AS we enter the gates of the Noida Deaf Society, three young lads gesture animatedly to each other, between sips of chai. Our presence perks their interest, and they point out the entrance of the building. Ruma, Director of NDS, is in the midst of a frenetic day; the training school for the hearing impaired has recently relocated to a new venue in Sector 36, Noida, and students and potential students hover in corridors, stairs, lawns and classrooms.
Clouds of movement everywhere as they gesture vigorously in sign language. There may be silence, but they are talking A LOT! The vibe is positive, the atmosphere, vibrant!
In a classroom, young boys and girls are being taught sign language – the primary medium of communication, and Step 1 in the learning process. Lip reading is not a part of the curriculum, especially since we are a country of 27 regional tongues; it’s tough enough to learn one new language! In India, a woman is referred to by placing your index finger on your right nostril (since women wear nose rings) and men are represented by the twirling of an imaginary moustache.
In the basement, three English language classes were being conducted, simultaneously in one large hall, only possible since there is silence in the room. But if you look more closely, students are engrossed in their respective lessons, and there’s an energy that is missing in the average Indian classroom. They are “listening” attentively. So engrossed was one young lad, that when my handbag bored into his backside, he did not even notice. He was busy trying to get the teacher’s attention. On one blackboard, I can see tenses listed out. Expanding one’s vocabulary is Step 2 in the learning process, it seems.
And finally Step 3, learning an employability skill.
In yet, another classroom, students are sitting at various computer workstations. NIIT has partnered with the school in the area of IT training. In a classroom in Sector 29, they are learning DTP and graphic design, which prepares them to work in any medium, which requires the knowledge of photo editing, creating layouts, photo retouching, etc. The graphic design programme focuses on design software like Photoshop, Corel Draw, In Design, Flash and Simple Animation, students have been successfully placed in companies such as NIIT, Macro Graphics, Maruti Motor Sports and Vivek Sahni Design. The teachers are also hearing impaired; they entered the training school as students and having shown potential, were moved into the role of the instructor.
On a different note, whilst India Inc talks itself hoarse about the unemployability crisis wrt the average Indian graduate (a degree but no skill), a training school in Noida is equipping young hearing impaired adults with specific skills – graphic design, office management and MS Office, to name a few. Throw in some professional grooming, and you have a job-ready individual who may not be a graduate, but has skills for an entry-level position. He or she may have completed Class 10 or 12, perhaps through the Open University (after much grief, courtesy the abysmal levels of expertise in teaching the hearing impaired in this country). IT company Mphasis absorbs students from the Noida Deaf Society, and I am told they earn over 10 K a month.
This learning experience does not merely present earning potential – it signals the end of solitude in a world of sound, goodbye to boredom during verbal conversations, the beginning of mental stimulation, the start of a new life mantra.
Students come from far and wide and from all stratas of society – North, South, East, West. The fee is minimal, and free for those with no money. When parents hear of the institute they make a beeline to the place, since there is no single resource institution for the hearing impaired, unlike a NAB, which is of immense help for the blind.
As is the case with all good things, the effort is the fruit of an individual’s personal drive and passion; the school kicked off in Ruma’s home with precisely five students in 2004, after she learned sign language at the AYJNIHH office here in Lajpat Nagar (New Delhi). Keeping one’s wits about one in the world of the hearing impaired is a must, and much credit must go to Ruma, who is a human dynamo, radiating energy, positivity and dollops of playfulness in her interactions with the students.
The school is currently looking to expand its campus placement scenario and HR honchos must note that the school has a pretty streamlined interface in place.
So, far students have been absorbed in non-IT skilled positions by KFC, Costa Coffee, ITC Hotels, Leela Kempinski, Shangi La Hotel, Hilton Garden Inn, and packaging units in export houses such as Indeutsche and Rdnik Exports. And in IT positions with BPOs and IT companies such Mphasis, Nucleus Software and NIIT, Macro Grahics, Maruti Motor Sports, Vivek Sahni Design and others.
For more specifics log on to http://www.noidadeafsociety.net/
