#60Stories
A special kind of love
Choosing the right school is an important decision that parents can make to shape a child’s future and provide a head start in life. For Persons with Disabilities (PWIDs), a supportive environment matters even more to enable holistic development.
When Allan Cai was six, his mother and caregiver Li Shu Yun decided to enroll him in a Special Education (SPED) school. As Allan was born with Down Syndrome, he needed constant medical care and therapy to strengthen his speech and motor skills. She wanted to provide him with a nurturing environment for him to enjoy learning at his own pace without adding stress on him and the family.
“As parents, we want the best for our children. Personally, I feel it is not the name of the school that matters. What matters more, is choosing a school with the right environment for your child to learn at his and her own pace,” Shu Yun shares.
Shu Yun credits that as the best decision she made for Allan, who has come a long way since graduating from the Lee Kong Chian Gardens School in 2016. Today, her 24-year-old son is the proud recipient of the Goh Chok Tong Enable Awards (UBS Promise) 2021, and part of the Purple Parade 2021, Singapore’s largest movement to support inclusion and celebrate the abilities of PWIDs.
Allan was also one of the first members of ‘Our Lives, Our Voices’ (OLOV), an advocacy programme jointly organised by the Down Syndrome Association (Singapore) and MINDS. The self-advocacy programme, which Shu Yun has been a firm supporter of since the beginning, aims to nurture confidence and independence in individuals with special needs. The Senior Lecturer at Nanyang Technological University also volunteered as a parent-mentor to visit parents of babies with Down Syndrome, to offer a listening ear and help ease them into their parenting journey.
Learn more about how Shu Yun decided on the right school for Allan, her parenting journey and more!
Every child has different learning conditions and needs.
It’s important to pick the right education that will benefit your child most and bring out the best in him or her.
Most importantly, your child must be happy in the school.
Shu Yun and Allan spending quality time together over lunch.
1. How did you decide between enrolling Allan in a mainstream school or Special Education (SPED)?
Allan was born in 1998 with Down Syndrome. Back then, the landscape for students with special needs in Singapore’s mainstream schools was very different from what it is today.
We started by enquiring about the mainstream school education system, and Allan even attended an international school briefly. From this, we did not think he could cope in a school where there was insufficient support for children with intellectual disabilities.
Allan also required constant medical care, as well as therapies to strengthen his speech and motor skills. So we decided it would be better to enrol him in a SPED school to enable him to learn at his own pace without adding stress on him and our family.
2 . What are some misconceptions about Special Education? How has Allan’s journey through Special Education ‘debunked’ that misconception?
It is often misconceived that children from SPED schools do not learn much. While it may be true that SPED schools do not have a rigorous academic curriculum as compared to mainstream schools, there is a stronger emphasis on other aspects of learning such as the importance of being independent and cultivating social skills.
Furthermore, SPED schools provide additional learning support such as therapy sessions to cater to the needs of students with intellectual disabilities better and provide holistic development.
Every child has different learning conditions and needs. It’s important to pick the right education that will benefit your child most and bring out the best in him or her. Most importantly, your child must be happy in the school.
For Allan, the SPED learning environment allowed him to grow at his own pace without unnecessary stress, which played a big part in how he turned out to be such a positive, happy and confident young man!
3. What was Allan’s development like through Special Education?
Allan benefited tremendously and was very motivated to learn – thanks to a positive and nurturing SPED environment. He was given many opportunities to learn and contribute through various activities, outings and events.
Allan was a very sensitive, quiet and shy boy. In school, he struggled with sensory issues, whenever there was unexpected noise like the clapping of hands or loud music. But he gradually got used to it and improved.
We worked closely with his teachers and therapists to encourage him throughout his learning journey. Gradually, we noticed a change in Allan – he opened up and gained confidence to communicate and learn with his peers. He started to enjoy going to school and progressed in his social skills, critical thinking, communication skills and academic literacy. Allan also made great progress in independent living skills, such as how to count and use money, and how to travel independently.
4. What was your fondest memory of Allan? What is your hope for him?
I still remember when the school taught the children social skills like how to share and care about others, Allan asked to bring extra snacks to share with his teachers and friends. At home, he learnt how to make drinks for me, often making me a drink at breakfast or when I came home from work.
It warms my heart to see how Allan has grown into a wonderful, expressive and loving young man. He constantly tells me, “I love you, Mummy” and gives me a hug whenever I come home from work. He also tells me “Mummy, you are the best mummy in the world”, which I share with him in turn that “All mothers are doing their best, and I am also doing my best.” Now that he is working, he also saves his salary to buy presents for me during my birthday or special occasions like Christmas.
I hope Allan will always remain as positive and be as independent as he can be. I also hope that Singapore will be a more inclusive society in the years to come.
One of Shu Yun’s proudest moment as a mother – her son Allan was presented the Goh Chok Tong Enable Awards (UBS Promise) 2021, for being an active advocate for persons with special needs. The Award recognises persons with disabilities who have shown promise to pursue greater heights in their areas of talent and to continue to serve the community.
5. What would you like to share with parents who have children with special needs?
Raising a child is an uphill challenging journey. Instead of constantly worrying about what our children cannot do, let’s learn to focus on what they can do. When you shift your perspective, the parenting journey becomes a hugely rewarding one – filled with joy, happiness, and countless moments where you’re just so proud of what your child can do – and you can’t wait to celebrate how far he or she has come!
As MINDS celebrates its 60th anniversary, we encourage a deeper understanding of intellectual and developmental disabilities among the community and caregivers.
MINDS provides a holistic environment and inclusive environment for intellectual and developmental disabilities and is committed to supporting caregivers in their journey of enabling PWIDs to live fulfilling and meaningful lives.
Learn more about how the MINDS Special Education curriculum can impart a lifetime of knowledge and skills here. Find out more about the MINDS caregiver support services here, and more about the ‘Our Lives, Our Voices’ advocacy programme to empower greater decision-making and ownership here.
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