A Fine Gael Senator has called on an Oireachtas Committee to clarify its reasoning behind a proposal to remove the exemption for students with dyslexia from studying Irish.
Senator Tim Lombard criticised the Committee on the Irish Language, the Gaeltacht, and the Irish-speaking Community this week, highlighting the fact that “this is National Dyslexic Week” and that it was “hugely important that this proposal is brought once more into the public domain.”
“The Committee published its report in February of this year, which states that the exemptions system for the study of Irish for dyslexic students should be abolished,” he said.
“Instead, a new approach to second-language learning accommodating individual student need is recommended.”
The Senator claimed that this had caused “huge” concern among individuals with dyslexia.
“Slower reading, spelling and writing speeds are some of the challenges experienced by dyslexic students, often accompanied by difficulty with memory and processing speed,” he said.
“The Irish exemption affords them additional time during term time to avail of additional supports.
“Therefore, the proposal to scrap the exemption has naturally caused huge concern within the dyslexic community.”
He further complained that the report had only been published in Irish, making it inaccessible to non-Irish speakers.
“To add insult to injury, the report was only published entirely in Irish, which further alienates people who are not fluent in Irish, which includes the vast majority of the population,” he said.
“As students move onto secondary level, they are further disadvantaged in timed exams and unable to demonstrate their full subject knowledge in the limited time allowed. That is why parents and students are calling for an overall review of the Reasonable Accommodations in Certificate Examinations (RACE) scheme.
“What they don’t need, is a half-baked kite flown in public in a language they don’t study and without any right to reply or debate its viability.”
He added: “It is incumbent on this Committee to fully engage with all parties who are affected by dyslexia; students, educators and parents.”
Notably, in the report, it was said that Committee members believed that parents were simply using the exemption system to ensure that their children didn’t have to learn Irish because they didn’t want them to.
“The Committee found that the current exemption system is being used to award a large number of exemptions and is being manipulated to make it easier for people to ensure that their children do not have to learn Irish simply because they do not want them to,” it read.
“It is clear to the Committee that the current exemption system is flawed and unsuitable for the purpose it claims to serve—that is, to grant exemptions to students with genuine difficulties in learning a second language.”
The report goes on to claim that the current system is “causing harm and discrimination in several ways”, including:
“- It deprives students who are granted exemptions of the opportunity to learn and use their native language—their primary language as Irish citizens.
– It prioritises the learning of other languages over the national language.
– It disrupts the work of teachers and places an unfair burden on them.
– It is creating a divide between the students who are learning Irish and those who are not.
– It is disrupting the entire school education system.
– It is in conflict with section 9 of the Education Act 1998, which imposes a duty that every school must provide education for students that is appropriate for their abilities and their needs.”