Bringing out the best in her student: A teacher’s view
View(s):With epilepsy being “something” to do with the brain, it affects different children in different ways and teachers have to interact with these children in the best way that benefits them. This is the view of a teacher under whose care has been a child living with epilepsy for two years in a private school. The child has been in this school since he was about five years old and has been attending regular lessons but comes to her when the periods are English and Mathematics.
Paintings by two patients, captioned: "Illuminate your life by taking your medicines" (above) and (left) "Control epilepsy and get yourself a flower with spectral colours"
“We follow the same lesson as his classmates but at a slower pace and in a different manner,” says the teacher, explaining that there is reluctance on the part of her student to write. He also cannot retain his attention for some time on one topic. As such the work is planned in such a way to cater to these needs.
She feels that not only in such a child but also in all children the habit of reading should be nurtured from a young age as also sparking an interest in a hobby. Even though this child cannot hold a pair of scissors properly and cannot cut along a straight line, he loves crafts and that is the carrot she dangles before him to get him to do two sums before getting into a craft.
“The craft is the reward for concentrating on the sums,” she says, adding that it helps to get a little bit of solid work done though the process is slow. What they are hoping to achieve is for him to sit the Ordinary Level examination and pass the fundamentals to be competent in Mathematics.
Sometimes when he complains of a headache or that he is sleepy she tells him to put his head down for a while and gives him leeway to get back to his lessons after sometime. She also gives him some general knowledge by getting him to maintain a scrap book, pasting pictures of important places and gain information on things outside the syllabus.
While urging parents to try and get the child to practise what he has learnt in school, she stresses that such back-up is vital. “These children need a lot of attention and if both parents are working and cannot give of their time, they should get someone to help them.”
Parents should also strive to broaden the scope of knowledge of the child. “Take the child for a walk. Let him enjoy the beauty of nature by looking at trees, plants, flowers and animals. Get him also to help with the housework. All these activities will improve his skills,” she says.
Other tips that she puts forward are to take time off the television, the computer and the mobile phone to chat about this and that. This will help improve the child’s social skills and assist him in his ability to make friends. Even when going on holiday, without being confined to a room, glued to the TV, go for a walk, follow a nature trail, sit on the beach and watch the sunset, are more of her suggestions.
-Kumudini H.
