How do exams shut disabled students out?
Disabled students described an exam-heavy assessment culture that accommodations help but cannot fully fix when designs assume a “normal” student.
Source
Unveiling ableism and disablism in assessment: a critical analysis of disabled students' experiences of assessment and assessment accommodations
Study at a glance
- Design
- Qualitative / archival — Survey of disabled students with reflexive thematic analysis of assessment experiences
- N
- N=139 · 139 main-survey respondents (pilot N=25)
- Population
- Disabled students at a Finnish research university
- Outcome
- Ableism/disablism in exam-heavy assessment despite accommodations
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Inspect source passages
How do exams shut disabled students out?
These passages occur verbatim in the stored paper text. They support the points listed below; they do not verify every statement in the explanation.
139 survey respondents
In total, 139 students responded to the survey.
56 students said accommodations supported learning
Fifty-six students explicitly mentioned that accommodations have supported their learning and studying.
What they did
At a Finnish research university, the author surveyed disabled students about assessment and accommodations (pilot N = 25; main sample 139). Reflexive thematic analysis interpreted experiences through lenses of ableism and disablism.
What they found
Despite asking about assessment broadly, experiences centered on exams. Accommodations often helped students show their abilities—56 explicitly said so—yet students wanted more authentic, student-centered assessment. Critical analysis showed how time, visuality, and productivity norms exclude disabled learners.
The limits
What it doesn't show
Self-selected survey responses at one institution cannot estimate population prevalence of barriers. The paper is interpretive and does not experimentally compare assessment redesigns.
Key terms
- Ableism
- Social valuing of idealized “normal” bodies and minds that shapes institutions and practices.
- Disablism
- Discriminatory barriers and exclusion that disable people in everyday systems.
- Assessment accommodations
- Adjustments such as extra exam time intended to provide fairer access to assessment.
- Authentic assessment
- Tasks that resemble real professional or meaningful performances rather than only timed exams.
- Test-driven assessment culture
- A pattern where high-stakes exams dominate how learning is judged.
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Quiz yourself
Main survey N was:
Common questions
Did accommodations help?
Many students said yes—they could show real skills—but still criticized overreliance on exams.
What assessment form dominated experiences?
Exams, even though the survey asked about assessment in general.
How many students responded?
139 students in the main survey.
What is the paper’s critical claim?
Assessment systems often design for an ideal student, so inclusion needs redesign—not only accommodations.
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