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An environment with reduced distractions makes it easier for a student to focus on an exam. For example, a student may experience disability-related impacts that cause difficulty ignoring sounds or restarting interrupted work. Several university programs are available to support instructors in providing distraction-reduced exam environments.

The spirit of this accommodation is to let a student with a disability use their time and energy on the exam instead of managing environmental factors. Students with this accommodation will experience more limitations in time and energy when confronted with distractions in the exam environment. All students have limited time and energy, but don't necessarily experience the same impacts.

There are several types of distractions in exam environments, for example:

• sight: people moving, lights blinking
• sound: talking, eating, tapping, paper shuffling, electronics buzzing, fans blowing
• smell: food, body odour, scented products
• psychological : person standing behind seat, prolonged attention, physical proximity
• movement: table shaking (such as by another student writing at the same table)

A distraction-reduced environment should have significantly less of all types of distraction than a typical exam environment. Some common options are:

• seat students so they cannot see each other, such as with carrel desks
• provide physically separated seats, such as with separate desks
• limit the number of students writing in a room to half the seating capacity
• enforce UVic's scent and fragrance policy
• ensure the area outside the room is quiet
• if students may take breaks, have them take breaks outside the room
• allow or provide noise-reducing items, such as ear plugs or noise-cancelling earphones
• allow or provide vision-reducing items, such as sunglasses or hats
• minimize the number of interruptions, such as verbal announcements and conversations
• quickly identify any student making noise and stop them

There is no one way to reduce distractions. Different students and different rooms require different considerations:

• a room beside a busy hallway may require more noise reduction
• a laboratory may require unnecessary equipment to be shut off
• a room overlooking a sports field may require more vision reduction
• a student with photosensitivity may require dimmed lighting
• a student with an anxiety disorder may require different seating arrangement
• a tall student may require higher carrel walls or more vision reduction

Your responsibilities

Plan ahead and engage your departmental supports if you cannot appropriately reduce distractions in the exam environment.

Provide reasonable notice and details for the student to determine if the exam environment is appropriate. One option is to include a statement in your syllabus or course outline.

Inform and train all invigilators of necessary exam conditions. A teaching assistant may not know to interrupt noise outside the exam room or enforce the scent and fragrance policy.

The student's responsibilitites

The student should notify you of reasonable issues with the exam conditions as early as possible.

The student should describe their distraction-reduction needs if the exam environment is not appropriate.

Accommodated assessment supports

The CAL Assessment Program and OREM Accommodated Assessments provide distraction-reduced exam environments. They support different students and exams, which is explained on VPAC's accommodated assessments page.

Learning and Teaching Support and Innovation’s is a Zoom invigilation service for online exams.

How to help

Notify students about your exam environment as early as possible in the term. This allows you and the student to identify and remove distractions long before an exam.

Still unsure if the exam environment is appropriate for your student? Contact the student's CAL Accessibility Advisor listed on the accommodation letter to discuss.