EXAMS
others, this relies on clear communication and understanding of expectations. If you can, show your students the exam room in exam conditions so that they can familiarise themselves with the environment. If not, can you show them a photo of last year’s set-up? Explaining where to go, where to sit, what happens if they need the bathroom or if there is an emergency will help to establish feelings of familiarity. For students who struggle with executive function – as many autistic children do – a checklist of what they need to bring can be helpful. What works best for a student is as individual as they are, so the mock exam period is useful to identify what strategies and processes will be most helpful in the lead up to their formal exams.
Autistic children will often experience sensory processing differences, which can be challenging in the exam environment. These experiences can heighten anxiety or cause intense discomfort, which naturally impacts their cognitive processing ability. By providing opportunities for sensory regulation during exams, schools can help autistic students to self-regulate. Chewing provides useful sensory feedback for some of our students so we provide simple, easily digestible snacks that they can enjoy before their exams or during their rest breaks. Just like adults, no child performs at their best when they are hungry, so small snacks also provide valuable fuel to improve overall cognitive performance.
While emergency access arrangements can be made in the event of broken bones or similar unanticipated events, suitable arrangements should be in place by Year 10 for autistic students. Autistic children can process 42% more information at rest compared to their neurotypical peers – additional time for processing is essential. In our classrooms, we will often be the first to notice when a child needs extra support to access their learning. For some children, this might be more time to process information while others may need to read out loud to improve their understanding.
Executive function challenges are common in autistic people and children can often struggle with planning, organising, recall and impulse control – especially in high pressure situations such as an exam. A prompter can be helpful to draw their attention back to a task and keep them on track. Handwriting can also be difficult for autistic students, especially over long periods of time due to fine motor skill challenges. In this case, a word processor or a scribe can be useful to enable them to focus on the task rather than trying to overcome discomfort and pain. Suitable adaptations will help to level the playing field and allow autistic children the same opportunities as their peers to succeed by accommodating their needs, rather than asking them to adapt to a system that isn’t designed for the way they think and feel.
Work closely and collaboratively with families
Just like with other students, effective preparation for exams often begins several years in advance for autistic children. A collaborative approach that includes their families and wider support team is essential to protect their physical, mental and emotional wellbeing during a challenging time. Starting this process in their Year 9 review will allow time to explore strategies being used at home and in the classroom that can be translated into access arrangements in an exam. Balancing revision and exams with hobbies and rest breaks is important and it can be helpful to work with parents and carers on ways to incorporate these into their child’s day. For instance, Chris Bonnello, an autistic former teacher, recommends blocking time for ‘rest breaks’ into revision timetables to make this explicit.
With careful planning and preparation, both parents and educators can remove the barriers that autistic children will face in exam conditions and give them the best chance of success. Ultimately, exams can be retaken but trauma experienced during the exam period can last for a lifetime if we aren’t careful about protecting our students’ mental and emotional wellbeing.
May 2026
www.education-today.co.uk 31
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