“If he has education, there will not be any problem”: Factors affecting access to education for children with disabilities in Tamil Nadu, India

with their biological parents. They mostly belonged to families engaged in farming as daily labourers on others’ land and a few belonged to families engaged in skilled occupations such as masonry, weaving, and hairdressing. A little over half the children (23 out of 40) lived in a nuclear family and the rest were in extended families. The experience of families sending their child to school and of children going to school is presented under four key themes, (i) enrol- ment and attendance, (ii) getting to school (iii) experience at school, and (iv) learning outside of school. Enrolment and attendance Attitudes on education. In general, the child’s parents jointly decided on whether or not to send their child to school, even in an extended family household. A common reason for sending children to school was that many considered education essential to get jobs and there- fore, a better life. Some parents felt that their child with a disability would not be able to per- form jobs that were prevalent in their area, such as jobs relying heavily on manual labour, and so considered education important for gaining access to desk-based jobs. “We are educating him because he must not be idle and stay in the house without knowing anything. . .. We provide education for the sake of education. . .. Currently, many are working from home on the computer; likewise, he can also do that work through education; without education, he cannot work. Education might have an important role; if he has education, there will not be any problem.” (Father of a boy, mobility limitation–“cannot do”)

Some parents, particularly parents of children with intellectual disabilities, reported that schooling could also help with their child’s overall development. Some acknowledged that their child may not be gaining the same academic skills as other children, such as literacy or numeracy, but they nonetheless felt it important for them to be with their peers for socialisation: “Everyone in the family [decided to send her to school]. Only if she studies, there will be brain development. Let her go, until she wants to go. That’s why we send her. If she is inside the house her mind will get affected so, if she is going to school, she will have some clear thoughts.” (Mother of a girl, cognitive limitation- “a lot of difficulty”) Few children (8 out of 38) had ever been to a school had started school late between the ages of 6–8 years, however, the commitment of some parents to sending their child to school was evidenced by the personal efforts they took to ensure their child attended. Several parents spent significant time and effort dropping and picking up their child at school and sometimes also visit their child in school during the lunch break. For example, the father of a child having a lot of difficulty with mobility stayed at school throughout the day to provide assistance to his child. Almost all children in school indicated that they liked going to school. However, few of the children out of school reported not liking school, often linked to instances of teasing or abuse when previously enrolled.

The main reasons reported for why children were not in school were complex and often involved multiple concerns or barriers. Cited reasons included poor availability and affordabil- ity of transport, fear for the child’s safety and adequate management of their impairment (e.g., falling down due to mobility impairment or seizures with the embarrassment of getting clothes dirty or soiled), the child being disruptive in class or getting teased or abused by other children. PLOS ONE Access to education for children with disabilities PLOS ONE | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0290016 August 16, 2023 6 / 19