Examining how domains of functional difficulties affect children's school enrollment in Egypt

Abstract

Acknowledging that children with functional difficulties are a heterogeneous group, our study assesses the impact of six functional difficulties (Seeing, Hearing, Self-care, Mobility, Remembering/concentrating, and Communication) on children's education. We also investigate the potential interaction between each disability and the child's sex, parental education, and residence. The study analyzed 10 % of the data from the 2017 Egypt Census, including 1,188,635 children aged 6 to 17. The random-intercept logistic technique was used to estimate six models, one for each functional domain. Each model considers that some children may have difficulties functioning in multiple domains. Results confirm that for single difficulty or combined with other difficulties, children with difficulties in communication and mobility faced the most significant challenges in school enrollment. On the other hand, children with difficulty hearing alone encountered weak obstacles to school enrollment; however, combined with other difficulties, they became more vulnerable to educational barriers, particularly in rural places and when belonging to illiterate parents. Children with difficulty seeing only or combined with other difficulties had the lowest odds of educational deprivation. The impact of parental education on the children's education was more significant than other factors. The study presents evidence that disability interacts with parental education and residence in such a way that it exacerbates the deprivation of education among vulnerable and marginalized groups of children more than others. This research is crucial for developing targeted interventions and policies to ensure equal educational opportunities for all children.