Millfield headmaster Gavin Horgan has said British exams “restrict dyslexic learners” and need urgent reform.
Calling on the government to improve examination processes, Horgan said he hoped ministers would “acknowledge the power and talent that dyslexic learners have” and give them a better chance of progression.
The head of the Somerset school was speaking at the Made by Dyslexia Global Summit with HRH Princess Beatrice, who was diagnosed with the condition at the age of seven, and business tycoon Sir Richard Branson.
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He was joined on the panel by CNN’s Robyn Curnow, Made By Dyslexia’s founder and former Millfield student Kate Griggs, and Microsoft’s Charlie Miller.
Horgan used his own school as an example and said other educators should “listen to the voices of the children” when making the learning environment more inclusive.
Horgan said: “Millfield is a school that can cater for children of all academic abilities, including Oxbridge candidates and students that balance high-level sport alongside their studies.
I hope that education ministers in the UK will acknowledge the power and talent that dyslexic learners have and give them the tools they need to become the future innovators in this country
“Leading the way in terms of learning support is something I feel very passionate about as an educator, and I hope that education ministers in the UK will acknowledge the power and talent that dyslexic learners have and give them the tools they need to become the future innovators in this country.
“The EY report released last week is clear that our workplaces need neurodiversity and the strengths typically displayed by dyslexics.”
