Disability not a hindrance to success for Cikgu Mit
SIBU: Mit Serindin believes that disability is no hindrance when a person wants to achieve success in life.
The 42-year- old, who was born blind, has been teaching at SK Pendidikan Khas at Jalan Matang, Kuching since 2014, after having taught at SK Abang Ali here for 10 years.
Mit, from Rumah Ros in Ulu Sungai Naman, near here studied at SRK Jalan Ong Tiang Swee in Kuching from 1984 to 1989 where she was first introduced to the Braille writing system.
“I could say I grew up with the Braille system. The system excited me from my early days when I started to learn ( how) to read and write,” she said when met recently during a function organised here by The Society of the Blind in Malaysia ( SBM), where she was master- of- ceremony.
Relating a bit of her experience learning Braille, Mit said it was initially difficult but she was determined to master the system of writing and printing, which was invented by French educator Louis Braille for sightless people.
From SRK Jalan Ong Tiang Swee, she spent the following three years at SK Pendidikan Khas from 1989 to 1991 and, upon completing Upper 6 at SMK Batu Lintang, she furthered her education at a teachers’ training college in Kuching.
Relating her teaching experience, Mit said she taught sighted pupils at SK Abang Ali, and described the workload as ‘different’.
“The workload was different when teaching normal (sighted) and special needs pupils. For normal pupils, I had to do the same job twice.
“For example, when preparing learning materials, I had to type it in Braille before changing it to the alphabet and then getting assistance from school staff to type it again.
“Currently, I am teaching blind pupils. It is a whole different experience,” she added.
To those with disabilities, Mit advised them to never give up pursuing their goals, saying: “God is always with those who want to work hard.
“There are many successful blind personalities out there and they have had to work hard to achieve success.”