THIS-ABILITY: Building Visible and Invisible Bridges

The first unofficial job I got as a special education teacher was in my sophomore year in 2016. My lecturer called me that afternoon to be a tutor for a child with a comorbidity: learning disabilities and ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder). It was my first paid practical experience, and nothing prepared me for what I encountered. When I got inside the apartment of a young woman with three children, the first child, a handsome 9-year-old boy, ran from the living room and raced outside as soon as the door flung open.

He went swiftly down the stairs and turned towards the bushy path at the back of the house. His mother ran after him, hoping to prevent him from getting hurt, and I stood looking confused. My first impression of the entire scenario was quite unskilled. You could tell concern was written boldly on my face, and questions were running through my mind.

I don’t think I can handle this boy.
How am I going to turn down this job offer?
Is it possible to get a male teacher instead?
What if I don't know what to do to help?
What if this job is harder than I imagined?

The reality of special education dawned on me, and patience became an intentional lesson.

I specialized in Learning Disabilities among the 7 specializations in special education at the University of Ibadan. This was the broadest and lengthiest specialization, and it was a popular saying among my lecturers that everyone has learning disabilities. In other words, they meant that there must be at least one academic area in which someone struggles, even when that person is intellectually sound. The invisibility of learning disabilities can lead a teacher to question why a student still struggles academically despite adequate intelligence, so the initial bridge to build is between potential and performance.

Furthermore, the International Day of Persons with Disabilities featured the theme "Not all disabilities are visible" in 2020. Among these disabilities is a learning disability. It is not immediately obvious, like hearing or visual impairment, physical challenges, and intellectual disabilities. Sometimes it stays unnoticed for years, and a child might wait and fail repeatedly before it becomes recognized. You can call it the INVISIBLE THREAT in special education.

I eventually took the job, and my experiences enlightened me about the role of a bridge builder. For this young boy, I became a bridge. Bridges are agents of connection, established to fill up spaces created by known and unknown circumstances. My role looked easy, yet complex. I strive to fill up the spaces created by exclusion and classroom discrimination. I build relationships between parents and teachers to strengthen partnerships, close gaps in areas of difficulty and dependency, ensure limitations are not portrayed more than potential, and performance does not underestimate possibility.

Every other student with special needs I had an opportunity to teach, whether they present with visible or invisible disabilities, continually reminds me of the role of a bridge builder. Dis-Ability will become THIS-Ability if the bridge builders- parents, teachers, classmates, and caregivers know that love is the first intervention a child with special needs requires. The strongest bridges are not built by comparison, punishment, communication barriers, isolated skills, or inconsistency. Love, patience, and empathy are instruments in the hands of a bridge builder, useful for teaching and reteaching, narrowing differences, and transforming Disability to THIS-Ability.

THIS-Ability can become an internationally recognized author, speaker, and advocate for people with disabilities just like Helen Keller.

THIS- Ability can become an inspirational speaker, bestselling author, and founder of a global ministry encouraging millions worldwide, just like Nick Vujicic.

THIS-Ability can become a professional dancer using a prosthetic leg and be widely celebrated like Sudha Chandran.

THIS-Ability can thrive in the midst of impossibilities when the bridge builders arise to their responsibilities.

THIS-Ability can be strengthened in such a way that the unexpected and unachievable becomes anticipated progress.

Collaborate, integrate, adapt, instruct, and support. Each new role in my career allows me to build a bridge again and again. Yet again, I am dedicated to doing this for a lifetime.