Pádraig Rice (Cork South-Central, Social Democrats)
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I wish the best of luck to all those sitting State examinations - the junior and leaving certificate examinations - across the country. Sitting State examinations can be a challenging and gruelling experience but it can be extra challenging for those with additional needs and dyslexia.

Unlike other countries and third level, the State does not provide additional time to students with dyslexia during State examinations. The State is doing a cruel disservice to these students by not providing them with additional time. I would like to see this change and the Minister to consider the proposal that extra time be provided for junior and leaving certificate students at next year's examinations.

I know from my own experience as somebody with dyslexia that the additional time provided at third level makes a significant difference. In University College Cork, UCC, I got ten minutes extra per hour in each examination. I also got great support from the disability support service in the university. I went on to do a master's degree in Oxford and was provided with 15 minutes extra per hour, a tutor and the option to type examinations. It is challenging that students must break through educational barriers to get supports and that the higher one goes up the educational ladder, the better the supports that are in place, which is counterintuitive. We need to provide students at second level with the same kinds of supports that are being provided at third level.

These kinds of supports are in place in other countries. In the UK, students are provided with 25% extra time. In Italy, it is 30%. In France, it is 33%. It is deeply unfair that students in Dundalk do not get extra time but those in Newry do. We need to consider this proposal seriously. Due consideration should be given to reforming the rules in advance of next year's junior and leaving certificate examinations.

We had a briefing in the AV room from students Sive O'Brien and Madison Moore from Our Lady's Bower Secondary School in Athlone. They talked about their own experiences as students with dyslexia. They did a project for the BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition that looked at the international evidence and made a strong case for providing this additional time. Other students across the country have also advocated for these changes. In my own county of Cork, Alice R. Perks was speaking out about this. She spoke powerfully on 96FM. She is a published poet. She was calling for extra time in examinations.

Dyslexia Ireland has also been campaigning on the issue. Some 33,000 people have now signed its petition calling for extra time. There are also recommendations from others. Professor Áine Hyland made a recommendation in 2008 to provide for additional time but it was not acted on. The Ombudsman for Children raised concerns around reasonable accommodation in a report in 2016. What is holding this up? Why is the change not being made? Why are we not providing better reasonable accommodation for students with dyslexia?

While we talk about the challenges, it is also worth highlighting some of the positives. There is a great organisation called Made By Dyslexia, which highlights some of the positives of being dyslexic, including better reasoning skills, communication skills and visualisation. Richard Branson, who is also dyslexic, calls it his superpower. EY has published a report about better problem-solving skills. There are challenges for these students but some of them also have additional skills.

We in the Social Democrats would like additional supports, not just for the State examinations, but also throughout the second level experience. We also want better teacher training around dyslexia, dyspraxia and neurodivergence more generally. That needs to be ongoing throughout the school experience.

Is the Government going to provide the additional time that is being called for in next year's junior and leaving certificate examinations? If not, why not?

Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Deputy for giving me the opportunity to provide an update on this important matter on behalf of the Minister for Education and Youth, Helen McEntee.

The State Examinations Commission has responsibility for the reasonable accommodations at certificate examinations, RACE, scheme. A central tenet of the RACE scheme is to ensure equitable treatment for all candidates. The range of accommodations provided within the scheme has been designed to ensure fairness for all when facilitating candidates in demonstrating their level of achievement. It is important to note that access to the scheme is needs based rather than based on a specific diagnosis.

The review that the Deputy raises is being undertaken by the State Examinations Commission during a time of senior cycle redevelopment and in the context of the wider special educational needs policy landscape. It is a comprehensive and system-wide review of the scheme. The programme for Government commits to developing an appropriate mechanism to allow additional time for students with specific needs and in certain circumstances, and also to ensure that those who use assistive technology can do so in State examinations. The review now under way by the State Examinations Commission will seek to take account of these and all relevant issues, and best practice internationally. The review is being directed by the board of commissioners of the State Examinations Commission and overseen by a steering group, with the terms of reference published on the State Examinations Commission website. The steering group is chaired by the CEO of the State Examinations Commission and is composed of external members drawn from government, academic and international organisations, and internal State Examinations Commission members of staff. The inclusion of internal State Examinations Commission members of staff as well as external members is designed to ensure that rolling changes can be implemented as the review progresses rather than awaiting a big bang approach at the end of the full review period. This will ensure any changes are implemented as early as possible in the interests of students.

