Access to schools and learning outcomes of children with disabilities in Pakistan: findings from a household survey in four administrative units

Abstract

ABSTRACT In Pakistan, children with disabilities face a two-fold disadvantage with respect to education - First, lack of access due to the country's heavily constrained education sector, and second, if they do access schools then the quality of education imparted is questionable. In this paper, we investigate the access to education and learning performance of children with disabilities in four administrative units of Pakistan-Islamabad, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Merged Region and Punjab. We use household data from the Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) of 2018, which included questions on disability status of children aged 3 to 16 years, their enrolment in school, and their performance of reading and arithmetic. Broadly, our findings indicate that children with mild disability are more likely to enrol in schools compared to children without disabilities. On the other hand, children with severe disability are less likely to access schools, when compared to their counterparts with no disabilities. In terms of type of school (government, private, religious) access, there are regional differences. In terms of learning outcomes of children with disabilities, we see a small gap between children with and without disability. This paper underscores policyconsiderations for children with disabilities based on the severity of disability faced.