ABLED DIFFERENTLY

(Annie Cyriac)

He was taller,stronger but not  a bit sharper than the rest. His elephantine figure was quite intimidating but when one got to know him better you'd realise that within that huge frame was a tender, affectionate, little boy with a heart that craved for acceptance.

 And when he smiled,  you felt as though the dawn had   broken through the darkness of the night -his pearly white teeth glowing against his shiny dark chocolatey skin. Shawn was 15 and in his last school year when I got him in my class. I had never taught him before but within a week or two we became quite at ease with one another.

 It didn't take me long to discover that he had a learning dysfunction. He could write his name in English but he had got the capitals and small letters mixed up in his mind. He fidgeted all the while and it was a herculean task to keep his formidable figure put in his place. He would interrupt me now and then while I explained the lessons, not with doubts but with reasons as silly as -"Miss, Ron has stolen my pen!"or "That guy is making faces at me!" I would often chide the wrongdoers but in a rush to finish my lesson I sometimes threatened to send Shawn out of the class. He'd immediately apologize,  wiggle in his seat and cover his mouth with his huge palm. He seldom brought his text book to school and after 3 months of coaxing,I gave up on this endeavour. He couldn't catch up with the others when I dictated notes and I often told  him to copy it from one of his peers. I knew in my heart that it didn't matter if he completed his notes or not but it would definitely boost his ego to get my signature in his notebook.

Kids with IQ scores that fall between 90 and 109 are of average and normal intelligence.Those with an IQ score less than 70 are termed mentally retarded and the ones with an I Q score between 70 and 79 are classified as having boderline deficency in intelligence.  While the Mentally retarded  kids get scribes and the ones with learning dysfunctions with an IQ score between 70 and 79 get interpreters  in their board exams, the kids like Shawn with an IQ score between 80 and 89 have to struggle on their own.

 It's an oft asked question why these kids are not sent to special schools. While one can hardly expect them to get raptures while dealing with the nuances of Pablo Neruda's 'Poetry', get involved in long prosy talks or solve complex mathematical problems, experts urge inclusive education for differently abled children just to enhance their way of life. Attending an ordinary school gives them equal opportunities and helps remove the social stigma . Moreover these kids get a chance to look up to positive role models here. Students with average and normal intelligence, benefit too. They learn to care , share and be tolerant .

 Shawn 's peculiar sense of humour surfaced just when I had managed to get the class engrossed in a story.The class would break out in loud laughter at his inappropriate remarks.The boys loved to see him get agitated and he was often the butt of their pranks.But when he got a glare from me he'd wiggle his head with his curly mop of hair  and give me a sheepish  smile that would somehow melt my heart. I'd still pretend to be angry just to keep the class going.

He would often wait for me at the door, if I was late for the class  and ask me authoritatively  where I had been.

He would  call out my name and wave at me with an endearing smile, whenever he spotted me in  the campus. He made it a point to  peek into the staff room everyday to see if I were present.

On days when Shawn seemed exceptionally quiet in class ,I  knew he was in mood to doodle and I  left him alone. Sometimes I hold up his art work for the other kids to see.He was  adept at drawing perfect designs with his  pen, which we greatly admired.

 On December 3rd the International Day of persons with disabilities there was a special assembly in school to salute the spirit of the differently abled .With the help of the special education teacher, these kids who form four percent of the school population put up a show of their humble skills by singing songs and giving faltering speeches.

 And at prize giving time, when the mike boomed Shawn's name for winning a prize in the drawing competition,I watched with a glow of pride, a diffident figure sauntering over to receive the prize from the principal.  He went back to his place in the Assembly line with the prize in one hand and a smug look on his face that said it was no big deal.

 But what was overwhelming was the response of the rest of the students in the assembly. No one jeered or stifled giggles. The applause was thunderous. While the differently abled kids brought a bit of sunshine into our lives that day, the so-called able ones displayed a rare flash of humaneness by standing up and cheering stoically for their differently  abled mates.

 They did us proud and we got a glimpse of what these kids might become in future- not a bunch of selfish adults, but dignified people who cared for their fellow beings ,which ultimately is the essence of education. And that to me, is all so reassuring!