Special Provisions (1 Viewer)

[Gemstone]

Hey I was wondering if anyone else on here gets them, and if so what do you get them for.

I get a scribe because I have a tremor and can't write properly because of it.

Do you guys ever have any trouble with your special provision?

I sometimes do because I do ancient and I get so sick of spelling all the words out. But yeah most of the time it's pretty good, helps a lot. I would never be able to do my HSC without it. Plus I know the kids who do it for me so that's good.

The only big problem that has arisen is that I do Japanese. The teacher who organises it for me is always making sure i'm alright with what were doing about it but you really can't do anything else. I mean all I can really get for it is the extra time.

Anyway my school does look after us pretty well and we get nice rooms for the HSC at the minute were either on the stage, or in the dressing room or in the cellars (which is a storage area now of course.).

Anyway how do your schools deal with it?

Just wondering what it's like for others.

Gems

 

[cro_angel]

i was a reader writer.. we just went upstairs but i think the people who were downstairs could hear.. this was for the trials though
in the hsc we were in the special studies centre, a quiet room with some lady reading a newspaper.. man i wish i could get paid $70 an hour to do that lol
with special provisions it doesnt matter about spelling mistakes.. thats what the sheet told me lol

 

[Gemstone]

Yeah it doesn't but in ancient it's important you can spell the names of places and Pharaohs and stuff.

Yeah I did one when I was on the stage but they forgot to put up the barrier and people could here but only the first 2 rows and they were the advanced english class anyway and I was standard so it didn't matter.

Some schools are really crap with it though. I mean I have a friend at another school and she said they just stuck them in a room next to the Year 7 block for preliminary. I thought that was kindda crap.

Gems

 

[*girl04*]

yeah i have been a scribe like read and wrote for people, it wass good we good a party for doing it and food n stuff

 

[Miffy]

Have you ever been offered the option of using a computer for your exams? It is allowed by the school for yearly's, half yearly's etc and you can get a special provision from the board of studies if you apply to get it for the actual HSC exams. You should ask about it, it's worthwile i think if you have trouble with your hand.

 

[glycerine]

there's a girl in my grade... for the school certificate, for every 20 minutes she wrote she got 10 minutes break, or something like that. her shoulder is fucked to the max though

 

[Gemstone]

Yeah I can't get a computer for it because I can't type fast enough for BOS to let me and also the problem I have with writting would still happen with a computer. So yeah a scribe works.

 

[miss_pie]

i get extra time and we're put in old boarding dorms so i get a desk and a bed. hehe but god is extra time great, 5 mins per half an hour.

 

[*girl04*]

Originally posted by Miffy
Have you ever been offered the option of using a computer for your exams? It is allowed by the school for yearly's, half yearly's etc and you can get a special provision from the board of studies if you apply to get it for the actual HSC exams. You should ask about it, it's worthwile i think if you have trouble with your hand.

there is a girl at our school was does that

 

[snapperhead]

Originally posted by Miffy
Have you ever been offered the option of using a computer for your exams? It is allowed by the school for yearly's, half yearly's etc and you can get a special provision from the board of studies if you apply to get it for the actual HSC exams. You should ask about it, it's worthwile i think if you have trouble with your hand.

This type of provision *usually* has to be approved back at the start of year 10 (unless the injury occur's in the senior years). In fact, most if not all spec. prov. are a flow on from stage 5 (yr 9 & 10).
Its a pretty serious thing to go through- its not just a matter of asking for it. There usually are medical reports involved + analysis/evaluations from both the school and external experts eg itinerant teachers from the DEET or CEO

 

[KeypadSDM]

I just get annoyed with people who rort the special provisions system.

A friend of mine has diabetes, which means assuming he's alright with the insulin, nothing in exams gets affected, yet he can take breaks whenever he wants, giving him an advantage.

Even with that, USyd gave him a 5.00 UAI bonus putting his UAI over 100.00, allowing him to do any course he wanted.

Bah. Rorters.

 

[snapperhead]

thats a new one- didnt know the uni's got involved! Wonder what the justification was??

 

[KeypadSDM]

The uni's don't get involved until after the UAI, at which time said friend wrote a letter in saying he was affected during exams, and USyd gave him +5.00 leeway with his course choice. He only used 1.30, but it still annoyed me how he got a double bonus for an illness that didn't affect him at all.

