Skip to content

Review of the impact of COVID-19 on school students with disability

Published on April 12, 2023

AFI have made a submission to the Federal Department of Education’s Review of the impact of COVID-19 on school students with disability. In our submission we have outlined the impact of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic on education for students with disability. We have noted during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic the slow rate at which Governments, the NDIA, and schools collaborated to fund and facilitate accessible remote for students with disabilities. We are calling for more work to be done in developing accessible remote learning platforms that meet the needs of students and teachers. We also note in our submission that many students with a disability thrived in remote learning. Because of this we recommend the retention of remote learning capacities in schools. Finally, there must be recognition that the COVID-19 pandemic is not over, and still presents a safety risk to students, families, and school staff. Students, families, and staff who have a disability face ongoing risks of severe illness, additional disability and death from COVID19 while uncontrolled transmission continues across the community.  A change in public health approaches and a return to a precautionary health response to COVID is needed to prevent further negative outcomes for students with disabilities.