The Paradox of Majority Underrepresentation in Special Education in India

Abstract

In contrast to the phenomenon of minority overrepresentation in special education in developed countries such as the United States, a paradoxical situation occurs in many developing countries, whereby majority populations are underrepresented in the educational system. The author examines some of the prevailing and traditional societal and political-economic factors specific to India that contribute to this underrepresentation, such as a paucity of resources that affects children from low socioeconomic backgrounds, gender differences in child rearing and educational expectations that affect girls, and negative attitudes toward disability.

Stress among Mothers of Children with Intellectual Disabilities in Urban India: Role of Gender and Maternal Coping

“…However, an alternate explanation for the gender difference may be the patriarchal structure of the Indian society (Johri 2010). According to some estimates (Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India 2001; Asian Development Bank report 2002) as compared to boys, girls with disabilities have less access to therapeutic resources and are more likely to be victims of abuse (as cited in Kalyanpur 2008). Perhaps these contextual risks exacerbate the stress among mothers of girls with intellectual disabilities.…”

Culture and poverty: a case study of a girl with special educational needs from a poor community in South India

“…It is clear from the literature that women with disabilities in rural India do not have as much access to training services as those in urban India. According to Kalyanpur (), there is a ‘scarcity’ of early intervention programmes and special needs services in rural India. This is the consensus of much of the literature (Mehrotra, ; Azam and Kingdon, ), and highlights the need for more viable educational opportunities.…”

Using indigenous knowledge to provide educational services for children with disabilities

“…This is problematic because once students are receiving special education services, one, they tend to remain in special education classes (Harry, 2014); two, they are likely to encounter a limited, less rigorous curriculum which can are two aspects to this subjectivity. One, assessments make assumptions about universal developmental milestones (Kalyanpur, 2008b). The first assumption is that they occur at the same time for all children, such as turning over at three months, sitting up at six, etc.…”