Human Assets

 

Human Assets is often asked by our clients what adjustments we recommend should be made to assessment exercises, particularly ability tests, for dyslexic job candidates.  There is no definitive answer to this question but best practice guidance is available and summarised here.  

 

Much of the guidance here comes from the British Psychological Society leaflet Dyslexia and Occupational Testing and from the British Dyslexia Association.  See links at the bottom of the page. 

 

 

The word 'dyslexia' comes from the Greek and means 'difficulty with words'.  There are many theories and hypotheses about what dyslexia is and how it affects an individual.  The most commonly recognised effect is that it impacts on reading and spelling.

 

According to the British Dyslexia Association website around 4% of the population is severely dyslexic and a further 6% have mild to moderate problems.

 

 

According to the BPS leaflet Dyslexia and Occupational Testing, in a work setting the dyslexic person is likely to encounter difficulty with tests of verbal reasoning, spelling and functional literacy.  However, the disability can also affect performance on other types of test (e.g., numerical and non-verbal) if there is a substantial amount of text to read, and some people have difficulty with numbers.  Checking tasks can also be difficult for those with dyslexia.

 

How do you find out (in advance) if a candidate has dyslexia?

 

When inviting candidates to an assessment centre (or equivalent) it is good practice to tell candidates what kind of activities they will be completing and ask them to let you know if they have a disability or any condition that might affect their performance on the exercises. 

 

 

First of all find out more:

 

The BPS leaflet Dyslexia and Occupational Testing recommends that if a candidate tells you they have dyslexia, you should ask the candidate "How does it affect you?". 

 

Ask if the condition has been diagnosed and documented. If so, enquire about the results and ask "Could I see the recommendations of the psychologist?".  Make sure that information given is kept in confidence and only used to provide necessary adjustments for the tests and other parts of the selection procedure.

 

The candidate might tell you, for example, that they are usually given 25% extra time for exams.  Say that you will take this into account but will also make enquiries with the relevant test publishers and examine the assessment material (i.e. don't necessarily promise to make the same adjustments that they say they normally receive as other advice might contradict this).

 

If using psychometric tests:

 

You should read the BPS's leaflet Dyslexia and Occupational Testing (see link below).   You should also check the test manuals which may contain guidance on suitable adjustments.   If the test manual doesn't help you should contact the test publisher to ask what they advise. 

 

Review exercise materials and timings: 

 

If the candidate will be completing written exercises or is given time to read material for an exercise then consider giving the candidate extra time.   Advice from the British Dyslexia Association given in August 2005 suggested that 25% extra time is the usual guideline.  You may also want to take into account what the candidate themselves has told you.  If their condition has been diagnosed and documented you should also refer to the recommendations of the psychologist. 

Much of this advice would be sensible practice for all candidates. 

 

The British Dyslexia Association website also offers useful advice on Reasonable Adjustments in the workplace (see website link below) which would be helpful if the candidate is offered the job. 

 

 

Let the candidate know (in advance if possible) what adjustments you are making for them.  This could help reduce anxiety they might feel about the assessment. 

 

Assessing the candidate:

 

Once the appropriate adjustments have been made the candidate should then be assessed against the same standard as other candidates. 

 

 

The information below is taken from the British Dyslexia Association website's advice on Dyslexia, Employers and the Disability Discrimination Act.

 

The Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (Amendment) Regulations 2003 came into force on 1 October 2004.  From that date businesses with fewer than 15 employees, previously excluded from the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA), have needed to comply.

 

Under the DDA it is unlawful to treat a disabled applicant or employee less favourably because of their disability without justification.  The DDA defines a disabled person as someone with "a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on his ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities."  Severe dyslexia is used as an example in several sections of the Code of Practice and fits the definition of disability used within the DDA (although this has not been tested in case law).

 

Dyslexia does not always affect a person's ability to carry out normal day to day activities. Dyslexic people can often reduce the effect of their disability if they are able to do things their way. However, if they cannot do this for any reason the effects can be disabling. When the Bill was being debated in parliament, the government made it clear that they thought severe dyslexia was covered under this law. 

 

 

(this will open a .pdf file version of a leaflet published by the BPS)

 

 

Updated: May 2008