Legal Aspects of Assessment
Questions and answers
An assessment accommodation is defined as a change in how an assessment is presented or how the applicant is asked to respond. Accommodations may include changes in the presentation format, response format, assessment setting, timing, or scheduling. The purpose of an assessment accommodation is to provide equal access to the examination process for applicants with disabilities. Accommodations are intended to lessen the impact of the applicant's functional limitation on the assessment process without:
- Fundamentally altering the nature of the examination,
- Compromising the security, validity, or reliability of the examination,
- Providing an unfair advantage to the applicant with the disability, or
- Imposing an undue hardship on the agency.
While providing accommodations will presumably enable applicants to better demonstrate their mastery of job-related competencies or knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs), assessment accommodations are not a guarantee of improved performance, test completion, or a passing score.
Specific guidance is provided in Appendix O (Assessing Applicants with Disabilities) of the Delegated Examining Operations Handbook: http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/hiring-authorities/competitive-hiring/deo_handbook.pdf