Disability is not inability

I like to preach the word of God, to sing christian songs, play basketball and volleyball. My parents’ efforts, through the Almighty God who helped them, have been important to my achievement of my dreams. 

I decided to become a special needs teacher in order to help the children with disabilities in the challenges they are facing. People with disabilities in Tanzania have many challenges and they lack somebody who can tell about their challenges and needs. Considering this fact, I decided to study special needs education, so that I could be able to help them.

This NOREC-project helps participants to learn from each other. I think that Norwegian participants have learned the following from me:

• The way we, the Tanzanian students, engage with the people with disabilities
• Methods of teaching children with disabilities
• Flexibility, related to coping with cultural differences in order to reduce contradictions
• Icebreakers in the process of teaching and learning

My experiences in this project are:

• Handling children with disabilities. Now I have more knowledge about persons with disabilities, how to handle and care for them. In order to teach children with disabilities it is often necessary to have an assistant in the class, in addition to the teacher. Such assistants can help to solve various challenges which may occur in the class.
• The importance of rewarding children with disabilities, and how to do so, when perform their activities. Use of rewards may encourage and stimulate them, make them feel recognised as persons and to feel as valuable persons, and part of the society.
• People with disabilities can get a job and a regular employment, in accordance with their understanding and abilities.

When I am back in Tanzania, I shall work on the following plans, in accordance with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD):

Education, as it is in CRPD article 24 and article 21, Freedom of expression and opinion, and access to information

In my working place there is no children with disabilities. Therefore, I will shift to another school, which have children with special needs, in order to:

• Helping the deaf children in translation, so that they can access information without problem.
• Teaching the children’s rights according to CRC and CRPD.
• Educate the society about the children with disabilities and emphasise that disability can happen to anyone at any time – it is not caused by curses or witchcraft.
• Participate in meetings in the village, in churches or other meetings, where I can be invited in order talk about the situation and needs of persons with disabilities.
• To communicate with my employer in order to get permission to speak to teachers in my district, to create awareness about persons with disabilities, their rights and needs.
• Create awareness through media, TV and radio. Before I came to Norway, I met with people from a certain media channel and they asked me questions about children with disabilities. So, when I am back, I shall use that media to educate the society about children with disabilities.
• Helping persons with disabilities in the courts, translate for them so that they can have their rights. The reason for this is that persons with disabilities sometimes miss out on their rights because they have difficult do understand the language that is being used in the courts and in juridical matters.
• Helping the children who are hidden away because of their disabilities, so that they can have the education and health care, in accordance with their rights.
• Health in CRPD, article 25. In Tanzania children with special needs are facing challenges in health because of their disability.  Examples are such as, lack of doctors who knows sign language, parents hide away children with disabilities, without knowing that they have the right to health care. In order to improve this situation, I have founded and registered an NGO called Foundation for Human Development and Environmental Sustainability (FHDES). Currently, FHDES is in the step of looking for partners and donors. This organisation will help children with special need in health and health care matters, and to create awareness in the society.

The NOREC-project have helped me to fulfill my dreams, because I have learned about how to care about children with disabilities, and to help them to know their rights.  Now I know more about how to help the society to understand that disability is not inability. Also persons with disabilities can do something, can somehow contribute to the society, and they are important citizens in our society.