“Be not forgetful to entertain strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unaware.” Little did Vijayalaxmi know that she had entered a haven of angels when she first set foot in Bethany Special School, in the hopes of a better future for her daughter Bhuvaneshwari.
A working woman, the mother of three children, who has let the shadows of a painful past fall behind her, Vijayalaxmi is now looking towards a bright horizon, a future made all the more sweeter by her determination to not give up on her daughter Bhuvaneshwari. Bhuvaneshwari, 15-year-old, is a differently-abled child, diagnosed with mild MR (Mental Retardation). From a childhood where she was ill treated by family members who were insensitive to her needs, Bhuvaneshwari has come a long way. She is a bright young woman, now looking to a future aglow with new possibilities.
Bhuvana, as she is affectionately called, stands testimony to the truth that special education provides opportunities that open a world of possibilities for children with different abilities.
For nine-year-old Arithro Das, affectionately called Tuan, it has opened doors to a school that accepts his unique abilities and nurtures his imagination and creativity.
Tuan spins a world of fantasy peopled by superheroes and is very eager to talk about them. Diagnosed with Central Auditory Processing Disorder (CAPD) which hinders the way the brain recognises and interprets sounds and speech, Tuan had to attend many schools before he could find the right one that served his needs.
For Sonia Shetty, who has put in 25 years of dedication, love and passion in teaching children with special needs, the opportunity to become a special educator has opened doors to self-fulfilment.
‘Boundless’ - A documentary that pays tribute to the countless special educators, parents and caregivers of kids with special needs, is shot in Bethany Special School, ‘ that provides a framework to enable differently-abled individuals to lead independent, self-reliant lives. Special education provides the means to discover hidden talents, to indeed, be boundless.
For instance, Priya, Sai Netra’s mother was pleasantly surprised to find that her daughter is musically talented. For Deepali, mother of Akhil, it is a matter of great pride that he is good at sports. In her words, “it was something I couldn’t think of.... that my child could come up so much. He is now a prefect of the school and I am so proud of him”. Nithya, the speech therapist at Bethany Special School, talks about the remarkable growth in Bhuvana’s comprehension and communication skills due to speech therapy sessions and the stimulating atmosphere of the school.
As Ms. Shanti Gnanaolivu, the principal of Bethany Special School, puts it, “I don’t look at them as special, I treat them as I would treat any child.....”. Special educators have their own set of challenges to face when teaching differently-abled children. It requires enormous patience and the ability to handle unpredictable behaviour and circumstances. But the positivity that the caregivers exude, the pleasure they take in recounting even the tiniest success their children achieve makes it worth the effort and struggle.
The ease, familiarity and rapport that exists between the teachers, parents and the children and their optimism is life-affirming.
Boundless, is a documentary that can be watched on https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmrbHPhvi30, made by fotobubbles as part of their series, Stories of Hope. Visit www.fotobubbles.com for more information.
