Ms Rosie Bissett:

We are delighted to have the opportunity to meet the committee and we really appreciate members' time and interest in the issues that are affecting our members and the wider dyslexia and dyscalculia community in Ireland. I am CEO of Dyslexia Ireland and I am joined by my colleague Donald Ewing, head of education and policy. We are also pleased to be joined by Sive O’Brien, who will share her experience as a senior cycle student with dyslexia.

We would like to use our time today to highlight and focus on one of the most urgent issues that we have been campaigning on over recent years and to seek members' support as legislators to make the change possible so that our students can finally have access to the full suite of fair and reasonable accommodations that they are entitled to. The issue is the urgent need for the introduction of extra time as a reasonable accommodation for students sitting their junior cycle and leaving certificate exams. The introduction of extra time was recommended by the State Examinations Commission’s own expert advisory group in 2009 but never actioned. We are calling on the State Examinations Commission to add this accommodation into the existing scheme of reasonable accommodations in certificate exams, known as the RACE scheme, and to do this with urgency so that candidates like Sive no longer face barriers on the most important days of their education.

We were heartened in mid-June by a statement in the Seanad from the Minister of State, Deputy Richmond, suggesting significant progress had been made on this issue in line with the programme for Government commitment. In mid-August, we had a meeting with the State Examinations Commission in Athlone and we went there hopeful of some tangible progress on this issue. However, to our disappointment, the SEC could not confirm any changes to the RACE scheme for 2026. Instead, it shared with us that it was about to launch a research and consultation tender process as part of a major review of RACE and outlined a rather lengthy timeline for that piece of work. The SEC did confirm that it was looking at some iterative improvements to the scheme ahead of the 2026 exams and did say that the introduction of extra time was now for the commission a question of when, not if. However, with the details of the 2026 RACE scheme due to be published in days or weeks, with no further consultation with us, we are left wondering if we should expect any changes at all at this point. It is fair to say that we are, yet again, extremely disappointed at the pace of change.

The assurance of "when not if" from the SEC is, frankly, cold comfort for yet another year of students facing into exams without the set of appropriate accommodations. It is cold comfort for the families who are supporting these young people through the stress of exams on what is still an unlevel playing field. Extra time is, after all, the norm for our neighbours across Europe and internationally and in every third level institution in Ireland. This issue is rather simple. We need the speedy introduction of extra time and we need it without any further delay.

The issue of extra time has massive public support. Our public petition has over 33,000 signatories, currently. We have also had overwhelming cross-party political support in the Oireachtas, so we are left wondering what we say to our members when they call, email or message us asking why there are more delays, why there is to be yet another review, why we are putting more stress on our young people because of this, why young people with these additional needs cannot have extra time now, and why the wait.

We are delighted that Sive is here today to share her experience as a student in fifth year. Obviously, the leaving certificate is looming for her. As a young dyslexic, Sive has been a fantastic advocate campaigning on the need for extra time, including a very impressive presentation in these buildings, in the audiovisual room, last May in a session hosted by Deputy Micheál Carrigy, where she shared research conducted as part of a BT Young Scientist Exhibition project. I know some members of the committee were at that event. It is fair to say she made a very compelling case. When she speaks to the committee today, no doubt, she will continue to make that compelling case for the need for extra time.

I will conclude with a question that Sive, we in Dyslexia Ireland and the wider dyslexia community in every parish, school and county in Ireland is asking: why is extra time taking so much time? We are asking members, as legislators, for their support to get this issue over the line finally and we thank them for their care and diligent leadership on this issue.