She’s blind but her students see a bright future -
04-16-2008, 10:04 PM
She’s blind but her students see a bright future bahati girls high schothe kenya certificate of secondary education (kcse). Mrs eunice oniala busy on her laptop, which has a special programme for the blind. Photo/francis mureithibut what has escaped the attention of kenyans is the fact that the school has been producing excellent results in english and christian religious education (cre). Nothing remarkable however, until one gets to know who is behind the success in the two subjects. Visually impaired eunice njeri oniala has been teaching the bahati girls for years. And whereas many would excuse themselves for their disability, mrs oniala has been thinking otherwise. Second best apart from topping the provincial category, the school has been leading in the two subjects for the last one decade. During last year’s kcse, some 54 students scored ‘as’ while 84 candidates scored b (plain) and above. Bahati secondary school was the second best provincial school in the country after precious blood last year. For mrs oniala, her life in the classroom is almost similar to other teachers’ except that her students have to be extra attentive. Unlike other teachers, she does not write on the chalkboard. “i train my students to be attentive and inquisitive. I normally ask them questions every now and then to make sure that they are following,” she said. To catch up with the latest textbooks, mrs oniala has a helper who reads the books to her. As the assistant reads, she prepares short notes in her braille. Mrs oniala was born with perfect eyesight. However, when she was six, she started experiencing eye problems. Within one year, one of the eyes was totally blind while the other was gradually losing the ability to see. Her desperate parents sought medication from a traditional doctor, but the problem worsened. Family gave up by the time her parents sought professional help from a missionary nearby, it was too late. She was referred to kenyatta national hospital, but nothing could be done to bring back her eyesight. After battling with the problem for sometime, the family gave up and she was later enrolled at thika primary school, a special school for the visually impaired. She was an excellent student and the urge to go on saw her secure a place at kahuhia girls secondary school where she did her form five and six. Her results were good and she was admitted to kenyatta university. Upon completion of her degree course, she was posted as a teacher to kilimambogo teachers training college in 1983. She was transferred to bondo teachers college where she taught for six years, before being moved to bahati girls in 1996. Mrs oniala is a married mother of eight, four girls and four boys. Her eldest child is 31 years old. The last born is aged 11. Her husband, mr andrew stephen oniala, a teacher at bondo teachers college, is partially blind. But all their children have no eye problems. Her children have done well in their education. The eldest is an accountant with a firm in nairobi, while her two daughters are students of maseno and kenyatta universities. She currently lives with three of her children. Needy orphans over the years, she has learnt to do most things on her own and it is clear that neatness and orderliness are important to her. She is able to retrieve everything with ease because she arranges them in ways best known to her. In a bid to give back to the society, the family started a children’s home in 2006. With the help of the administration officers and the churches, she was able to identify needy orphans in bahati area. The home offered shelter to 15 girls and also took care of 20 other needy children, who were non-residents. Unfortunately, she had to close down the home late last year due to lack of sponsors. She found other well established homes where the girls were accommodated. Mrs oniala is a leader in the african union of the blind and has been the vice-chairperson of the women’s committee for the last four years. She is also an active member of the kenya union of the blind. She is a role model to many and a great inspiration to many others, who have had an encounter with her, especially her students. Mrs oniala has especially inspired members of the kenya union of the blind, where she holds counselling sessions with them once every month. Their honesty the teacher says that she marks exams and continuous assessment tests in school without any problem. Her assistant usually reads what the student has written, word for word, and a good point is ticked. If she does not agree with the point, she underlines. The students are equally helpful and if they complain about the marking, she takes it up with the assistant immediately. This is, however, rare, says the teacher, who applauds the young girls for their honesty. The 50-year-old teacher is a competent computer user and she types her exams and continuous assessment test on her own.
Last edited by Titchaz : 04-17-2008 at 12:53 AM.
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