A DETEREMINED MOTHER WHO ROASTED 'IRON PEANUTS'

  

A DETERMINED MOTHER WHO SUCCESSFULLY ROASTED THE ‘IRON PEANUTS’

                                    

This is not just ‘tell-tale’ but a real, impressive and inspiring success story of an indefatigable and tenacious mother ‘X’ who made her son ‘Y’ a dyslectic, a B.Com. (Corporate) Graduate. She saw the invisible, felt the intangible and uniquely crafted and achieved the impossible for her son, a dyslectic. Rightly identifying his abilities to learn differently, she provided him with all special tools and fertile environment to learn with teachers also living up to the dictum ‘If a child can’t learn the way we teach, we have to teach the way he could learn’.

 

‘Dyslexia’ is not a disease or an identifiable physical condition, but characterized by a different learning style. Even though care of parents of a differently-abled is not uncommon, in this case, the gargantuan and stupendous effort of the mother was exceptional which can be likened to roasting the ‘iron peanuts’.

 

At age 4, ‘Y’ was enrolled into a normal private primary school in Chennai as the mother thought that admitting his son in a special school could perhaps demoralize him. Since he had grasping problems if taught as for normal children and was at times ‘eruptive’ and ‘disruptive’, some teachers and parents of other children campaigned for his ouster. But the mother stood her ground and the Principal of the school also obliged.

 

Since the son had understanding and learning problems, mother watched him closely. While so, a magical truth came to light. On one day when he was running fever, his parents took him to a hospital. En route they had to stop at a railway-cross when a train was passing. The boy was seen curiously looking at the passing train; his joy knew no bounds. The discerning mother thereafter took him in local trains on many occasions when he would be enthusiastically inclined and pleasantly confident to learn. The very sight of a train and/or travel therein made his morale and mood upbeat, improved his concentration and gave him clarity of thought in learning. The mother even gave up her job to mentor her son by innovative methods with her dauntless optimism and characteristic perseverance.

 

When the boy moved on to middle school, there were hiccups. A teacher opposed his stay in the school and even challenged the mother whether his son could pass the prescribed examinations. As one to see a solution to anything differently quicker than others, she accepted the challenge. She increasingly used the ‘train journey’ route and other unique techniques to increase his grasp. Bursting the jinx bubble, ‘Y’ passed in all subjects in all standards. School Principal once even accused the mother of having managed to stealthily get the question papers beforehand to prepare him for the exam. ‘X’ challenged the Principal to give a different set of question papers for his son to take the exam again. The boy stumped the Principal by passing in all subjects again except English, the question paper of which was handwritten, not legible and readily comprehensible to him. However, when the questions were read out, he readily answered them correctly making the Principal nonplussed and dumbfound. Mother explained how she sweated it out to teach him differently with marked success. Flabbergasted, the Principal arranged for issue of ‘Pass Certificate’ by the school to the boy which was earlier denied.

 

Thereafter, when he was shifted to a higher secondary school, its Principal, on coming to know the boy’s past study history especially his distinctive ways to grasp things willingly helped him learn differently. Since the boy felt more comfortable learning at home through her mother, he was permitted to do so at times whenever the occasion(s) demanded. He came out successful in the 10^th, 11^th and 12^th examinations before joining a college.

 

It is not about what these children can’t do but is all about what they can do and how! What all needed for the teachers is to re-engineer and re-orient their teaching techniques for a special child like him.

 

With the mother meticulously following up his college studies (Lloyla College, Chennai - 2012-2015) and the Principal and college professors aiding in studies, he passed in all semesters. Today, he is a B.Com. (CS) Graduate. His mother made him see the light beyond the tunnel. Yes, she turned difficulties into opportunities, failure into success and weakness into unfaltering strength. He is now working in an IT company in a suitable position. Hats off to the mother!

 

It takes a special kind of person to take care of a child with special needs. A child with special needs will inspire you to be a special kind of person. That is what had exactly happened with the resolute mother!

  

Dyslexics have strengths and abilities too! They have skills of big-picture thinking, lateral thinking, visual strengths, intuitive understanding and even problem-solving. Yes, the boy has proved his mettle. Remember, even Albert Einstein was a dyslexic boy! Yes, it is for the discerning parents or close relatives or elders to observe the child's moods, strengths and weaknesses so to design appropriate innovative teaching techniques in which to teach him. This real life story should be an inspiration to all concerned! 

 

 

R.SAMPATH

10/5/2020

 

 

º  The mother is an ardent ‘Upasaki’ of Sri Guru Raghavendrar.