Online classes leave differently-abled students at a disadvantage: Survey

Online classes are the new normal during the Covid-19 pandemic but the new education atmosphere may leave a large number of differently-abled students from the vulnerable sections at the risk of dropping out of schools owing to not owning smart devices and lack of learning materials in formats suitable for them.

Most of the differently-abled students or parents surveyed did not understand technology, some were averse to using "costly" data for online classes owing to their income constraints and teachers complain that they do not have accessible educational material, suitable for online learning, to help them, the 'Digital Education in India: Will Students with Disabilities Miss the Bus?' report said.

Also read — Online classes during coronavirus: Disabled students at disadvantage

A survey of 3,637 differently-abled students, parents and teachers in at least nine states for the report showed that 77% could fall behind in learning due to their inability to access distance learning methods while 56.5% were “struggling yet attending classes” irregularly.

Around 77% of students said they would not be able to cope and would fall behind in learning due to their inability to access distance learning methods while 71% said they were finding it difficult to cope with the Covid-19 social and educational scenario, the report by Swabhiman, Disability Legislation Unit of Eastern India and Centre for Advocacy and Research (CFAR) said.

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Teachers -- 81% of them -- complained they did not have educational material designed for online teaching catering to differently-abled students while 64% of students did not have smartphones or computers at home, unravelling the digital divide. Almost three-fourth of the students said they needed data/WiFi support for educational purposes while 61% expressed a need for scribes, escorts, readers and attendants.

Most of them said smartphones were available but only the "father", who is out on work during day time, owned it, the report said, adding 61% of them said buying a new phone was out of the question for them.

"Among the users of smartphones, 87.4% said the connection was poor (82% said they could not see or listen to the teacher most often), while 78% of them said their fathers “did not like the concept of online classes as they consumed a lot of costly data (most recharge amounts were 399/599 for 86/54 days with 1.5 to 2GB per day)," the report said.

Also read — Cap duration, daily sessions of online classes: Ministry of Human Resource Development guidelines

It also brought out the difficulties faced by differently-abled students with 61% of them finding it difficult to be engaged for one hour long on online classes. Close to 39% of students said they were unable to follow the classes with many students talking simultaneously while the absence of sign language interpreters raised trouble for around 44% with hearing disabilities.

"All children with disabilities cannot be clubbed as one group as they are persons with different disabilities and therefore different needs. The current pandemic has the potential of leaving students with disability behind. If adequate measures are not taken urgently, they are likely to suffer irrecoverable losses in their quest for education and a life of dignity,” Dr Sruti Mohapatra of Swabhiman said.

The report said policy changes are required to ensure that children are supported by suitable curricula in alternate formats suitable for them, and have the hardware and data to make online learning feasible. An investment in special educators and parents to adapt to the changed environment is necessary so that they can support children with disabilities better.

It also advocated the need to explore alternatives such as community radio and television for education. "Since children with disabilities relied on mid-day meals for their nutritional well-being, it is important that they continue to get this support," it added.