CHALLENGES FACED BY DEAF PEOPLE IN EDUCATION AND TERTIARY TRAINING TENDAI DONDOFEMA DEAF ZIMBABWE TRUST

Deaf education has been a problem in many countries and Zimbabwe is one of them Deaf children face many problems in Zimbabwe Maybe this is because deafness as a disability is not visible It is also maybe as a result of bad social attitudes. INTRODUCTION

WHY IS EDUCATION IMPORTANT TO PEOPLE For development of the country For opening our minds and taking a job to take care of our families So that we work and put food on the table For security of our lives Education leads to Work which provides hope and dignity but with Deaf people language barriers stand in the way of employment It provides a livelihood, confidence and opportunities for further training

CHALLENGES FACED BY DEAF PEOPLE Very few people do their planning with the deaf in mind. The same with our education system. As a result many deaf are not well educated, have no jobs, are poor, have no houses Most Deaf people are vendors in town because of lack of education No access to information. AIDS, Ebola and Cancer is not known to Deaf people No access to health, communication is a problem with the health providers Cannot participate in the development of this country because of discrimination CHALLENGES FACED BY DEAF PEOPLE

The profile of the Deaf community is one of high levels of poverty, unemployment and poor education Most deaf people lack even the most basic skills to seek employment Poor educational outcomes as a result of being taught in inappropriate formats. Few teachers in Zimbabwe know sign language As a result the Deaf people have poor educational outcomes and only a few have gone through to tertiary education (colleges and universities) Deaf people in rural areas don’t learn sign language resulting in communication problems with others

People who are teaching Deaf people do not know how to sign People who are teaching Deaf people do not know how to sign. We need people to learn sign language Deaf people need open university or college for the Deaf in Zimbabwe Workshops should be conducted for Deaf people in health issues. For example AIDS, Ebola, Cancer, etc Teacher training colleges, there are no deaf people being trained so that they can teach the Deaf. We want to see Deaf people trained as teachers as well TRAINING NEEDS

There should also be Deaf people awareness campaigns so that people know that we exist. Education system should have trainings which help Deaf people to learn and improve their English grammar Training in practical subjects is needed, for example computers, hairdressing, culinary not the traditional carpentry and stone carving People from the mainstream are fortunate enough to work in support of goals that offer personal, financial and social satisfaction and fulfilment

In short, we as Deaf people we also want to work because we need to, we want to, and have the ability to work. But because of the challenges I have mentioned before, this cannot be achieved. Thousands of Deaf people in Zimbabwe cannot take a job for granted because they have never known the security of sustainable employment. Most of the Deaf people sell airtime for their livelihood. This needs to change for we also want better jobs.

If we work together to change the education system in Zimbabwe to be inclusive of Deaf people in all their trainings, we will change the world. So lets work towards inclusiveness. Thank you.