Last week, I attended A’s sports day to show my support. Here are some mini observations I recorded, and I’m sharing them with you today. Usually, I keep things like this in my journal.
A is moderately to severely dyslexic. He studies in a public school with Integrated Special Education Program (PPKI) classes to support struggling special needs students. However, at this point, A attends a normal primary class full-time (fully inclusive, as they call it).
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Did you know that there is a human who would wear a sweater in the middle of a football field in the Malaysian climate? That person exists. (It’s me, if it’s still not obvious.)
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A is in the Magenta house, a separate PPKI sports house than the other students. A parent of another dyslexic child shared that she doesn’t mind her daughter being grouped in the ‘normal’ houses. We discussed that maybe it’s the way the teachers manage expectations, as there are many types of special education kids, and some of them might be challenged in motor skills.
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I saw a PPKI teacher singing Negaraku in sign language. I also saw another PPKI teacher holding a small portable fan for one of the students while the student was running on the circuit. These teachers are the best. Sometimes I worry if they spoil the kids, but I guess they understand the struggles and do their best to motivate these kids to love school.
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I think being a quartermaster is a great way to involve all the kids. I wonder why I bothered to compete in the sports events when it’s actually better (and easier) to contribute by being the quartermaster.
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I had fun hanging out with A and his friends. We walked around the school compound and played with soap bubbles. A asked me to buy him a drink from the vending machine; he said that all of his friends love it. When he got it, he was frustrated and thought that there was nothing special about the drink – he wondered why everybody likes it. On the way back, I saw similar bottles in the hands of some other students, and A had actually chosen the wrong flavour. (But I haven’t told him about this till today.)
Attending A’s sports day was a nice experience. It gave me insights into how special education is integrated into a public school setting and how dedicated the teachers are to these students.
Ummi: Jom visit your classroom
A: You wanna go by shortcut or farcut?
Ummi: What’s the difference?
A: In shortcut, you don’t have to take three stairs straight. In farcut, it’s more tiring. (Apparently, the shortcut is actually the longer cut but feels more recreational)
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