Already on a pilot basis for 2025 examinations, additional time for vision-impaired candidates who are under the care of the visiting teacher service is being increased from ten minutes per hour or part of an hour to 15 minutes for the junior cycle, leaving certificate applied and the leaving certificate examinations.

This increases the additional time for these candidates to between 25% and 38% of the total examination duration. For example, in an examination of two and a half hours, additional time of 15 minutes per hour increases the total examination time now provided by 30%.

The consultation to take place over the coming months will inform any appropriate changes to the shape of the scheme for the 2026 State exams and beyond, with the details of the scheme for 2026 to be communicated to schools before the end of this year in line with normal timelines. Given the wide range of difficulties for which accommodations are sought, it is intended to seek the views of users through extensive consultation and engagement so as to capture all perspectives and ensure all voices are heard equally. This will include young people with special educational needs, their families, and representative organisations, including Dyslexia Ireland, and is to take place over the coming months.

The State Examinations Commission absolutely acknowledges that there is increasing complexity in the special educational landscape and, by extension, in the impact on candidates with special educational needs taking the certificate examinations. The extensive consultation and engagement to be undertaken as part of this comprehensive review will provide an opportunity for the views of those affected to be incorporated into the consideration.

Pádraig Rice (Cork South-Central, Social Democrats)
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While I welcome the review, as I set out, we now have reports going back as far as 2008 that have called for this change to be made. Many people will view the Minister of State's answer as a delay. What we want is an answer on whether the Government will provide the additional time for students' exams that has been called for. It is ten minutes extra per hour in their exams.

It is also worth saying that the international evidence is already there. I have set out what other countries do. We also know what third level institutions in Ireland do, so we do not need to reinvent the wheel. We do not need a very wide consultation on this. We can look to what is happening in third level institutions throughout the country, where students with dyslexia are provided with additional time in their exams. It is deeply unfair that students get these accommodations at third level that are not being provided at second level. This is something that should be given real consideration. I would like the Minister of State to discuss this with the Ministers at the Department responsible. Students deserve a clear answer on whether this will be changed for next year. They have waited long enough for this.

As I said, views have been expressed quite clearly by people. More than 33,000 people have signed a petition calling for extra time. This is an issue that young people themselves are now speaking out about. It is not a massive change but it will make a real difference for those students. It will put them on a level playing field with other students, taking into account the challenges they face because of dyslexia, and give them the extra time to deal with comprehension, reading and a slower writing pace. The least the State Examinations Commission can do is provide these reasonable accommodations for students sitting their State exams. They are tough enough. They are gruelling exams and students with additional needs, dyslexia or other issues should not face these additional barriers. Reforms should be made. I would like the Minister of State to commit to doing that.

Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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As I mentioned, almost one in four candidates at the 2024 certificate examinations were provided with some form of reasonable accommodation within the RACE scheme to support them in accessing State examinations, underlining the importance of the scheme. Deputies may be aware that an extensive range of accommodations are currently available for candidates with dyslexia. These include an individual reader, a reading assistant, an exam reading pen, a word processor, a recording device, additional time for any candidate who is using a scribe to provide for a time overhead in dictating answers, and a waiver from spelling, grammar and punctuation.

As the State Examinations Commission has affirmed, its review of the RACE scheme will seek to take account of all the relevant issues, including the question of additional time and best practice internationally. The State Examinations Commission's intention is to consult extensively with stakeholders, including representative organisations, as it progresses its review, which is of course crucial. The Minister, Deputy McEntee, welcomes its intention to progress any changes that may arise from the review on a rolling basis to avoid unnecessary delay in facilitating candidates to perform to the best of their ability in examinations. The Minister also welcomes the State Examinations Commission's commitment to addressing any issue and to improve the RACE scheme to best meet the needs of candidates with special educational needs now and into the future, while ensuring fairness for all candidates.

The Deputy asked me to bring the points he raised back to the Minister. I undertake to do so. He will appreciate that I am not in a position to give any confirmation of what might happen in the examination process next year. It is not under my remit. Equally, I do not think the Minister, Deputy McEntee, would have been able to give a confirmation today when a review is under way, but I undertake to relay back to her the points the Deputy raised.