Bridging the Digital Divide: Exploring ICT Applications for Inclusive Education of Pupils with Special Educational Needs in Rural Zambia

This qualitative case study explores how Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) are applied to support inclusive education for pupils with Special Educational Needs (SEN) in Sinazongwe District, a low-resourced rural setting in Zambia. Guided by the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), the study moves beyond questions of access to examine how diverse ICTs, ranging from radios and televisions to computers and assistive technologies which are pedagogically integrated into classroom instruction and home-based learning. Data were generated through semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions, and non-participant classroom observations involving 28 purposively selected participants, including education officers, school administrators, teachers, pupils with SEN, and parents. Thematic analysis revealed that ICTs enhance multimodal lesson delivery, curriculum access, personalized learning, interactive exploration, and communication. However, their effective use is uneven and constrained by infrastructural deficits, limited teacher preparation, and insufficient curriculum adaptation. The study concludes that while ICTs hold significant promise for advancing inclusive education in rural Zambia, realizing this potential requires systemic interventions that address digital inequalities, strengthen teacher capacity, and align national policy aspirations with classroom realities.