For deaf children in Lahore, school is life

LAHORE – Students at a deaf school in Lahore have vibrant features and naughty smiles as they twirl their hands in sync with their sign language teacher.

The peaceful lessons are filled with delight, and they are often led by deaf professors.

“I have friends, I communicate with them, I joke with them, we share our stories about what we have done and have not done, and we support each other,” said Qurat-ul-Ain, an 18-year-old deaf woman who started at the school a year ago.

More than 200 students, children and adults, largely from impoverished families, are among the few granted a new lease on life at this inner-city school in old Lahore.

Less than 5% of Pakistan’s more than one million deaf school-age youngsters attend school. The figure is considerably lower for girls, and without the ability to express themselves, many children are marginalized by society and even their family.



“Life is a bit tricky. There is a significant communication gap here since most people do not know sign language,” said Qurat-ul-Ain. Deaf Reach’s school teaches students sign language in English and Urdu before moving on to the national curriculum.

In sign language, everyone is given a name that is typically based on a physical trait. Younger children learn through visuals: a word and a sign are linked to an image.

Their peers give the thumbs down for incorrect answers and the applause sign (twisting hands) for correct ones.

Families are learning to sign.

Deaf Reach was founded in 1998 by an American and is sponsored by donations. It now has eight schools across the country, educating 2,000 pupils on a “pay what you can afford” basis, with 98 percent of youngsters receiving scholarships.

The vast majority of pupils at the school come from hearing families, who are also given the opportunity to learn sign language and break down language barriers with their child.

Adeela Ejaz described how she struggled to accept that her firstborn kid, who is now ten years old, is deaf. “When I couldn’t understand what he was trying to say he would bang his head against the wall and floor,” the woman, who is 35, told AFP.

“It was difficult for everyone since nobody knew how to communicate with him. Everyone told us he was deaf, but I wasn’t ready to accept that. The mother and son are now learning to sign.

“I’m getting better at signing and can communicate with my son.” He’s become really attached to me.” The programme makes heavy use of technology, including an online dictionary and a phone app.

It has also secured work for over 2,000 deaf persons with over 50 Pakistani companies. Huzaifa, 26, who became deaf after having a fever at a young age, was granted a stitching apprenticeship at Deaf Reach to assist him enter the skilled labor sector.



“The teachers at the government school did not know any sign language. They would just put notes on the board and instruct us to duplicate them. We used to get incredibly discouraged, and I was extremely concerned about my future,” he told AFP.

His family encouraged him to pursue an education, even teaching him the fundamentals of sign language before he received formal instruction. “My parents did not throw me away. “They worked tirelessly to ensure that I could continue my education,” he stated.

Without their determination, he stated, “I’d be working as a day laborer somewhere, cutting leaves or cementing walls.”

Isolated and afraid

Sign language differs by country, with each having its own culture, and regional variants do exist. According to the World Federation of the Deaf, 80 percent of the world’s roughly 70 million deaf individuals lack access to education.

“I used to sit lazily at home, use my phone, or play outside. “I had no idea what people were saying,” said Faizan, 21, who has worked with Deaf Reach for 11 years and hopes to work abroad.



Before learning to sign, I felt extremely weak psychologically, with an inferiority complex and anxiety. Fortunately, none of that exists anymore.” In Pakistan, attitudes toward individuals with disabilities are gradually improving, thanks to the passage of anti-discrimination legislation.

“Over the years, we’ve seen the mentality alter dramatically. Many people hide their deaf children out of embarrassment and humiliation,” said Daniel Marc Lanthier, director of operations for the nonprofit behind Deaf Reach.
Today, families are “coming out in the open, asking for education for their children, asking to find employment for them,” he said, despite the fact that considerable work remains. “With a million deaf children who don’t have access to school, it’s a huge challenge, it’s a huge goal to be met.”










































































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