Joy Anyim
Saturday, July 17, was a date history was made for students and teachers of Great Expectations Private School in Lagos, a school for children with special needs. This is is as parents and well wishers gathered to celebrate the first graduation ceremony of the six year old school.
Songs of joy and praises to God echoed as the students treated guests to various presentations, showcasing the ability in their supposed disability.
The Nigerian Xpress reports that the school which was founded in 2015, by Bisola Olufolajimi Idowu, caters for children with special needs such as Cerebral Palsy, Autism, Learning Disability, Down Syndrome, amongst other needs.
According to Idowu, her child’s disability propelled her passion for starting a school streamlined to attend to the academic, emotional and psychological needs of children with such special needs.
The school which is located at No. 933, Folashade Abike Street Omole Phase 2, Lagos, also offers therapy sessions, which also complements the academic pursuit of the children.
Speaking during the valedictory and award ceremony of the school, Idowu called for an end to the stigmatisation and stereotyping of children with special needs, saying with adequate care, attention and the right environment, such children can attain independence.
She also called for government and public support in funding schools that are devoted to children with special needs, saying the running cost of such schools begs for such intervention.
Idowu said: “Great Expectation Private School was founded in 2015, it was born out of the pain of a mother, whose child had a disability. It was a bit stigmatising and stereotypical, which influenced my starting this school. But I believe in the fact that even if a child is born with a disability, that shouldn’t put a stop to the life of the child. With disability comes ability. So, I just went ahead to start the school in hope that we can build these children and build their future.
“We started in Arepo with 35 children, because there was a wrong perception it was going to be a typical school, but we went ahead to let parents know we were not running the regular school, that we were going to be a special need school that is also inclusive. So eventually we discovered that we can’t do general inclusion because there is the stigmatisation, non acceptance and other parents been afraid that their children were going to pick one form of behaviour or the other.
“So, that was challenging, and we had to streamline it to siblings inclusion. If you see any child that does not have a disability in our school, it is probably that their sibling is here. Again, it is not because we are not open to the general public, we are still trying to buy time for acceptance, let them know that disability cannot be contracted, it is not a disease.
“The vision is to ensure that every child that passes through great expectation attains independence, not because their parents are rich, because you see in Nigeria it is only the children whose parent are rich and can afford the disability condition they live with that proceed to achieve quiet a lot in our society. Eventually, you see the children of the lower class, ending up in a home, or their career path is just limited to learning a vocation or they are just generally independent.
“Our vision is to see every child here been an active member of the society, very involved, very independent, and able to take care of themselves, and their families on a long run. There should also be some sort of support from the government, I will tell you for fact that since we have been running Great Expectation School, we have been running it solely from fees collected from parents as well as personal funds from my other businesses.”
She added that the school, with the right support, also hopes to start a secondary arm, this is as she revealed that the school is grappling to payoff a N4.9 million loan taken from a microfinance bank.
“We are glad that one of our children is graduating. For now we cover crech to primary school, but if we get the financial assistance, we can start a secondary school, because these children may likely not get the kind of support they need in a regular setting.
“We are currently in debt, we took a loan from a microfinance bank and the pressure to pay back is on and it is almost costing me my health, it is N 4.9 million. We have struggled to pay N2million and there is an ultimatum to pay up this December. If we don’t, the land used as a collateral, which is owned by a good Samaritan, will be sold off. Again this is a faith based organisation, if the government come in, there will be a lot of burden taken off parents and the school,” Idowu stated.
In her advice to parents of children with special needs, the proprietress urged them not to give up, but accept it as the will of God, “You are not the child’s creator, and as a parent, you are failing in your responsibility if you don’t take care of them. Focus on the possible future of the child,” she advised.
Mother of the graduating student, Mrs Diayi Titilayo, said her son had improved in no small measure since he was brought to Great Expectations Private School as a pioneer student.
She said: “My child has been here for five years, he is pioneer student. A doctor told me that my son could do more and go far in life regards of the challenge. I was referred to this school and since then, I have seen him improving in his talking, walking and relationship with people. Now he with be leaving to further his education in secondary school. Parents with children that has special needs should not look down on them.”
Another parent, Mrs Ogunkoya Celestina, whose children attend therapy sessions at the school, praised the proprietress for her love and understanding towards the children.
“She is a very compassionate woman who loves the children. She has the experience of being a mother. When you love the children, they will listen to you. Also, our government is not doing enough for children with special needs,” she opined.