The Deaf Bulletin 2016 Issue 1
Perception, Parenting and Children with Disabilities
Perception is a choice that offers options of how we view the world. Perception is a definer of how we handle disability when it happens in the family and it affects the outcomes of deaf children. Perception determines what our deaf child will become. Whatever our perception of the Deaf child is, we will create reasons to justify that position.
There are different reactions that take place in a family when a child with disability is born. Many a times, hope is lost as parents despair about the future of the child. Work with parents of Deaf children has shown hopelessness, despair, desolation, depression. As a result many parents and guardians do not invest adequately into the education of the child with disabilities as much as they invest in their non-disabled children. This impacts the future of the Deaf child and their ability to live independent lives. I asked parents of Deaf children what they saw in the future of their Deaf child and only but a few stated had a positive outlook. The majority of parents did not see any hope for their children, fearful about their death; they sought to equip siblings of the Deaf child to take care of their deaf child.
Is this a sustainable solution? Can siblings adequately take care of each other in their adult years with their own responsibilities? Do we see our children who are deaf as lawyers, teachers, nurses, police men and women, drivers, doctors or we see them as beggars, vendors and perpetual dependents. How we see our Deaf child determines our actions and investment for their future.
Other topics covered in this bulletin are:
- Ending Child Marriages for girls with disabilities in Zimbabwe.
- Social workers and the Deaf community in Zimbabwe.
- Learn your child’s language.