The ISTD is committed to promoting an environment where all individuals are encouraged to achieve their full potential and develop their skills, encouraging its teachers to maintain an open approach towards the different talents and abilities offered by all their students. It is therefore required of all ISTD teaching members that they do not discriminate, either directly or indirectly, on the grounds of colour, race, nationality, ethnic origin, gender, mental or physical disability, marital status or sexuality.

In order for the ISTD to prove itself as unprejudiced, personal details such as ethnic origin are requested upon registration and these should be entered on the registration forms. The ISTD would hope this does not offend, but as part of QCA guidelines, the ISTD is required to ask these questions in order to prove itself to be an equal opportunities corporation. Please note the ISTD will observe the guidelines of the Data Protection Act. Personal information will be held on file and will not be disclosed to any party outside the ISTD.

Action by teachers to exclude a particular individual from a class, or deny access to an examination, must be taken only after careful consideration of all the circumstances, consultation with the individual concerned (or their parent where relevant), and only if there is a general and reasonable belief that there is no alternative to the action proposed.

There are three further circumstances of which teachers must be aware:

• Minimum age limits apply for entry to some examinations. This is to protect the health and safety of young children where physical development may be insufficient to meet the demands of certain syllabi.
• Maximum age limits apply where the material involved is designed specifically for groups of very young children.
• Certain sections of the examinations are designed particularly for either male or female dancers. This reflects the realities and requirements of the dance profession and should in no way be construed as sex discrimination.

Candidates with Disabilities

Under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995, an adult or child is 'disabled' if he or she has a physical or mental impairment that has an effect that is:

• Substantial
• Adverse
• Long term (lasting or expected to last for at least a year)

on his or her ability to carry out normal day to day activities. The term 'physical impairment' includes sensory impairment, e.g. loss of hearing, visual impairment. It includes disfigurement and people with a history of disability.

The term 'mental impairment' covers impairments relating to mental functioning, including clinically recognised mental illness and learning difficulties e.g. dyslexia.

The ISTD reminds its teaching members that it should not treat pupils with disabilities less or more favourably than able-bodied pupils simply because of their disability. The overriding approach taken by teachers is that so far as possible all pupils should be afforded the same treatment.

It may be the case that the individual would endanger his/her personal safety or that of the other students in the class so should be precluded from undertaking that activity on health and safety grounds.

Teachers must be aware of the balance between individual attention and the progress of their dance classes when teaching the pupil. If the inclusion of any individual in a group would have such a detrimental effect on the class as a whole (for example, because of the attention that individual would require) resulting in failure to be able to conduct the class properly, a teacher may be justified in considering not allowing such an individual to attend that particular class.

Analysis into the student's physical restrictions as well as his/her strengths would determine their suitability for that dance discipline.

Candidates requiring adjustments to the assessment

The ISTD recognises that there are some candidates who have coped with the demands of the course, and can demonstrate attainment in the skills being assessed, but for whom the standard arrangements for the examination may present a barrier that could be removed without affecting the validity of the examination. In such circumstances the teacher can apply for a variation in the conditions, as suitable for the candidate. This may include candidates with physical limitations in certain elements of the examination only, who must demonstrate to the best of their physical capability, and who can convey their intentions orally.

Extra time may be granted depending on the nature of the problem, to allow for repetition of instructions and communication by the examiner, or for further oral questioning, and for extra breaks if desirable. Additional aids may be suitable for certain deaf candidates, and should be requested as necessary. Candidates with neurological or communication difficulties may be granted extra time. Advice may be sought from the Customer Services and Quality Assurance De partment regarding the appropriateness of assessment conditions.

The candidate cannot be marked on different criteria because of the restrictions the disability may cause them. If a teacher wishes to enter a pupil with disabilities for an examination the quality of the performance in an examination is to be equal to that of an able-bodied candidate and the candidate is marked on exactly the same basis. This is mandatory in order to achieve a true and fair dance award.

Reasonable adjustments are generally not appropriate where the examination is assessing the area that is the candidate's particular disability. Additionally, any adjustments made will not be such as to give the candidate an unfair advantage over an able-bodied candidate.

Many candidates have a physical or mental im pairment which do not need any changes to the examination itself, but in many cases it is helpful for the examiner to be aware. This is good practice so that the examiner can ensure that the candidate has the best possible examination experience.

From September 2007 we are changing the Application for Reasonable Adjustments Form to take account of these two different circumstances. In all cases the examiner will be informed, but the form is now split with different boxes to complete if a change is needed or if the examiner needs to be informed.

Download Application for Reasonable Adjustments form

It is important that this form is completed for any candidate in this situation, every time they enter an ISTD examination. This is because the candidate’s difficulty may change over time, and the requirements of each examination may be different. Please ensure the form is submitted at least three weeks before the timetable entry and send it directly to the Customer Services & Quality Assurance department. Please do not send it in with the timetable to the Examinations Departments as this can cause a further delay in processing.

If the form is not completed and received on time it will not be processed, no consideration will be given on the day of the examination and the examiner is not allowed to make any changes to the examination.

No reasonable adjustments will be considered at the time of the examination. All requests for arrangements must be detailed in advance and agreed by the ISTD.

Teachers are advised that if they are considering such candidates for examination entry, they should do so as far in advance of the proposed date as possible in order to be fair to the candidate

If further guidance is required, please contact the Customer Services & Quality Assurance Department.

Candidates requiring special consideration

ISTD dance examinations below professional level are single performances at one moment in time. It is therefore important that the examination is fully completed.

If a candidate is unable to take any examination due to illness, either by withdrawing beforehand, or on the day, the ISTD will refund 50% of the examination fee on receipt of a doctor's certificate. A refund will not be given once a candidate had commenced an examination. If a candidate has a minor injury prior to the examination, the examination may only be taken on production of a medical certificate. The ISTD reserves the right to refuse entry to the candidate on the day if the examiner judges that the injury is such that it would be damaging to the health and safety of the candidate. It should be noted that there is no liability on the part of the ISTD or the examiner if an injury occurs during any ISTD examination.

During the course of an examination, if a candidate suffers an injury or becomes unwell, the examiner will stop the examination and determine the severity of the problem. The candidate will be given the opportunity of a short break before recommencing if they so wish. If the candidate cannot complete the examination, the examiner will confirm the details in writing to the Customer Services and Quality Assurance Department, and include the candidate's result sheet.

In accredited examinations, candidates must reach 25% of the marks attainable in each unit to pass the examination overall, and therefore all units must be achieved. If a candidate is unable to complete any component of the examination for any reason, marks cannot be adjusted to compensate, but if the unit has been completed to an extent such that the minimum pass mark is achieved, then the result can stand and the qualification be awarded. The result in such cases therefore will depend on the point at which the candidate ceases the examination. All marks awarded will be recorded, but if the marks do not reach the minimum 25% pass in all units, the candidate will be unsuccessful. The report sheet will be sent to the teacher for the candidate in the normal way.

In all such circumstances the candidate may retake the examination as soon as they are able.

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