Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 19 May 2016
108. Deputy Fiona O'Loughlin asked the Minister for Education and Skills how he is ensuring that all students sitting State examinations are being treated in a fair and equitable manner with regard to reasonable accommodations. [11164/16]
View answerCurrently the SEC operates a Scheme of Reasonable Accommodations at the Leaving and Junior Certificate examinations for candidates with special needs in the examinations. The Scheme applies to candidates who have a physical or medical disability, including visual and hearing impairments, or a specific learning difficulty (dyslexia is one such specific learning difficulty). All applications for reasonable accommodations are considered within a published Framework of Principles established by an Expert Advisory Group.
Reasonable accommodations are not intended to compensate for a possible lack of achievement arising from a disability or to compensate for difficulties arising from a candidate's general intellectual functioning. Reasonable accommodations are intended to;
(a) to remove, as far as possible, the impact of the disability on the candidate's performance and thus enable the candidate to demonstrate his or her level of attainment and
(b) to ensure that, whilst giving candidates every opportunity to demonstrate their level of attainment, the special arrangements will not give the candidate an unfair advantage over other candidates in the same examination.
The SEC has an Independent Appeals Committee to which applicants if they are not satisfied with the accommodations provided or denied may appeal to.
In addition, applicants when not satisfied with the decision of the Independent Appeals Committee have applied to the Ombudsman or the Ombudsman for Children to consider their complaint.
