Gregg, N. (2012). Increasing access to learning for the adult basic education learner with learning disabilities: Evidence-based accommodation research . Journal of Learning Disabilities , 45 (1), 47–63. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022219411426855

This study reviewed literature in instructional and assessment accommodations; emphasis is focused here on the assessment accommodations. Several accommodations are reviewed, most notably extended-time (29 of the 32 relevant studies).

This literature review focused on students with learning disabilities (LD) in late adolescence and young adulthood, apparently in the U.S. context. In all, 32 studies about assessment accommodations were reviewed, not all of them empirical.

The most common testing situation was college entrance examination, encompassing 57% of the literature. Studies about reading, writing, and mathematics were featured in this literature review.

The primary result of this literature review was that relatively few studies empirically examined effects of testing accommodations in postsecondary education and work settings. The researcher identified the following accommodations for use during reading tests: presentation—read-aloud via text-to-speech (TTS) or human reader (but qualifying that attention needs to be paid to ensuring that reading construct has not changed); timing/scheduling—extended-time, frequent breaks, unlimited time, and testing over multiple days. The researcher noted only one study about writing performance, on extended-time; it was noted that writing instruction accommodations seemed not to be used in testing. Further, the researcher reviewed use of word-processing, noting that its effects during writing testing have been inconclusive. For mathematics assessments, 14 studies investigated accommodations, most commonly read-aloud (2 studies with high school students), extended-time (2 studies), and calculators (but no empirical support for this age of population). The researcher also discussed issues of universal design, limited opportunity for evaluations for adults, and inconsistent accommodation availability and practice for adults. Future research directions were suggested.