculty and those with added care responsibilities.  (See the recently released report on “Invisible Struggles” for documentation on the impact of the pandemic.)  On the other hand, when I look around and see small businesses closing or having lay off half their work-force just to pay rent, people losing their jobs and having to blow through their entire life savings just to make mortgage payments, etc. I am reminded how fortunate I am to not only have a secure job with a secure salary but also that we are all receiving a 1.5 step pay increase.  So in that context I have a hard time getting worked up that I have to spend a few extra hours setting up my Canvas exams to accommodate students with disability who are especially impacted and struggling during this time.

Of course, how much extra work this is is going to vary depending on context.  My course has about 380 students; of those fewer than 20 are registered with CAL.  And I don’t use any of the online proctoring services.  So for me, it just means going in and setting up different start/end times and adjusting the amount of time students are allowed per question for each of those students.  If I were using a system that required more direct monitoring or proctoring, then I could see how that would be much more burdensome to figure out how to accommodate.  But then I would just contact someone in CAL.  In my experience, they are reasonable people and would be willing to work with you to find a solution.

Evan

On Jan 22, 2021, at 10:07 AM, James Fleming <james_fleming@sfu.ca> wrote:

I have no perspective on the specific issue you raise, but I have found CAL's communications and expectations since the start of the pandemic to be more aggressive than they used to be. JDF 
From: Oliver Schulte <oschulte@cs.sfu.ca>
Sent: January 22, 2021 8:01:03 AM
To: academic-discussion@sfu.ca
Cc: Michael Sjoerdsma; SFUFA Office
Subject: Administering accommodations in on-line quizzes - has CAL changed its policy?
 
Hi all,

I wonder if anyone else has experienced this change. I’ve been using short on-line canvas quizzes (15 min or less) for some years now. The Centre for Accessible Learning never required accommodation for students with special needs. Exams yes, on-line quizzes no. But this year the very same quiz requires accommodation that it did not require in 2019. Has there been a change in policy, or am I confused about something?

Puzzled,

Oliver
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