“In normal schools they make fun of you. People are cruel. They forget to welcome you. You are an inconvenience." This is a quote from Lane Wahl, a South African student with visual impairments. Children with disabilities are legally allowed to attend “normal” school. In reality, very few do so due to lack of accommodations and lack of recognition by the school as “normal” students. The next option for these students is to attend a school specifically designed for students with disabilities. Although this seems like the perfect solution, there are not enough special education schools to accommodate the number of students . Parents and students with disabilities in South Africa continually struggle to access not only high-quality education, but any kind of education. Education is a constitutional right, but it is treated as a privilege Education for people with disabilities is causing long-term effects on thousands of students with disabilities across South Africa. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essayThere are more than five hundred thousand children in South Africa who do not attend school. As you might have expected, the five hundred thousand children are all disabled. While there are many factors to blame for this unacceptable number of unenrolled students, including a lack of housing and qualified teachers, one of the main reasons for this exorbitant number is the lack of government funding. According to the Department of Basic Education, only 3% of the National Department of Education budget is spent on special needs schools. The day center for disabled people in Tshwaraganang, in the north-western municipality of Ikageng, hosts more than 35 students with disabilities, aged between 14 and 26, most of whom have not received formal education. According to Charles Molutsi, the school's director, a lack of funding has made it difficult to meet the students' educational needs. According to Molutsi: “The children's contributions are not enough to cover rent, food and cleaning equipment.” He also added that the main source of income for the school was the money received from the students' monthly fees. According to Barnett, lack of access to preschool education is a sign of poor academic achievement. Lack of government funding not only impacts school quality, but also impacts the cost of attending school. Most students in South Africa exercise their constitutional right to free education. But students with disabilities face barriers in accessing their free education. Students with disabilities should be guaranteed equality in all aspects of their education, including the opportunity to be accommodated in free mainstream schools. Special schools are not part of the government's list of 'free schools'. So when these students are often denied access to “regular” schools, they are forced to pay to attend special education schools that the government does not fund. Schools included on the free list typically cater to children living in low-income areas, which make up the majority of South African students. According to Spreen, fees have made the dream of free education in South Africa an unattainable goal. There is no reason why public schools that cater for students with disabilities are not on the list of free schools when the students come from the same background. The highest official of the Department of Basic Education..