Vol. 502 No. 3
654 Mr. Timmins asked the Minister for Education and Science if he has satisfied himself with the examination correction procedures in place for students suffering from learning disabilities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8414/99]
Special arrangements are made at the certificate examinations for candidates with disabilities. A special arrangement is intended 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 while at the same time ensuring that the arrangement does not give the candidate an unfair advantage over other candidates at the same examination. The procedures in place at present followed a Departmental review which took place between 1992 and 1994 and were first implemented in the 1994-95 school year.
This is an area that requires regular review and arrangements are in hand for a further review. On this occasion I propose to open the review process to submissions from interested parties. The intention is to invite submissions on the basis of an initial report which the examinations expert group is preparing on these matters. I expect to have that report after Easter and to invite submissions at that stage with a view to having any revisions indicated by the review in place for next year's examinations.
