Accommodations and English Learner Supports

ACT is committed to providing access to the ACT test for examinees with documented disabilities and English Learners (EL) through appropriate accommodations and EL supports.

Requesting Accommodations and English Learner (EL) Supports

All requests should be submitted by the school’s Test Accommodations Coordinator (TAC) through ACT’s Test Accessibility and Accommodations System (TAA) by the request deadline listed on the Schedule of Events for your testing program. All request deadlines are in central time.

Review Process

Stage 1

Initiation

Confirm that a signed Consent to Release Information (PDF) is on file at your school.

Identify which of your students requires accommodations and/or EL supports.

Determine if the accommodation and/or supports for each student requires authorization from ACT.

Note: Do not submit requests for any Designated Supports and/or Universal Supports that are indicated as such in the Accessibility Supports Guide (ASG) found on the State or District ACT-hosted webpage. Doing so may delay reviewing the request.

Stage 2:

Submit Documentation

Sign in or create an account  in TAA.

New accounts must be validated prior to accessing TAA, this may take up to 5 business days for this process to occur.
See the TAA User Guide (PDF) for assistance on how to create an account and/or request access to TAA.

For students previously approved in TAA

Before submitting requests, ensure the student does not already have a record in the TAA system by doing a search. See the TAA User Guide (PDF) for instructions on how to search for students.

If the student already has authorized accommodations/EL supports in TAA, and wants to use those same accommodations/supports, associate your State or District test date with the student’s TAA record. An additional request does not need to be submitted.

Submit the request formally through TAA.

If any student does not currently exist in TAA, you would need to submit a new request. See the TAA User Guide (PDF) for guidance.

Note: Only requests with documentation that are submitted by the request deadline on your Schedule of Events will be reviewed for your State or District testing initial test date.

See your Schedule of Events to find your request deadline.

See details about required documentation for:

Accommodations

EL Supports

Stage 3

ACT Analyst Review

ACT will review the request. Requests are normally processed in 10-14 business days.

You'll receive an email when the Decision Notification is available to view in TAA.

Review the decision notification.
Print a copy of the decision notification and provide it to the examinee.

Stage 4

Post-Review

If the request has been approved:

The student will appear on your Accommodations and Supports Roster.

For paper-based testing, or accommodations/EL supports which require paper-based testing, materials will be sent to your school prior to the test date.

Note: If your student is approved and you do not see them on the Accommodations and Supports Roster, please ensure that the TAA pin is associated with the student or contact ACT Accommodations for support.

If the request has not been approved:

You may submit a reconsideration if the published deadline on your Schedule of Events has not passed. See the TAA User Guide (PDF) on how to submit reconsideration requests in TAA.

Note: If a request for reconsideration is submitted after the reconsideration deadline, the request will not be reviewed for your testing program.

Information Privacy

ACT will treat all information you provide to support your request as confidential and will use it solely to determine your eligibility for accessibility supports. Details about these supports will be shared only with the testing staff and will not be released to anyone else, including your chosen score report recipients. The only exceptions are for those instances in which an examinee’s related documents and information are the subject of a subpoena or other court order, or an enforceable request from a government entity. ACT Score Reports do not include any specifics about the accessibility supports provided.

Resources for Educators

Policies and User Guides
File Name and Link	Description
ACT-Approved Bilingual Word-to-Word Dictionaries (PDF)	Guidelines and a detailed list of approved word-to word dictionaries for use by examinees approved for English learner supports.
ACT Training Information Graphic-English Learner (EL) Supports (PDF)	Guide on types of EL supports ACT offers and what documentation is required to request for ACT-authorized supports. Provided in different languages.
Quick Start Guide for Requesting Accoms/Supports (PDF)	Information for Test Coordinators about requesting accommodations for examinees with disabilities and supports for English learners.
Setting Up for Success - Online Reporting and TAA (PDF)	Instructions on how to create Success accounts and how to submit/manage requests for TAA.
Test Accessibility and Accommodations User Guide (PDF)	Instructions for how to access, navigate, and perform tasks in the TAA system.
Test Coordinator Checklist (PDF)	A step-by-step checklist for tasks that need to be completed by the Test Coordinator.

Forms


File Name and Link	Description
Consent to Release Information (PDF)	Form that gives consent to release information to ACT in TAA from the school.
Exceptions Statement Form and Checklist (PDF)	Examinees who do not currently have an official accommodations plan, EL support plan, IEP, or 504 plan can submit the Exceptions Statement Form to support their request.
Order Form for Alternate Format Practice Tests (PDF)	Is used to place an order for free alternate formats of the ACT practice test. These materials may be checked out by students or used to simulate a practice session in school.
Teacher Survey Form (PDF)	A teacher at the examinee’s school may complete this form as supporting documentation to be uploaded in TAA. It asks for specific ways in which the examinee used accommodations in their class.

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