I had a wonderful learning experience the other day at work wit Dan... which is perfect timing seeing as I had just written about him in the prior entry. Good timing right?
Dan let me know that he had a student that he had been working with on and off for the last year or so. This student was deaf. Dan thought it would be a great opportunity if I sat in on the appointment ... and I gladly took the opportunity.
His name was Rob (name changed) and he was a non-traditional student who was wanting to go back to school after losing his job. (and no, he didn't lost his job because of his disability like many people would think... it's the economy.). Rob wanted to take classes that would help further his career and make him more hireable.
Dan had explained to me that Rob started out very quiet when he first met with Dan. Rob had a translator with him and used sign language to speak... at first he never directly looked at Dan during the appointments. But, as Dan gained Robs trust they would joke with one another. Dan believe that Rob gained some of his trust because he himself was hearing impair. To work with with students with disability it's not about sympathy it's about understanding the individual through their disability. So many times people are treated differently because their disability. They want to be accommodated with equal access... from there they are no different.
In this appointment I was able to speak with Rob and get his perspective on what it's like to be a student with a disability. Rob felt individual at times... may people spoke to the interpreter instead of looking at him. I myself found it hard to look at Rob when I was speaking... because it was the interpreter that spoke back to me. I found that I had to make a true effort to look at Rob when I spoke to him. An effort he appreciated.
He also liked to joke about his disability. I also agree that humor is a way to deal with things they aren't easy. Rob has known nothing different and doesn't view his disability as an issue, just a different way of dealing with things. Dan was looking for an elective that Rob could take... they both joked that a "Music Appreciation" class would be perfect... Rob laughed. Something Dan had never seen Rob do. Dan and Rob exchanged witty banter, and it was obvious the Rob trusted Dan.
D. Smith (personal communication, September 20, 2011;
R. Smith (personal communication, September 20, 2011, 2011)
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