COVID-19 Pandemic and Educational Inequality for Students With Disabilities

Introduction

In one of the rare disruptions in global history, more than 1.5 billion learners suffered a learning disruption due to the coronavirus pandemic (Bozkurt et al., 2020). At its peak, the pandemic forced more than 180 countries across the globe to suspend learning and temporarily close schools, leaving 85 percent of learners globally out of school (Russ & Hamidi, 2020). Most learners across the globe adopted distance learning away from their respective institutions through remote channels such as radio, television, the internet, or a combination of these (Warren & Bordoloi, 2020). As a result, inequality in access to devices, data packages, and internet connectivity became one of the most significant challenges to emerge (Russ & Hamidi, 2020).

The marginalized — particularly students with disabilities or special educational needs — have been placed at greater risk (Drane et al., 2020). Intersectionality involving disability, gender, ethnicity, age, and poverty can lead to multiple forms of exclusion and discrimination (Bozkurt et al., 2020). As a result, education, health, social protection, and other sectors must consider everyone when responding to the pandemic in order to guarantee the continuity of inclusive services. Taking bold steps to bridge the growing inequality gap is vital for the future (Dawadi et al., 2020). Without such steps, distance learning has subjected students with disabilities to further inequitable educational opportunities.

Opportunities for remote learning may not be accessible or available to many learners, making it necessary to use diverse channels to share educational content in minority and local languages — including captions, sign language, graphics, and audio (Russ & Hamidi, 2020). Access to support services provided by resource personnel, assistive technologies, and school meal programs has also ceased (Dawadi et al., 2020). Most social and child protection services closed during this period. Furthermore, increased domestic violence has made vulnerable populations — particularly learners with disabilities — even more exposed, resulting in greater stigma among disabled children (Bozkurt et al., 2020).

Parents and caregivers of children with disabilities have found it especially challenging to provide specialized services to these children over an extended period (Drane et al., 2020). Some caregivers have reportedly neglected such children, putting their physical health, social well-being, and quality of life at risk. Parents juggling multiple responsibilities at home while supporting children with diverse learning needs require substantial additional support (Warren & Bordoloi, 2020). Many turn to teachers for help, while those unable to access teacher support rely on their communities (Bozkurt et al., 2020; Drane et al., 2020). Without practical collaboration between parents and teachers, learners' well-being and educational progress will likely be compromised.

This paper discusses how the COVID-19 pandemic widened the educational inequality gap for learners with disabilities in terms of access to educational opportunities, access to learning content, exclusion, and the emerging barriers and challenges these learners face.

Background: Pre-Existing Disparities and Pandemic Impacts

Learners with disabilities are among the most vulnerable populations, encountering multiple forms of exclusion related to health, social protection, equity, gender, and education. Children with disabilities from low-income families feel this exclusion most acutely (Drane et al., 2020). The learning and schooling deficits that children with disabilities experience represent one of the most significant barriers to income generation for their families, affecting households, communities, and national human capital more broadly (Russ & Hamidi, 2020). Children with disabilities are less likely to enroll in school, less likely to attend regularly, and less likely to complete primary education — and therefore more likely to lack basic literacy skills (Dawadi et al., 2020). The coronavirus pandemic has exacerbated the systemic inequalities in the protection and inclusion of disabled children.

Beyond school closures, the pandemic brought the global economy to a near halt through necessary control measures (Drane et al., 2020). This economic recession led governments to redirect financing priorities toward urgent demands in the financial and health sectors (Russ & Hamidi, 2020), leaving many social programs underfunded. As a result, children with disabilities — particularly those from poor backgrounds — have suffered from nutritional deficiencies and reduced access to essential support services.

Even before the pandemic, children with disabilities faced significant disparities in academic opportunity (Drane et al., 2020). Many were placed in less rigorous academic programs, taught by less experienced teachers, and held to low expectations for educational achievement. These conditions resulted in harsh consequences: low college attendance rates, limited access to advanced learning, fewer professional skills, and reduced academic achievement overall (Russ & Hamidi, 2020).

Distance Learning and Inequitable Opportunities for Students With Disabilities

Distance learning has subjected students with disabilities to further inequitable educational opportunities (Houtrow et al., 2020). Since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, learners with disabilities — particularly those from low-income families — have encountered multiple significant vulnerabilities. Most children with disabilities had relied on schools to provide critical services such as speech and language therapy, physiotherapy, and rehabilitative care, all of which ceased when schools closed (Warren & Bordoloi, 2020). Children with disabilities have also faced additional barriers in accessing public health information within inclusive healthcare systems (Houtrow et al., 2020). The absence of a robust basic healthcare system, combined with minimized primary care services, has left children with underlying health conditions at considerably greater risk of infection.

The pandemic has pushed many countries to adopt technology to recover from learning loss. In several developing and low-income countries, distance learning has been delivered through digital online portals, broadcast media, and radio (Houtrow et al., 2020). However, the digital divide — shaped by disparities in internet access, electricity, devices, and teacher capacity — has further scaled learning inequality, particularly for children with disabilities who face additional obstacles to accessing content (Warren & Bordoloi, 2020). The pandemic has compounded exclusion, causing approximately 40 percent of learners with disabilities in middle- and low-income areas to be left without any educational support.

Several remote learning options are simply not accessible to deaf or blind learners (Warren & Bordoloi, 2020). These students require additional support — including sign language interpretation and simplified messages — to understand health and safety information (Houtrow et al., 2020). In some families, parents have been unable to support their children using Braille texts or sign language, meaning these children have been entirely unable to engage with learning. This state not only stigmatizes them but also leaves them behind in both academic and career development (Russ & Hamidi, 2020).

Conclusion

Distance learning has subjected students with disabilities to further inequitable educational opportunities. The COVID-19 pandemic enhanced the educational inequality gap for learners with disabilities in terms of limited access to educational opportunities, limited access to learning content, exclusion, and emerging educational barriers and challenges.

There is an urgent need for strengthened social protection mechanisms for learners with disabilities (Russ & Hamidi, 2020). These should include cash transfers, supportive services, and in-kind relief — particularly in middle- and low-income areas — to help all children and families living with disabilities who require support (Warren & Bordoloi, 2020). Additionally, coordination between health services, early childhood development programs, and education services must be enhanced to mitigate the risk of further marginalization. As the global community rebuilds from the pandemic, ensuring that learners with disabilities are not left behind must remain a central priority.

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