In my childhood, I sensed that I was ‘different’ from other people around me and that made me vaguely upset and disturbed. I became shy and reserved as I could not communicate with the people around me. But in Canossian, I was surrounded by people who were like me and that comforted me. Over time, I gained more confidence as I could communicate with the people around me using sign language. I built many friendships that stood the test of time and which are still going strong today.

One thing I remember about the school is that it provided an environment in which I could develop and refine my lipreading and speaking skills which had a great impacted greatly on my life. A world of infinite possibilities was opened. I could communicate better with my family members and strangers. This would not have been possible if not for many of my dedicated teachers such as Mrs. Teo and Miss Chan. They instilled in me self-confidence and gave me the courage to dare to dream to go beyond what other people expected me to do. They taught me to have courage to carry on despite obstacles which came in useful. For instance, whenever I had difficulties in following lessons, I would think of alternative methods such as self-study, approaching classmates and teachers and etc so as to catch up. Even though I know things are most likely going to be hard after I graduate from NUS, considering that I only have a general degree and that the job market is still progressing towards full acceptance of disabled employees, I am confident in surmounting whatever may come.

The school also provided many other opportunities to interact with the world beyond through excursions to places such as the Singapore River and hydroponics farms. All of these excursions were valuable lessons on science, history and geography among other things. More importantly, it gave me the opportunity to be integrated in a mainstream primary school, St. Anthony’s Primary School. Exposure to the hearing world broadened my horizons and gave me practice in improving my communication skills.

Even after I left the school, my former teachers still rendered assistance when I needed it most. For instance, when I had problems with my studies in my ‘O’ level years, my former teachers gave me a pep talk and a few extra lessons in subjects I was weak in, which helped tremendously. More recently, when I was conducting an empirical study on hearing impaired children for my third year project, the school did whatever it could to ensure my project proceeded smoothly.

Indeed, "Canossian" is a school that genuinely cares about the welfare of its students and works towards moulding these students into self-assured and responsible citizens that can contribute to society in many different ways.

Written by
Benedict Ho