Page 50 - Sportability

harsh words or dismissive behaviour, it can erode their bas badmash hai, par yeh log responsibility lena hi nahi
confidence and sense of self-worth. The damage done chahte ki uss par extra dhyaan de” (Do you think my son is
by a teacher’s words can linger long after the moment mad? Everyone says he is not normal, but I know he is just
has passed, affecting not just the child’s academic mischievous. However, these people do not want to take
performance but also their belief in their potential. responsibility and give him the extra attention he needs).
He looked up, his eyes glistening with unshed tears, and
Challenges and Reflection: Bridging the in a voice thick with emotion, he asked, madam, main
Worlds kya karoon? Sab kar raha hoon uske liye. (Ma’am, what
While the children’s stories resonate with my personal should I do? I am doing everything for him)”.
experiences, it is the parents’ stories that often weigh
heaviest on my heart. I had spent hours talking with The words hung in the air, heavy with the weight of a
parents who carry the weight of their children’s futures father’s fear and helplessness. At that moment, he was
on their shoulders. Their love is fierce, but feelings of not just asking about his son’s academic performance;
exhaustion, fear, and a deep sense of isolation often he was questioning his worth as a parent, grappling
accompany it. They want the best for their children, with the societal stigma surrounding disability. He was
but they are navigating a system that is often unkind, afraid, not just for Sameer, but for the future he had
inaccessible, and indifferent. envisioned for his child. I could feel my heart ache in
response, recognizing the universal desire of parents
While having a conversation with Jaspreet’s mother, she to protect their children from a world that can be so
shared her struggles and the challenges she faces in cruel and unforgiving. I want to admit that this was the
Jaspreet’s education, which further highlights broader most difficult moment for me as an educationalist and
issues faced by parents of children with disabilities. researcher. At that moment, all the technical jargon,
Jaspreet, who has a locomotor disability, often finds the assessments, and the strategies we had learnt in
herself overwhelmed by incomplete classwork and the my educational degrees seemed to fade away. What
pressure of assessments conducted in written form. mattered was acknowledging this father’s pain, his
vulnerability, and his desperate need for reassurance.
Jaspreet’s mother was constantly battling to ensure that
her daughter’s education was not overshadowed by the Reflections on Advocacy and Hope
limitations of traditional assessment methods that This experience reinforced for me the importance of
are being used in the school. With much of Jaspreet’s working not just with children but with their parents,
classwork incomplete due to her difficulties in keeping helping them navigate the complex emotions that come
up, she faces a daunting task during assessment with raising a child with a disability. It is a reminder that
periods. The written mode of assessments, which does attitudinal shifts are not just necessary in the classroom
not accommodate Jaspreet’s needs, often results in her but also in the hearts and minds of parents who often
poor performance due to her challenges in completing carry the weight of societal expectations and stigma. As
her class tests on time. I sit here reflecting on the day, I am filled with a renewed
sense of purpose. For Jaspreet, for Sameer and every
Working with these parents presents unique challenges. child who has ever felt small because of their disability,
Earning their trust is a delicate process, and it requires I will keep pushing for change. I will keep telling their
me to navigate my dual roles as both a researcher and stories, and I will keep fighting for a world where every
someone who wishes to understand their struggles. At child is seen, valued, and respected for who they are.
times, it is not easy to separate my own emotions from
the work. Hearing their stories can be overwhelming, As I continue my research in diverse areas of education
and I find myself carrying their burdens long after our and interact with diverse groups of participants, I
conversations end. I remember while I was talking to am reminded that this work is not just about data or
Sameer’s parents, Sameer is a boy studying in class publications. It is about being an advocate, a bridge
VII and has ADHD and a learning disability; as the between these participants, and a system that too often
principal, his father himself had submitted his medical overlooks them. It is about ensuring that their voices
assessment reports, but during our interactions, he are not just heard but that they resonate and that they
behaved as if we had no knowledge that he had any spark change in systems and societies that have been
disability and in between, he became so overwhelmed too slow to evolve.
and began to shout and ask me- “Do you think my son
is mad?”, aapko lagta hai ki who pagal hai, yeh sab kehte
hai ki woh normal nahi hai, par main jaanta hu ki woh

42