Latest / Podcasts By Donna Jodhan / Remarkable World Commentary Episode #70: Who Needs To Take Responsibility

Transcript

Remarkable World Commentary Episode #70: Who Needs To Take Responsibility · Podcasts By Donna Jodhan

• 0:13
  Podcast Commentator: Greetings. Donna J. Jodhan, LLB, ACSP and MBA,
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  invites you to listen to her biweekly podcast,
• 0:22
  Remarkable World Commentary.
• 0:24
  Here, Donna shares some of her innermost thoughts,
• 0:27
  insights, perspectives, and more with her listeners.
• 0:31
  Donna focuses on topics that directly affect the future of kids,
• 0:35
  especially kids with disabilities.
• 0:38
  Donna is a blind advocate, author, site loss coach,
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  dinner mystery producer, writer, entrepreneur,
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  law graduate, and podcast commentator.
• 0:49
  She has decades of lived experiences, knowledge,
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  skills, and expertise in access technology and information.
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  As someone who has been internationally recognized for her work and roles,
• 1:02
  she just wants to make things better than possible.
• 1:07
  Donna J. Jodhan, LLB, ACSP, MBA: I'm Donna J. Jodhan, and welcome to my remarkable World commentary.
• 1:14
  Happy 2026 to everybody.
• 1:17
  I hope that everyone had a great holiday time.
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  And now, unfortunately, for better or for worse,
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  we're back to work. So I'd like to begin this year's commentary remarkable world commentary
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  with a very sobering commentary or some sobering thoughts from me.
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  And the topic of my podcast for today is who needs to take
• 1:51
  responsibility? Okay, so.
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  Exams are often laid out either in an accessible format or in an unaccessible
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  format. Okay. So what we have is this.
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  And this is based on my experience of a few months ago,
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  after I had spent months and months studying for a cybersecurity course,
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  a Network Plus ten course that was issued by the comp Tia organization and
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  administered by the Pearson organization.
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  I got a scholarship to do the cybersecurity course that was given to me by the Apex
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  organization. I was extremely humbled, and I worked my butt off for the last nine
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  months, or the first nine months of 2025.
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  During that time, I had a heck of a time trying to set up an exam through Pearson and
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  Comp Tea on the day of the exam.
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  Everything that could have gone wrong went very wrong.
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  The exam was not accessible.
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  I had to work with a proctor slash reader who did not know how to interpret the exam,
• 3:28
  so I had to forfeit the exam or forgo the exam.
• 3:33
  The security procedures were extremely tight and I understand that.
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  But when you go into an exam room expecting that this exam is accessible and it is not,
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  it is heartbreaking. It is horrifying.
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  And somebody needs to take responsibility for.
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  What has happened? Okay.
• 4:03
  So here we have an exam that has been laid out in a very inaccessible way.
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  You go into the exam room, the reader slash proctor is unable to
• 4:18
  interpret properly. Okay.
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  And you are not allowed to have a human reader or sorry,
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  you're not allowed to have a computer set up with screen reading software for a blind
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  slash vision impaired person.
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  This, after I had had my technician sign umpteen forms saying that he would be my
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  proctor slash reader. He was highly qualified,
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  but then I was refused permission to bring him in.
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  Everything else they adhered to like extra hours and visits to the bathroom and things
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  like that. But the exam was terribly, terribly laid out.
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  Okay. And then you have an organization who issued this His scholarship,
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  but somehow forgot to check as to whether this exam was going to be accessible.
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  An organization that in itself offered study materials were not accessible.
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  There were lots of typos.
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  The LMS system was inaccessible.
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  The practice exams were ones where many times when I checked with ChatGPT,
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  the answers to the questions that were given in the practice exams were incorrect.
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  And on and on and on. I can go, but I won't.
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  Okay. So the thing is, when the apex organization offers such a
• 6:05
  wonderful opportunity, students like me study robustly and
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  vociferously, and then the exam centers get involved and and schedule the exams.
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  The student goes to the center on the appointed day and then the exam is not
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  accessible. But nobody, no one, no organization wants to take
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  responsibility for this amazing faux pas that has taken place.
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  What can I do? What should I do?
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  Should I stand up and fight in the name of other students who are having this
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  difficulty, but are afraid to say anything?
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  Should I walk away? What do you think I should do?
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  Why don't you send me your thoughts to me at Donna Jordan at gmail.com?
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  That's d o d a n at gmail.com.
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  I'd love to hear from you.
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  I'd love to hear you. Tell me what you think I should do.
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  Should I walk away? Or should I hold these three parties responsible?
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  The apex organization, Pearson Vue, who is an internationally based
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  organization with a reputation that I hope will take
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  a look at what has happened here or the comp Tia folks,
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  another internationally based organization.
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  I'm Donna, wishing you a great day.
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  Podcast Commentator: Donna wants to hear from you and invites you to write to her at DonnaJodhan@gmail.com.
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  Until next time.