Shaikh Jawad Ahmad teaches a class of 16 deaf students. PHOTO COURTESY: SHAIKH JAWAD AHMAD
Pursuing an ACCA degree, Ahmad works as a full-time accountant. He also manages a volunteer class at home in Islamabad, where he teaches Basic English to 16 young and energetic deaf students.
Ahmad is critical of traditional teaching methods employed for disabled persons. He has an innate talent for observing and understanding the psychological perspective of the deaf and explaining everything in a humorous manner. “I successfully explained the use of ‘OF’ in sign language to my friend once and since then, many of my deaf friends have asked me to teach them English.”
Having no resources to conduct this course in a commercial space, Ahmad decided to hold classes in his own house. “My father, being deaf, understands the importance of this course,” he says.
Ahmad created a Whatsapp group for the class. “The aim of the group is to improve their communication skills. I introduce students to latest IT tools and apps,” says Ahmad. The class also has a Facebook page where Syed Muhammad Esa, a student and photographer, uploads class videos and pictures.
Syed Muhammad Kumail Kazmi, a leg-break bowler in the national deaf cricket team, says his English has improved greatly. “I can now reply to emails and communicate with people in a professional manner,” he says. Naeem Zafar, another enthusiastic student working in NADRA’s stationery department, also says he has learnt a lot from Ahmad.
Atif Saleem works as Ahmad’s assistant and travels almost 160km from Nowshera to attend the class. “Communicating with people was very difficult for me but these language classes have polished my skills,” he says. He plans to follow his teacher’s footsteps and spread this knowledge in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.
Ahmad has not asked any national or international organisation for help yet. “We believe in action rather than claim and once we have implemented our initial plan successfully, we will share our project with stakeholders,” he says.
Standardisation of sign language is one of the major challenges in teaching the deaf. “There is no proper sign language for prepositions or helping verbs,” Ahmad says.
Ahmad recalls his first day of class when he explained the difference between ‘happy’ and ‘excited.’ Writing ‘happy,’ he started smiling. Writing ‘excited,’ he jumped and used animated expressions. “Everyone understood and enjoyed my teaching method,” he shares.
In the future, Ahmad wants to target areas with traditional barriers for the deaf community. “Our aim is to make them more independent and empowered,” he says.
The first batch of the course concludes in the first week of November but sessions will soon resume in the first quarter of 2016, in Rawalpindi and Islamabad. “We will then move forward to other cities,” says Ahmad.
Muhammad Daud Khan is an Islamabad-based freelance journalist. He tweets @daudpasaney
Published in The Express Tribune, Sunday Magazine, November 1st, 2015.
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