Reaching Out

In the late 70s Anubhuti Bose created the institution and taught many mothers and parents like Subhra how to deal with the children with disability. Bose,who was expert in the area,has visited a number of institutions throughout the world and gained expertise in the the treatment of children with disability.

At this school the children are trained at a very tender age when they are two to three years old. The institution initiates them to understanding of images,letters and recognition of words. The children are taught to understand simple things,imitate actions or movements. The institution at 16,A D L Roy Street,provides succour to children with physchological problems.

Pratima Ganguly,the principal of the institution,says the main objective is to mainstreaming the deaf and dumb children. “We feel that children with speech and hearing disability should study in regular schools. Here we try to boost their confidence level,” said Partima Ganguly. According to her,the school with its nearly a dozen teachers has over all these years helped in inculcating the ability to accept children with hearing and speech problem. “The kind of acceptance which we provide is what makes our institution reach out to so many kids,” says Ganguly.

At this moment,the school has about 56 children. The school trains them in dance,yoga and computers. Since the children are not distracted by sound,they are very good at computers,say teachers. The children after training develop a fondness for dance and painting. Along with teaching the children,the school conducts audiometry test to ascertain the degree of loss of hearing and speech.

The school also has a ear mould lab to give proper hearing aid to the students. The school also provides services of doctors and counsellors on a regular basis. Doctor Tarun Palit,an ENT specialist,is closely associated with the school and also is the secretary of the school.

“These children are better in maths and other subjects but their problem is language since they are not able to hear like other children they are unable to have a grasp over these subjects,” says a schoolteacher. The teachers of the school say that they do not give much weightage to sign language but help the students to understand and develop some speech so that they do not feel excluded.

Last year,the school felicitated about 36 students who have created their own space in whatever little way they could.