What was the research about?

In recent years, there has been a growing interest across the sector in the use of technology to support educational assessments, including onscreen assessment. 

Even before we made onscreen GCSE and International GCSE exams available in 2022, 69% of teachers surveyed said that “more accessible assessments for learners with SEND” was one of the most important reasons they’d consider using onscreen exams.

Currently, one in five learners in England have SEND, and/or are receiving additional learning support with an Education, Health and Care Plan. And with almost 625,000 exam access arrangement requests approved in the 2023/2024 academic year, it’s vital we ensure that assessment formats can support all students. 

Our research study focused on:

• Exploring how a group of learners with mild to moderate SEND engaged with a short series of GCSE-style examination items onscreen.
• Analysing the detailed and nuanced interactions by students
• Learning from their responses to embed user-led design into our ongoing development of digital assessment options.

By taking an in-depth look at student interactions in this way, we can keep learner-centered research and insights at the heart of our development of onscreen exams, ensuring that they are as accessible as possible. We are also enhancing the sector’s understanding of how students with SEND and additional learning needs experience digital assessments.

How was the research conducted?

In 2021/22 we partnered with specialist data analysts Assessment MicroAnalytics™ to explore the user experience of a digital assessment platform for secondary learners with various SEND conditions such as dyslexia, ADHD and ASD.

27 students aged 13–15 from three mainstream secondary schools took part and were supported by eight SEND specialist teaching staff as they completed a digital test with a range of 12 GCSE exam questions that required varied interactions onscreen.

While the platform did have some in-built accessibility tools, we didn’t assume that the content was fully accessible to all students in our sample group. We recorded all responses to the assessment with a variety of data collection methods including eye-tracking, webcams capturing facial expressions, verbal interactions and gestures, think-aloud testimonies and retrospective interviews.

What were the key findings?

Our research found that students who took part in the study overwhelmingly preferred digital assessment to paper-based alternatives, while educators also remarked on the benefits.

Overall, the study group’s responses highlighted the importance of universal design and personalisation options for onscreen exams. These were found to reduce stress and mitigate errors and ultimately improve the assessment experience for users with a wide range of learning needs.

What do these findings mean for Pearson and the wider sector?

Our findings suggest that onscreen formats can open the door to achieving a more equitable assessment environment for all learners – especially learners with SEND. They also emphasise the need to refine digital platforms and onscreen assessments in ways that fully accommodate the diverse needs of students – a crucial insight to be further incorporated into our work going forward.

As part of broadening our understanding of learning and assessment experiences for students with SEND, it’s important that future research focuses on a range of SEND conditions and accessibility needs.

More widely, these findings underscore the need to collaborate across the sector. As far as we are aware, Pearson is one of the few organisations conducting such detailed research into the digital assessment experiences of learners with SEND. But as we seek to put these lessons into practice, we’re committed to sharing data, insights and information so that all schools, colleges, students, families, educators and policymakers can engage in the process of refining and enhancing assessments.

What are Pearson’s next steps on this?

This research is part of a comprehensive series of studies considering various aspects of onscreen exams – from accessibility and inclusion through to comparability and feedback from teachers and students.

As such, we’ll not only be looking at this study in isolation but in relation to our wider research and evidence base as we create a full and informed picture of assessment opportunities.

Our next steps include (but are not limited to):

• Extending our research to include projects that focus on a wider range of SEND conditions not represented in this initial study, such as physical impairments and severe intellectual disabilities.
• Exploring and ensuring compatibility with assistive technologies used by many students with SEND, such as screen readers and adaptive keyboards.
• Implementing updates to our digital assessment platform, such as increasing default font size, reducing scrolling requirements and exploring further options for personalisation.
• Informing sector-wide conversations and recommendations by continuing to share our research, as we strive to improve assessment practices, ensuring fairness and accessibility across all assessment modes.