Assistive Technology in Quebec Schools: Lexibar, WordQ, and How to Get Them in the PI

Lexibar and WordQ are not just nice-to-have classroom tools. For students with dyslexia, severe dysorthographia, or significant written production challenges, these are the accommodations that mean the difference between a child who can demonstrate their knowledge and a child who appears to know nothing because written output has become a barrier.

Quebec formally recognizes and funds these tools through MEQ budgetary Measure 30110. Getting them written correctly into the plan d'intervention — before provincial exam season — is one of the most practical things you can do in a PI meeting.

What Lexibar Does

Lexibar is a comprehensive assistive technology tool specifically designed for the francophone Quebec school system. It is ubiquitous in CSS schools across the province and includes:

• Phonetic spell-checker: identifies and corrects phonetically-based spelling errors, which are the signature difficulty in dysorthographia. Unlike standard spell-checkers, it recognizes the kind of phonological substitutions dyslexic students make.
• Predictive orthography (prédicteur orthographique): word prediction as the student types, reducing the cognitive load of spelling during written composition
• Text-to-speech synthesis (synthèse vocale): reads text aloud from any application — textbooks in digital format, exam questions, essay prompts, emails
• Word bank function: allows students to save vocabulary for specific subjects and retrieve words efficiently

Lexibar is specifically built for French, which matters because French orthography is significantly more complex than English. A generic English spell-checker will not catch the specific phonological errors common in French-language dyslexia.

What WordQ Does

WordQ is a writing support tool available in both French and English versions. It provides:

• Word prediction and completion as the student types
• Text-to-speech feedback so the student hears what they are writing
• Read-back of pasted text from other documents or web pages
• Writing templates and structured prompts

WordQ is commonly used in English-language Quebec schools (EMSB, LBPSB) and in bilingual student profiles. It integrates with most standard word processors.

Other Tools in the Quebec Assistive Tech Ecosystem

Beyond Lexibar and WordQ, the MEQ-recognized technology toolkit includes:

• Natural Reader: text-to-speech tool used for reading digital documents
• Dragon Naturally Speaking: voice-to-text dictation for students with significant motor writing difficulties
• Antidote: grammar correction software used in secondary school and CEGEP contexts
• iPad with voice-over functionality: used for students with visual impairment, motor impairment, or severe dysorthographia

The CSS's IT department provisions software licenses to individual student profiles. Funding for the software comes from MEQ Measure 30110, which covers technology acquisition for EHDAA students. The school does not purchase this out of its general classroom budget.

The Critical Rule: Tools Must Be in the PI Before Exams

This is the rule that catches families off-guard. Under MEQ assessment rules, assistive technology tools used during mandatory provincial exams (épreuves ministérielles) must:

1. Be explicitly documented in the student's PI as a regular accommodation
2. Have been in regular, consistent use throughout the academic year
3. Be the specific tool (Lexibar, not just "text-to-speech software")

A student who has Lexibar written into the PI in February but never consistently uses it cannot legitimately deploy it during the May French provincial exam. The school's test coordination team will verify that the accommodation is established and practiced.

This means:

• Request specific tools by name in the PI meeting at the start of the year
• Ensure the student has access to the tool from the first week it is written in
• Request that the orthopédagogue document regular use in progress monitoring notes

Getting the Tools Written Into the PI

When requesting assistive technology in a PI meeting, be specific about both the tool and the functions needed. Don't ask for "technology assistance." Ask for:

"The student will be provided access to Lexibar (phonetic spell-checker, predictive orthography, and text-to-speech functions) on a school-provisioned laptop during all written production tasks, timed assessments, and provincial exams."

Then ask: "Will the CSS IT department provision a Lexibar license to this student's profile before [specific date]?" Getting a concrete commitment with a date, documented in the PI, is more enforceable than a general agreement.

The PI Must Specify the Functions

MEQ guidelines note that parents must ensure the specific functions of the technology are delineated in the PI so that IT administrators can legally provision the appropriate license type. Lexibar has multiple license tiers. WordQ has French and English versions.

If the PI says only "assistive technology as needed," the IT department may provision the wrong tool, the wrong language, or the wrong license tier. Specificity protects the student.

If the School Says It Doesn't Have the Budget

MEQ Measure 30110 provides specific funding for adaptive technology acquisition for EHDAA students in both public and subsidized private schools. If the school claims it cannot afford Lexibar, ask which budget line they are drawing from and whether Measure 30110 has been applied.

The CSS is the entity that manages Measure 30110 funding — not the individual school. If the school says no, escalate to the CSS level in writing, citing the measure by number.

The Quebec Plan d'Intervention & Accommodations Blueprint includes the specific PI language for requesting Lexibar, WordQ, and other MEQ-recognized tools, along with the Measure 30110 language to use when the school claims budget constraints.

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