 

[snapperhead]

I see- can see why ppl may be miffed at this but I can undersatnd the spec. prov. thing as well (have done a couple in my time) and the justification for most is to give them the same opportunity as others even though it may seem unfair at the time (I mean, imagine if he needed to take a diabetes related break in the middle of an exam...... we had one last year that went low (?) in the middle of her PE exam- she refused the spec. provisons cause she thought she didnt need it......messed up a lot of ppl.........

 

[Miffy]

Originally posted by snapperhead
This type of provision *usually* has to be approved back at the start of year 10 (unless the injury occur's in the senior years). In fact, most if not all spec. prov. are a flow on from stage 5 (yr 9 & 10).
Its a pretty serious thing to go through- its not just a matter of asking for it. There usually are medical reports involved + analysis/evaluations from both the school and external experts eg itinerant teachers from the DEET or CEO

I understand what you mean, however people at my school have only just started using computers last week for their half yearly's. From what i understand, a few of the people have "illegible" writing, and for me that is really not a good enough excuse, as anyone's writing can be made legible if effort is put in. I must add that the people who are using the computers are among the smartest in the grade, and that is no exaggeration.

As others have said, I too get really annoyed by people taking advantage of the special provisions system and I was merely just asking the question to gemstone if she had been offered it, as i had never even known it was an option until very recently.

 

[snapperhead]

they would have to go through some process, especially for HSC use if its being done from a BOS POV (school use in half yearlies is different). They (the Board) are very strict on this (it takes ages for a normal pec. prov case to get the go a ahead and to rush one through because of sudden injury etc is real fun- I know this from experience! Had to fast track one case of broken arm just before the trials- the Board recommended we put in a misadventure case after the HSC because it wasnt worth it!!).
Have taught a guy that used a computer because of his handwriting (it was really bad- calling it scribble would be doing him a favour). The etsting he had to go through to be eligible for HSV spec. prov. was pretty amazing.......ended up that his problem was a problem (and yes, this guy was bright) ie the message was getting lost in translation between the brain and the hand.
In Gemstones case, it *may* (and I wasnt there mind you!) have been decided that a scribe was a better solution (because of her tremor) as no stress was being placed upon her hand at all....

 

[glycerine]

hmm. wonder if I can use my epilepsy as an excuse.
jk, I never minded using it to get out of work or whatever but I wouldn't fake it for the hsc just to get a few extra points on my uai, thats so morally wrong

 

[Gemstone]

From what i understand, a few of the people have "illegible" writing, and for me that is really not a good enough excuse, as anyone's writing can be made legible if effort is put in. I must add that the people who are using the computers are among the smartest in the grade, and that is no exaggeration.

Board of Studies won't just give it out for illegible writting unless there is a reason it can't be made neat as you put. I mean my writting is legible but to keep it legible in an exam would put to much presure on me, and I wouldn't be able to do it. I know they don't just give it out for illegible writting because my brother applied in year 10 for it and his writting is worse then mine but they knocked him back, because it was just illegible writting and there wasn't a medical reason for it.

Just a thought but have those people who have only just started using computers actually got approval. Because even if you had it in year 10 you have to reapply and the closing date for applications is friday. I think mine got sent off last week with everyone elses. But we sent it off earlier when I was in year 10 and I didn't hear about it till near the end of term 2. So they mightn't have approval and if they don't they mightn't get it for the HSC anyway.

Most people who get them in year 10 will get them in year 12 unless anything has changed. Yeah so just a bit of clarification.

Gems

 

[Shiloh]

I get extra time in breaks. 5 mins per half hour...we had to practically go to the BOS ourselves. Ancient history...you're just gonna have to stick at spelling out the words.

 

[Gemstone]

Ancient history...you're just gonna have to stick at spelling out the words.

Yeah I know it's irritating though. I'm trying to get them to at least give me a yr. 11 ancient student as they'll at least know how to spell most of it, but I can't have a yr.11 for trials i don't think cos they have preliminary's soon after.

Yeah and I know it's sometimes really hard to get special provisions off BOS. I think there so tight with it cos they don't want to give them out to just anyone. The problem is when someone has a ligitimate reason and they make life difficult. I got so annoyed because they wouldn't send out the forms until i'd started my christmas holidays last year, and it took me like a month or so to get in to have my medical report done.

Gems