The National Resource Centre for Inclusive Education, formerly known as the Special Education Unit, reports that there are two thousand six hundred and eighty children known to be living with some form of disability in Belize. How many more are locked away behind closed doors is anybody’s guess but this year the center has embarked on a challenge to include all boys and girls with special needs in society.
It won’t be an easy task because one of the obstacles has been getting the public to incorporate people with disabilities in all aspects of life. The awareness started on May twenty fourth when disability week was launched and today it continued with the thirteenth annual national spelling bee for the deaf. The competition was divided in two categories and at the end of the four hour event 7NEWS caught up with the first place winner in the senior category Angel Tun and her proud mom Shannon.
Both agree that children and all persons with disabilities have the right to live as normal a life as possible.
Shannon Tun, Mother of Winner
“It teaches me and others that these kids are very important and they can be as smart and as bright as any other child that we will say is ordinary.”
Dativa Martinez, NRCIE
“The students over the years have realized they have to work hard, they have to spend hours, they have to learn words, I have to use these words in my vocabulary, I have to practice, and as such I think the strength of the spelling bee for the deaf is the students learn this is something they can do. It is different because we send them videotapes long ahead of time with dictionaries that have pictures and for them it is learning the concept and memorizing how these words look, letter by letter and as such people might think those are small words but try memorizing the order of letters in a word and that’s what these students have to do.”
Shane Castillo from Stella Maris School placed second in the senior category. In the junior competition Ginelli Novelo and Sulmi Valencia placed first and second respectively. Disability Week concludes on Friday with a parade through the principal streets of Belize City.
