In a country like India, having over a billion people, problems like poverty, illiteracy and unemployment are very common. With such a huge population and with so much of poverty to educate a normal child is itself difficult, and therefore, to train special children gets more difficult. There are many children who look normal and behave normal but academically are not as good as their peers. They suffer from a lesser-known condition called learning disability (LD), which refers to a group of disorders in listening, speaking, reading, writing, and mathematics. Such children are subjected to constant act of public humiliation.
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The spread of awareness on issues like learning disability in India is very recent. There is still inadequacy in the rehabilitation services and special education programmes. Even if there are facilities, the lack of awareness prevents them from getting utilized. A better awareness of learning disorder and at the same time a better awareness of culturally acceptable means for treating the affected children can only decrease the burden on affected children, their families and society in India as a whole.
Movies like Taare Zameen Pe have enlightened the subject of learning disability. The movie tells the story of an eight year old, Ishaan Awasthi, who suffers greatly until his teacher identifies him as a dyslexic. This movie was both commercially and critically acclaimed, and it bought a general awareness amongst parents and teachers as to why some children can’t perform up to the mark.
In India around 13-14% of all school children suffer from learning disorder. Unfortunately it is never taken a note of and these children are regarded as failures. A proper diagnosis, early detection, appropriate education, hard work, and acceptance and support from family, friends, teachers and others can help a dyslexic lead a successful and productive life. Also at the government level, there is a need to formulate a constructive policy in this regard.
The health sector has a key role to play in the preventive and curative aspects concerning mental retardation. A strong and adequate maternal and child health services can decrease the prevalence of mental retardation. Therefore, it is essential to generate awareness among the general population regarding health education, birth spacing, improving the nutritional status of a women during pregnancy, screening in pregnancy for conditions such as syphillis and Rh incompatibility, detection of high-risk pregnancy, medical care during labour, importance of lactation (breast feeding), nutritional supplementation and proper immunization of young children. Also, primary health care personnel could carry out other services such as early detection and intervention for developmental delay, which may follow counselling for families and referral to appropriate agencies for rehabilitation.
Many famous personalities like Albert Einstein, Winston Churchill, Alexander Graham Bell, Thomas Edison and many more have suffered from learning disability. By overcoming learning disability, they had emerged as very successful personalities. These people have made a mark in the history and have contributed fame to their countries. Our country is a huge well of talents, all we need to do is to recognise and support them. The higher the awareness among health-care professionals and school authorities, the earlier will be the identification of the affected children. Hence, they will be referred to appropriate intervention, and thus, fewer children will remain undetected. You never know, even an Ishaan Awasthi can add feather to our country’s cap if backed up with proper support and care.
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