Accessible Digital Textbooks Paraguay
Creating digital tools to enable universal design for learning and inclusive education
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Highlights
In the Latin America and Caribbean region, more than 19 million children have a disability. Although school attendance and completion rates have increased steadily over the last 20 years, barriers to accessing quality education remain particularly high for children and adolescents with disabilities.
In Paraguay, disability is a major factor affecting school participation and learning outcomes. The country has been actively engaged in the Accessible Digital Textbooks for All (ADT) initiative since 2018, working to ensure that all children—regardless of ability—can learn together in the same classroom. In 2021, research activities were introduced to systematically capture evidence and inform the initiative’s development and implementation.
The first research report, based on a pilot conducted in 10 schools, tested early ADT prototypes and provided critical insights into usability, accessibility features, and teacher preparedness. These lessons helped improve the design of digital textbooks and supported the integration of inclusive pedagogical practices.
Building on this foundation, a second report presents findings from the first stage of implementation in 2023, involving 19 schools and nearly 700 students. It explores how teachers and students engaged with enhanced ADTs over multiple sessions and marks the introduction of Paraguay’s first accessible classroom assessment.
Together, these two studies reflect Paraguay’s leadership in piloting, refining, and implementing inclusive digital learning tools, offering valuable lessons for broader regional and global adoption.
