Should my child be exempted from testing?
Pupils can be exempted for a number of reasons. Children who have a physical or intellectual/learning disability that would prevent them from engaging with the test in a meaningful way can be exempted from testing. Also, children whose knowledge of the test language is limited and who have been receiving schooling through English or Irish for less than one year may be exempted. In general, pupils should be included whenever possible.
Additional guidance about exemptions and reasonable accommodations is available from the Department of Education here. The decision to exempt a particular pupil lies with the school principal, and they should take into account the pupil’s needs, abilities, and best interests when making the decision.
Can reasonable accommodations be made?
Accommodations for certain pupils can be made for testing. These could include a child:
- taking the test at a lower level than their class level;
- taking the test in a quiet room;
- getting extra time for comfort breaks;
- taking the test with the support of a Special Needs Assistant;
- having reader for the mathematics test (whether a human reader or a digital device that reads text aloud);
- answering a paper test using the test booklet rather than an answer sheet (applies from 3rd class) upwards;
- using coloured overlays.
Other kinds of accommodation may also be possible and should be discussed with your child’s teacher.
If an accommodation is made, you should interpret the test results cautiously as the test was carried out differently to the conditions used for standardisation.
Please note that it is not usually advisable to have a reader for a reading test as a reasonable accommodation. If the school does this, you should be aware that what is being assessed is no longer reading literacy in the traditional sense, but rather listening language skills.
While the raw score (number of questions answered correctly) may still offer some useful information about the child’s language knowledge more generally, the standard score will not be easily interpretable as a reading literacy score.
Ar chóir go bhfaigheadh do leanbh díolúine ó thástáil?
Is féidir díolúine a thabhairt do dhaltaí ar roinnt cúiseanna. Is féidir le leanaí a bhfuil míchumas fisiceach nó intleachtúil/foghlama orthu díolúine a fháil más rud é go gcuirfeadh an míchumas cosc orthu dul i ngleic leis an triail. Ina theannta sin, féadfar díolúine a thabhairt do leanaí a bhfuil a dtaithí ar an teanga tástála teoranta agus atá ag fáil scolaíochta trí Bhéarla nó trí Ghaeilge le níos lú ná bliain amháin. Ar bhonn ginearálta, ba chóir daltaí chun san áireamh nuair is féidir.
Tá treoir bhreise faoi dhíolúintí agus socruithe réasúnta ar fáil ón Roinn Oideachais anseo. Is le príomhoide na scoile atá an cinneadh díolúine a thabhairt do dhalta ar leith, agus ba chóir go gcuirfí san áireamh riachtanais, cumas agus leas an dalta agus an cinneadh á dhéanamh.
An féidir socruithe réasúnta a dhéanamh?
Is féidir socruithe a dhéanamh do dhaltaí áirithe agus iad ag tabhairt faoi thriail.
D’fhéadfadh an dalta atá i gceist:
- an triail a dhéanamh ag leibhéal níos ísle ná leibhéal an ranga;
- an scrúdú a dhéanamh i seomra ciúin;
- am breise a fháil do shosanna compoird;
- an triail a dhéanamh le tacaíocht ó Chúntóir Riachtanas Speisialta;
- léitheoir a bheith acu don triail matamaitice (cibé léitheoir daonna nó gléas digiteach a léann téacs os ard);
- triail pháipéir a fhreagairt ag baint úsáid as an leabhrán trialach seachas as bileog freagraí (baineann sé seo le Rang 3 aníos);
- úsáid a bhaint as forleagan daite.
D’fhéadfadh cineálacha eile cóiríochta a bheith indéanta freisin agus ba chóir iad a phlé le múinteoir do linbh.
Má dhéantar socrú, ba cheart duit na torthaí tástála a léirmhíniú go cúramach mar go ndearnadh an tástáil ar bhealach difriúil ó na coinníollacha a úsáideadh don chaighdeánú.
Tabhair faoi deara le do thoil nach bhfuil sé inmholta go hiondúil léitheoir a bheith ag dalta do thriail léitheoireachta mar áis réasúnach. Má dhéanann an scoil é seo, ba chóir go dtuigfeá nach litearthacht léitheoireachta sa chiall thraidisiúnta a bhíonn á mheasúnú a thuilleadh, ach scileanna éisteachta teanga.
Cé go bhféadfadh an scór amh (líon ceisteanna a freagraíodh i gceart) roinnt eolais úsáideach a thabhairt faoi eolas teanga an linbh i gcoitinne, ní bheidh sé éasca an scór caighdeánach a léirmhíniú mar scór litearthachta léitheoireachta.
