Consultation on Designing Accessible Assessments

Ofqual have launched a consultation on designing and developing accessible assessments. The inherent variability in terms of all Learners’ needs, including those of disabled Learners are at the heart of the proposals.

The guidance is to support awarding organisations to develop assessments to include:

• how to avoid unnecessary burden on Learners when measuring the assessment construct
• how to use accessible language, within an accessible layout
• how to use source material, context, images and colour in an assessment
• how to design and develop assessments in a way that facilitates Reasonable Adjustments
• practices that may help awarding organisations make their assessments as accessible as possible

The guidance features the following key principles:
Assessment construct, structure and instructions

• An assessment task should only measure what it is intended to measure.
• The structure of the assessment should not create additional unnecessary barriers for particular Learners.
• Instructions on how to complete an assessment should be clear and unambiguous.

Assessment language

• The language used in an assessment task should be appropriate for the assessment level and construct and should not present unnecessary barriers to Learners.
• Assessment tasks should be expressed in clearly structured sentences.

Assessment materials, context, images and colour

• Where a task is set in a context that is not central to the assessment construct, the context should not make the task less accessible for any Learners.
• Source text or materials, context, images and colour should only be used in a task where they are central to the measurement of the assessment construct.
• Images should only be used in an assessment where they are central to the measurement of the assessment construct. Where images are used, they should be clear for Learners.
• Assessment tasks should only require Learners to distinguish between colours where this is central to the measurement of the assessment construct.
• The layout of an assessment should be clear and consistent and not create unnecessary work for Learners.

The consultation is closes on 24th January 2022 at 23:45 and the outcome is expected in Spring 2022.