Episode 11: In conversation with Ritu Goyal

Inclusion with Mansi

In Episode 11 we are in conversation with Ritu Goyal who is a mother to a young boy, who we heard in episode 8 of this podcast.

Abhir is a very sensitive loving boy. His strength is his endearing loving caring personality. He loves to go in depth into things he loves. He loves to research. He used to learn card tricks and record videos. His latest passion is Rubik’s cubes. We are proud of the way Abhir has handled everything that has come his way.

His class teacher in lower kg realized something was amiss. He is a smart kid and remembers everything he hears but can’t recognize the alphabet. This was in an Air Force school in Viman Nagar. As a journalist she has written an article about Dyslexia so that was a starting point. Got connected with MDA and got an assessment done at KEM. It was indicative that he was “at risk” of Dyslexia as he was too young to diagnose. Remediation began immediately for him to support him.

In a class of 60 it might be tough to find another empathetic teacher. So he moved to another school which was an unstructured format and this is exactly what he needed at that time. That worked for 4 years along with remediation. In grade 3 we realized he needed more structure. Another set of psychometric tests. Needed one on instructions. Group activities were difficult for him. Also recommended one on one sports like chess or tennis. In Grade 4 moved to a CBSE school, The Orchid School, Baner till 7th grade. Restriction of subject choices was a reason why he then changed to the Cambridge curriculum at a center. He has been homeschooled since grade 10.

Homeschooling is more challenging for the parents. It was tough for him to wake up and go to school hence the flexibility if time helps. You need to be highly motivated for homeschooling to be successful. It does build a sense of responsibility as you leave it more to them as they grow older. Flexibility of exams helps as you don’t need to do all the subjects at one go. The curriculum is exhaustive. He is a pure science student and has 2 tutors. They keep needing to regain their focus on the syllabus of the exams and not to go too much in detail.

Teachers don’t have it easy. Most are not equipped for this. Each child has a different way of learning and the teachers need to support everyone. Copying from the blackboard and completion of notes has always been a challenge. All the teachers and the counsellor were very supportive. He got a scribe for his exam and checkered paper for Math so help with his spatial alignment. Gratitude to all the teachers who helped him in his formative years. Helps to work as a team. He has now learnt to self advocate for his needs. Training the teachers are given at TOS, other schools also need to get. Then they will know how to deal with the students more positively and effectively.

Family w. as supportive. Logistics is tough but useful as you see the positive results. He started reading grade level! When you know little about a subject it scares you the most. Encourage your child to explore and pursue what they are more interested in. Each subject is equally important. Do not compromise on his self confidence and self esteem. Make him feel he is important and he is cared for. It doesn’t matter what he faces in the playground or school he is still valuable and important. Don’t just show, actually means that you love them unconditionally. Give them a chance to learn skills to be independent and learn how to self advocate for themselves.

It is essential to remember that you do not outgrow Dysgraphia or Dyslexia. It stays with you. You learn to work around it. Also it does not affect only academics. It is also in life skills such as reading the analogue clock, tying shoe laces or buttoning shirts. Time management is a real struggle and needs to be explicitly taught. Use things that help you deal with the skills.