This International Day of People with Disability we’re celebrating all the young people living with a disability.
Nhat is a happy, kind boy who loves to colour. He lives in the Cao Bang Province in Vietnam. Nhat also lives with Down Syndrome. With support from his teacher, Hoang Van Don, he is thriving in a disability inclusive school environment.
At first his parents thought he was just shy. His parents noticed he was much smaller than his peers and he was falling behind in school. Although teachers noticed he was struggling, they weren’t sure how to support him. That changed when teacher, Don, moved to his primary school.
With more than 16 years’ experience as a teacher, Don was trusted to teach children with all types of disabilities. Don said that, to start with, he faced many challenges in supporting Nhat to integrate into the classroom.
“At first, I was very confused. I did not know how to build a teaching plan to suit students with disability, how to choose content to get the best results or how to help children with disability cope with long school hours,” he said.
He spent time doing his own research on inclusive education for children with disability, but he said that “it wasn’t as effective because I still wasn’t sure how to identify the abilities and needs of the children.”
Don joined one of ChildFund Vietnam’s disability inclusion training sessions. This training was developed to help teachers identify the abilities and needs for children with disability and then how to develop individual learning plans. They also support teachers in creating an inclusive learning environment.
During the training, he learned about different types of disabilities, learn from consultants, and collaborate with other teachers on teaching methods and skills for children with a disability. “I now have enough knowledge to develop an individual education plan to identify the abilities and needs of the children, and build a suitable lesson plan for children with disability.”
Don organised a one-on-one lesson with Nhat so he could identify his needs and plan for how to make lessons more engaging for him. The plan was clear and easily implemented. Nhat now sits in the front row where Don can more closely support him.
Working with Nhat’s family, he is making remarkable progress. To start with, Nhat could only speak and write simple words, but now he is improving his handwriting, language skills and is more settled and focussed when in the classroom.
His family says that he comes home from school happy and shares many stories from his day. He is also more confident helping his mother around the house with simple chores like washing dishes and helping cook the family dinner.
In time, Don hopes that the ChildFund program will provide more teachers with the same opportunity to learn about creating an inclusive learning environment. Through this training and ensuring that classrooms are equipped to support all children with a disability, he hopes that this will mean that no child is left behind in their education.
International Day of People with Disability is an opportunity to celebrate young people like Nhat who, with the right support, should be valued in all their diversity and contributions they make to our society every day of the year. Today is also an opportunity for countries to make sure that children with disabilities are not left behind in the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. Over the last two years, we have witnessed the flexibility of the communities we work with and believe that these skills can be harnessed in ensuring the recovery from the pandemic includes children with disability, so that they can access quality education as children begin to return to the classroom.
This project is supported by the Australian Government through the Australian NGO Cooperation Program (ANCP).
ChildFund Australia is thrilled to welcome Annabelle Williams on board as an ambassador.
Annabelle (pictured left) is a Paralympic Gold Medallist, motivational speaker, lawyer, TV Reporter, sports commentator, an advisor to the Australian Olympic Committee and was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia for her service to sport. She is also a mother, a disability rights advocate and believes in the power of using sport to encourage social inclusion.
“I think the work that ChildFund does is extraordinary – education, healthcare, sports care – those are the essentials that every child needs access to,” she says.
Annabelle is an ally for people living with disability. Born without her left hand, something her doctors could never quite explain, she has always chosen to see her disability as a strength.
“The positive things that have happened in my life have completely outweighed the challenges. Or maybe I’ve chosen to look at the bright side or seen it as an opportunity for growth.
Annabelle credits the support of her family for being able to overcome many of these challenges in her life, but she knows that not all children are as fortunate.
Approximately 15% of the global population live with some form of disability. It is estimated that 80% of those with a disability live in developing countries. This is largely a result of poor access to healthcare, civil or domestic violence, and widespread communicable diseases.
In many of the communities that ChildFund works with, children with a disability often experience social exclusion, harassment, have difficulty accessing adequate healthcare and a quality education and face a negative stigma. ChildFund is committed to challenging this stigma and exclusion through education; and so is Annabelle.
“Access to a quality education for children with a disability is incredibly important. Education is power. The more educated we all are – not just people with a disability – the more we can have agency over ourselves and the more likely we’ll be able to determine our own future.”
As an ambassador for ChildFund, Annabelle will advocate for the rights of children across many areas of the Convention of the rights of the Child CRC including the right to health, education, to live free from violence to birth registration to decent housing and the right to play- which includes sport and recreation.
An avid athlete herself, first with running and then swimming on the Australian Paralympic team later in life, she is particularly excited to support ChildFund’s flagship program, Sport for Development. The program encourages children and young people, with an emphasis on young girls, to learn a new sport. Through this they learn vital life skills to help them on and off the field.
Annabelle has always valued the opportunities that sport has provided her to develop her confidence in her abilities, learn leadership skills, and to socialise with her friends.
Annabelle will champion children’s rights and advocate that each child has the right to a childhood. Children with disability add value, strength, and diversity to our communities – this must be recognised. “Children with disabilities have skills and strengths that the world would be lucky to have. They’re excellent and incredible problem solvers. Throughout our whole life, especially as adults, whether it’s in the workforce or playing sports – you want to be able to problem solve.”
Annabelle hopes that by sharing her story and taking on this role as a ChildFund Ambassador, she’ll be able to inspire children around the world to claim their full potential – and change the stigma around living with a disability by advocating for change to end discrimination and exclusion.
Annabelle has a message for children around the world living with a disability: “Never underestimate what you’re capable of; because I think society tends to underestimate us. Realise that there’s nothing you are incapable of doing. You’ll be able to figure out a way to do whatever you want to do. You’ll be able to work it out.”
