CHENNAI: Of all the challenges that persons with vision impairment face, especially as teenagers, finishing high school on a high note with teachers and adults across the spectrum cheering on, is probably one of the toughest.
Kaviya J (18) not only completed high school successfully, she also aced it. By scoring 565 marks in Class 12 State board exam this year, this visually impaired student from Kancheepuram has made her family, school teachers and the community happy and proud. Kaviya was rewarded with Rs 1 lakh by the newly elected MLA RV Ranjithkumar for her achievement.
“Her high scores are not surprising at all. I knew my daughter would do well,” smiles KD Jayakumar, a silk saree manufacturer in Kancheepuram.
Kaviya’s journey from Kancheepuram to Chennai, however, was not easy. Though she could partially see as a child, she lost her vision entirely when was in Class 1. “We weren’t really aware of her condition in the beginning,” recalls her father. “It’s only after she went to school and could not see the blackboard that we paid attention. We brought her to Chennai for tests.”
Following her diagnosis, well-wishers led them to the Little Flower Convent Higher Secondary School (LFC) for the Blind in T Nagar. She was enrolled in the school in 2014. For the past decade, Kaviya stayed in the hostel, while her father shuttled between Kancheepuram and Chennai.
A school in Kancheepuram would have been helpful; however, it doesn’t have many takers, he says. “If there are a lot of people for such schools, maybe there could be one. But, I pray that fewer people need such schools,” says the father of two.
Kaviya could only meet her parents a few days every month throughout her school life. “Usually, we meet on the second Sunday of every month. Travelling back and forth between Kancheepuram and Chennai in one day was not easy but we made the best of what we had. We’d go around the city, eat good food, get her clothes washed and at the end of the day, I would drop her back at school,” he says. Slowly, Kaviya found a home at the hostel.
Kaviya is no stranger to challenges of being blind but she found coherence and confidence as a student with Braille. “I learnt Braille when I was in Class 1, and since then, it has become a way of life,” she says.
When she reached high school, she did not find the syllabus difficult, but when she faced any challenges, her teachers came to her rescue. “We had audio recordings of the syllabus for learning purposes. For the Class 12 board exam, I used to study late into the night, and if there was a doubt, we spoke to the teachers the next morning,” she adds.
For Class 12 board exams, students with vision impairment get a scribe and also an hour extra for each exam. “The extra hour we get is helpful but coordinating with scribes was stressful. We meet them only on the day of the exam. Some of my friends have had instances where people who do not know English or Tamil would turn up as scribes,” she adds.
Kaviya’s next stop is Ethiraj College for Women in Chennai, where she is hoping to pursue a degree in literature.