One thing I disagree with is giving people with ADD extra time for academic exams. Many people with inattentive ADHD do think more slowly than people with similar IQ levels. In many cases they do more poorly at IQ subtest such as coding, which test mental processing speed.
Therefore it might seem reasonable to allow them extra time in exams. However, am I opposed to this for a number of reasons:
1. Many people with ADD in the past have had to battle through exams without special accommodations, why should today’s generation gain an unfair competitive edge?
2. In the real world, most jobs do require people to think fast, so thinking fast is an important skill that people need to learn if they are capable of doing so.
3. There is some evidence to suggest that learning to think faster may help reduce ADD symptoms.
4. Giving people special accommodations degrades the value of academic qualifications. Many employers don’t believe exams are as tough as they used to be, hence providing some people with time accommodations will only add to this perception.
5. Most people with ADD don’t sit IQ tests, so how do we know they really are sluggish thinkers and don’t just have low IQs?
6. Post-secondary education costs money- too many students are getting into debt at university to obtain degrees that don’t get them jobs. Making exams easier may lure more students into debt without improving their life prospects.
Thursday, January 11, 2007
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1 comments:
Hmmm - Id have to say I am an exception to the slow thinking rule in the first plafce and Ive talked to other ADDers (online only I admit) who are the same
My thoughts usually race along, I get impatient waiting when a teacher has explained something and is explaining it again to clarify, because I have already 'got it' (and not just thought I have got it).
I will get distracted from a task and then not complete it, but if I am able to focus on it I normally complete it faster than others (im too impatient not to LOL).
I finish exams early, and perform well in mental functioning such as maths, finding patterns and being able to mentall move shapes around in my mind (theres a term for it which I forgot - its a feature of iq tests)
My problem with exam performance would be an inability to focus and revise before the exam. If I can manage to do that - the answers are always there and there fast...
My opinion would be that in ppl with add it may be more a need to modify the way they perform mental calculations etc, or learn, than the time they take in an exam.... and what about an add'er on hyperfocus... who will finish up in half the time.
Also in adulthood we tend to study what interests us, so Id think add would be less of a problem than it might be as a child where subjects in school are compulsory and my be of little interest to the child, and the learning may be very theoritical (I have to DO it myself to learn it).
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