Hasna Ghafoor: Why I spent a month volunteering in Kenya

Hi I’m Hasna, I’m 18 years old and hard of hearing. I was diagnosed with a bilateral sensorineural moderate hearing loss at birth and was fitted with hearing aids in both ears just before my fourth birthday.

I attended a mainstream school and (armed with my hearing aids) managed to complete my GCSE’s with very little support, achieving 9 A’s and 2A*’s.

However as soon as I began studying for my A levels my grades began to fall as I got left behind in class.

One of the main challenges that people with a moderate deafness face is dealing with background noise.

I began to find that my understanding of the concepts covered in class was almost-but-not-quite complete and because of the gaps in my knowledge I was unable to answer exam questions to a high enough standard to achieve the grades I wanted.

This is the part where NDCS come in. NDCS (The National Deaf Children’s Society) informed me that a radio aid would help me in my studies by cutting out background noise, they then lent me a Roger Touchscreen Mic.

During the 3 months that I had this device my college noticed such an improvement in my grades that they purchased one for me to use during the remainder of my studies.

NDCS (along with a Teacher of the Deaf) also gave me vital information about the adjustments that could be made in class to make it easier for me to follow what was going on, this included having the notes in advance so I could familiarise myself with new concepts before the lesson.

Without this support in place, (and the understanding of my college) I would have continued to be left behind.

This summer I spent a month volunteering in Kenya, taking part in projects to help the local community. I helped renovate school classrooms, built gabion bags to combat erosion of river beds, created paths through a national park, built football pitches for the local schoolchildren to use and planted trees in conservation areas.

I also completed a 5-day trek climbing Mount Kenya (the second highest mountain in Africa at 4,985 metres), and as a result have raised over £600 for NDCS.

I wanted to give something back to the deaf community and try to make a difference to another deaf child’s life. You can see my just giving page here: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/hasna-mtkenya2018

According to the World health organisation, there are 32 million deaf children globally, 80% of which live in developing countries.

Yet during my month long visit I did not see a single deaf child with hearing aids, or with access to sign language. These kids are obviously not getting the support that they need.

Yet something my teacher said to me before the end of our trip comes to mind, “you don’t need to travel all the way out to Africa to see this level of poverty – you can get the same thing right outside your front door in England”.

Likewise, there are so many kids in England who, regardless of their financial situation, are also not getting the support that they need – especially in education. 57% of deaf children fail to achieve 5 GCSEs (including English and Maths) at grades A* to C, compared to 30% of hearing children.

This, along with the recent cuts to deaf children’s services means that the next generation of deaf kids in the UK are being set up for failure.

I am fortunate to have had so many opportunities that many other people do not have. Thanks to NDCS I have had the support I need in my education.

Not only technology wise, but also in terms of the understanding that people have shown. Most people I encounter are more than happy to face me when they speak, to get my attention first, or to repeat information where necessary.

Because of this support, I’ve had the opportunity to travel and experience so many things – this recent trip to Kenya is just one example of how deaf people are able to do anything when given the right support.

Deafness is not a learning disability and there is no reason why deaf children can’t achieve the same as, (or better!) than their hearing peers.

No child should ever be in a position where their deafness becomes a barrier to their achievement, or limits their potential. Deaf kids can achieve, they just need the right support.

Having successfully completed her A-levels, Hasna is looking forward to starting at the University of Manchester as an undergraduate student. In her spare time, she hopes to continue to pursue her interest in Ju-Jitsu and outdoor pursuits…