Marking grid for dys students

For the teacher. Use this sheet to mark the work of dyslexic and dys students. The assessment is still out of 20, with the same questions and the same expected answers. Mark the content: what the student has understood, their ideas and how they use the documents. Spelling, handwriting and presentation are never penalised unless they stop you from understanding the answer.

Marking principles

Read the meaning, not the form. Read the answer quietly as it sounds: if the idea is right, give the points.
Do not penalise spelling, handwriting, crossings out or layout, unless they really block meaning.
Reward content, ideas, understanding and use of the documents (a quotation, an example, a date, a name).
Accept short answers, bullet points or keywords when they show understanding. Full sentences are not required in Parts A and B.
If in doubt, ask the student to read or explain the answer orally, then mark what they say.

Questions in Parts A and B

No.	Expected answer	Points	Mark
Part A · Understanding the documents
1	Firemen burn books instead of putting out fires (1). “It was a pleasure to burn” shows that Montag enjoys his job and does not question it at first (1).	2 points	/ 2
2	It makes Montag think for the first time; it is the start of his critical thought and of his change.	1 point	/ 1
3	That books must contain something precious, ideas worth dying for.	1 point	/ 1
4	The chatbot gave a customer wrong information about a fare discount (1); the tribunal ordered Air Canada to pay and refused the idea that the chatbot was responsible for its own words: the company is responsible (1).	2 points	/ 2
Part B · Language and key ideas
5	can; cannot; could (0.5 each).	1.5 points	/ 1.5
6	Waymo has run a self-driving taxi service in Phoenix and San Francisco.	1 point	/ 1
7	AI that is excellent at one task only (0.5); for example Deep Blue at chess in 1997, AlphaGo at Go in 2016, or ChatGPT for text (1).	1.5 points	/ 1.5
8	Filter bubble: algorithms show us only content we already like. Deepfake: a fake video or picture made with AI that looks real. Singularity: the hypothetical moment when AI becomes more intelligent than humans in every field (1 point each).	2 points	/ 2

Part C: writing criteria

For the writing task. A shorter text, organised in lists or built on sequence keywords, can get full marks if the ideas and evidence are there. Only the clarity criterion deals with language, and it assesses meaning, not spelling or grammar accuracy.

Criterion	Full marks	Half marks	No marks
Task and examples (2 points)	A clear position, one AI that helps, one AI gone wrong and one idea from Fahrenheit 451. (2)	Position given, only one or two examples. (1)	No position or no examples. (0)
Speech techniques (2 points)	Addresses the audience, a rhetorical question and the rule of three. (2)	One technique only. (1)	No speech technique. (0)
Organisation (2 points)	Introduction, arguments in order, conclusion, varied linking words (however, that is why). (2)	Some structure, simple linking words. (1)	No visible plan. (0)
Clear message (2 points)	The message can be understood all the way through; sequence vocabulary used, even if misspelt. (2)	The message can be understood with some rereading; little sequence vocabulary. (1)	The meaning cannot be found, even when read aloud or explained orally. (0)

Part	Points	Mark
Part A · Understanding the documents	6 points	/ 6
Part B · Language and key ideas	6 points	/ 6
Part C · Writing: should AI be limited?	8 points	/ 8
Total	20 points	/ 20

Typical dyslexic errors: how to read them

Phonetic spelling: “becos” for “because”, “wos” for “was”, “sed” for “said”. The word is recognisable when read aloud: accept it.
Letter inversions: b and d, p and q, “form” for “from”, “waht” for “what”. Accept them.
Missing or doubled letters or syllables, words joined or split: read the intention.
Homophones (there, their, they’re; to, too; your, you’re): no marks taken off.
Missing punctuation, irregular capitals, crossings out, skipped lines: no marks taken off.
Only take marks off when, even read aloud, you cannot tell what the student means.

Reminder of accommodations

Extra time: one third more time, or a shortened assessment.
Oral answers: the student may dictate or say an answer; mark it like a written one.
Enlarged documents, a suitable font, wide line spacing, a single column.
Instructions read aloud by the teacher or a classmate, and rephrased if needed.
Reduced copying: answers written on the question paper, tick boxes, gap fills, no copying out of questions.
Check the student’s PAP, PPS or PAI: it takes priority over this list.

The teaching assistant’s role

Many dys students work with a teaching assistant (AESH).

During the assessment, the teaching assistant reads the instructions aloud and may reread them as often as needed.
They write down what the student dictates, word for word, when this is in the student’s support plan.
They help organise the page: finding the question, the box or the line to answer on.
During the correction, they go over the chosen goals with the student and help them fill in the active correction sheet.
The teaching assistant never gives the answers, never rephrases the student’s ideas and never corrects the paper.

The role of the AESH (teaching assistant)

An adult points to a line on the paper of a student who is writing — Photo: Preply.com Images, “Tutoring Math”, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

In France, the AESH (accompagnant d’élèves en situation de handicap) helps a student with special needs access learning. This help comes on top of the teacher’s own adaptations. It can take five forms:

Rephrasing and simplifying instructions.
Helping the student focus and get back on task.
Helping with organisation, planning and note-taking.
Using adapted materials and reducing help step by step, towards independence.
Supporting communication and interaction with the class.

During the test, the AESH may read the instructions aloud, write down what the student dictates word for word when the support plan allows it, and help the student find where to answer.
During correction, the AESH goes over the chosen targets with the student and helps them fill in the active correction sheet.
The AESH never gives the answers, never rewrites the student’s ideas and never marks the paper.

How to give feedback

Start with one precise success: a correct idea, a document well used.
Choose one or two goals only for next time, never a list of every mistake.
Keep them simple: “Quote one date from the document.”, “Read your conclusion aloud.”
Write clearly in large letters, or give the feedback orally.
On the active correction sheet, the student only corrects the errors linked to the chosen goals.

Common mistakes to watch for

Model answer

Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for welcoming me to Silicon Valley. Here, you build the future. But who will make sure that this future stays human?

I strongly believe that AI is a wonderful tool. It already helps doctors read X-rays and mammograms, and Waymo cars drive people around Phoenix and San Francisco with no one in the driver's seat. However, AI can also make mistakes. In 2024, Air Canada's chatbot gave a customer wrong information, and a tribunal decided that the company, not the machine, was responsible.

More than seventy years ago, Ray Bradbury imagined a society where people stared at giant wall screens and firemen burned books. In Fahrenheit 451, nobody asked questions any more, until a girl asked Montag: “Are you happy?” We must not let screens think for us.

That is why I will defend clear rules, like the European AI Act: rules that protect our data, our jobs and our freedom. Innovation, yes. Blind trust, no. Responsibility, always.