EAL Students can now use a Computer Reader in Exams!

As of 1st September in line with the latest update of the JCQ Exams and Access Arrangements policy, any pupil who is classed as EAL is permitted to have a Computer Reader in exams subject to SENDCO approval as a normal way of working. With an increasing population of EAL pupils in our schools, this represents a meaningful way to help at exam time when pupils are faced with reading challenges in examinations written in English, or that use readers or Text-to speech as an everyday support in the classroom.

What do JCQ Say?

In the latest Access Arrangements Handbook, published in September 2024, JCQ have made specific provision for EAL candidates i.e. candidates where their first language is not English, and may therefore struggle with reading exam texts and questions written in English. The latest AA specifically adds EAL to the list of needs/disabilities. Sections: 5.5 - “A candidate for whom English is an additional language may use a computer reader/reader.” JCQ also add EAL to the “approved list of access needs”:

● Cognition and learning needs (learning difficulties)

● Communication and interaction needs (ASD)

● English as an additional language

● Sensory and/or physical needs Texthelp Ltd - EAL JCQ Changes Confidential & Proprietary 1

● Social, emotional and mental health needs (e.g. ADHD)

● Speech, Language and Communication Needs (SLCN)

 

All of the JCQ examples for approval now cite EAL as a criteria for Computer Reader use. What is the EAL Criteria?

Any pupil who is considered EAL by the SENCO, where English is their second language may have a computer reader, subject to the normal way of working rule and the submission of advanced approval.