Deaf Right To Education

DON’T DELAY YOUR DEAF CHILD’S EDUCATIONAL CAREER

Don’t delay your Deaf child right to education while in search for miracle.

Imagine, a Deaf child of 25 years old still in primary 5 due to his/her parents negligence of his/her right to education.

Enrolment of your Deaf child into a Deaf school doesn’t stipulate any barrier to your prayer for miracle.

Some parents delayed their Deaf child right to education by taking them to places from places where a lot of money is just being wasted.

MY STORY:

I became Deaf at the age of 15 after reculperation from meningitis, my parents began to take me to places from places, today to Celestial Church, tomorrow to a shrine, next tomorrow to a alfa place, for almost a year where a lot of money was wasted just to regain my hearing, my educational career was halted for a search for miracle, I was still a high school (senior) student then when I had the hearing loss.

I had to change my parents mindset by telling them to allow me further my education while we keep praying for miracle as God does answer prayers even in the bedroom so, they should stop taking me around, it doesn’t go down well with them which is expected from a good parent but I succeeded in making them reason along.

Imagine, if I hadn’t changed their mindset, I will remain at home idle though, not every Deaf could do that as the hearing loss do affect sense of reasoning that’s why you should groom them by enrolling them back to school earlier enough.

Decision to enroll the Deaf child at a Special School is one thing while the knowledge of a befitting school is another.

MY STORY CONTINUES…

After my parents decided to enroll me at a Special School, we went to Wesley School for the Deaf, Surulere, Lagos to make enquiry of a beffiting special school for me. The management of the school back then told my parent that, no matter the level of education a child might have acquired, once he/she experienced hearing loss, there will surely be a memory loss, the child have to begin his/her educational career from the Special Primary School, I was enrolled into Primary 5 class, I wept every morning when asked to read multiplication table.

After few weeks, they made evaluation of my performance in class which changed their mindset of generalising their findings because the teachers in that school are not better than me, I even rendered helping hands to teach the pupils in my class while the teachers are resting on their chairs.

The school management requested to see my parents again; they discussed and decided to enrol me at Federal Science and Technical College, Yaba, Lagos, that was at the end of a term at the school, I have acquired the knowledge of Sign Language by then, I gained admission at the Federal Science and Technical College, Yaba, Lagos where I studied Refrigeration & Air-Conditioning Craft, the school is an inclusive school so, I learnt further the Sign Language from my Deaf schoolmates. After the period of 3 years, I graduated from the Technical School then later on, gained admission at the Federal Polytechnic Ilaro, where I studied Quantity Surveying.

You can sense how my educational career was zig-zagged due to ignorance and wrong perception. You might be wandering, since I was able to change my parents mindset to allow me further my education, I should have been able to change their midset at the Deaf School, the truth is, it was just after a year I had the hearing loss, my sense of reasoning hasn’t been fully restored then. My parents who are to guide me through are ignorant of Deaf education and believed they are in the right place where I will be properly guided.

A lot is attached to hearing loss, that’s why the Deaf parents must always be there for the child till his/her sense of reasoning is fully restored. Though, there are cases where a Deaf child really had memory loss as a result of the hearing loss but it isn’t a generalized term. Make enquiry from multiple quarters, evaluate and reason properly before enrolling your Deaf child at any special school to avoid the mistakes my parents made due to wrong perception the school management poisoned them with.

I should have been evaluated and encouraged to write S.S.C.E towards gaining admission at a Polytechic or University instead of the wastage of time and money at the Deaf School.

As you enrol your Deaf child at a Special School, you should enrol with them by learning Sign Language to break communication barrier towards grooming your child to be great asset.

My great parents, i really commended their parenthood, they were always there, and they gave me special treatment that my able siblings didn’t enjoy. I wasn’t denied the equal right to training.

Presently, I am a civil servant in Ogun State.

Finally, am encouraging the parents out there to give their Deaf children equal rights to training, Identify and utilize the potentials they possessed and you will surely laugh last.

Adeosun Olufemi Ebenezer (a.k.a F.F.F)

Secretary General, Ogun State Association of the Deaf

Co-Founder, Uplifting Empowerment Foundation for the Deaf Youth

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