Structural ableism in resource-constrained secondary schools in Malawi: a Critical Disability Studies analysis of inclusive education

Inclusive education reforms across sub-Saharan Africa increasingly affirm disabled learners' right to attend mainstream schools, yet meaningful participation remains constrained by school structures, resource shortages and deficit-oriented understandings of disability. Drawing on Critical Disability Studies, this qualitative multiple-case study examines how disability is understood and experienced in three public secondary schools in Malawi. Data comprised 30 semi-structured interviews with teachers and school leaders, 16 interviews with learners formally recorded as having a disability, special need or learning difficulty, 48 hours of classroom observation and analysis of national and school documents. The findings revealed four interconnected patterns: deficit-charitable understandings of disability; teacher and learner efforts to navigate barriers; examination pressures and resource scarcity that constrained inclusive practice and compounded exclusion at the rural school. Learners also described peer, family and personal strategies for participation and demonstrated awareness of structural barriers. The study develops structural ableism in resource-constrained schooling as a middle-range construct explaining how cultural beliefs, institutional priorities, examination systems and material constraints interact to limit meaningful participation. The construct remains provisional and requires testing across wider educational settings.