Hearing impaired student conquers all
Hearing impaired student conquers all
By Yudha Kartohadiprodjo
JAKARTA (JP): Galuh Sukmara Soejanto could be just another ordinary student with a distinctive achievement. Although she was always a top 10 student throughout her secondary education, graduating with the highest student evaluation score in Banjarnegara regency, Central Java, she has dreams and hopes and knows she will find obstacles in her quest to reach them, just like any other teenager.
What makes Galuh unique is her determination and strength to overcome her hindrance: a hearing disability.
Born as a normal baby 20 years ago, Galuh lost her auditory ability in a fall when she was two years old. Gradually, the world became a noiseless place for her, but it is through this world of silence that she makes herself heard.
Even though her inability to hear also led to a speech impediment, Galuh's parents sent her to a regular elementary school. Their reasoning seemed simple at the time: there was no school for the handicapped in her regency.
The decision nearly cost them Galuh's future; she nearly dropped out from elementary school.
"Her achievement (at elementary school) was well below average, she could barely hear anything in the classroom," said Soejanto, Galuh's father.
Yet there was something behind their reasoning that nurtured Galuh's inner strength. Soejanto believed that his daughter should learn to communicate with others, otherwise she would not be accepted in society.
Attending a regular school was an unpleasant experience for Galuh in the beginning. Galuh had not learned to talk prior to her fall.
"People thought I was both mute and deaf," said Galuh in a written interview with The Jakarta Post. She bitterly recalled those days as a "shameful and depressing" time. Rarely would people talk to her, let alone explain the subjects previously discussed in the classroom.
The family's poor economic condition -- Soejanto is a civil servant in the regency -- and the lack of medical facilities in the area postponed treatment until Galuh reached junior elementary school.
The day she was fitted with a hearing aid at the age of 12 was an unforgettable thrill for the girl.
"She hysterically cried on the way back from Yogyakarta, for at last she could finally hear," recalled Soejanto.
The hearing aid became an agent of change in Galuh's life. Although it took time for her to learn how to talk, the device improved her hearing significantly enough for her to listen to lectures in the classroom.
In junior high school, Galuh proved that she was better than her peers. She was always among the best five in her class.
Galuh did not stop there. She involved herself in extra curricular activities by becoming a treasurer for the school's student organization.
She also participated in sporting tournaments in her region. In sport, being a deaf individual had its perks.
"Since I could lip-read, I could see what my opponents were saying on the opposite side of the field," said Galuh. She added that half of the words were somewhat indecent and not worth repeating.
In 1993, she came second in a table tennis tournament in the regency. Galuh also represented her school in a model student competition at the regency level, but she did not win.
"I was really amazed by her determination. The only thing that slowed her down was when she had to communicate in a forum," said Soejanto.
Her disability did not stop her becoming the champion in a speech competition in her sophomore year.
Continuing her achievements throughout her years in high school, Galuh was accepted by Gadjah Mada University's School of Psychology, Yogyakarta, after graduating with the highest student evaluation score in her regency.
Even though she had an excellent academic record, the school nearly rejected her due to her disability.
It was not the first time Galuh experienced discrimination. The regular education system in Indonesia is known for its rigidity and has little sympathy for a disabled person like Galuh. One of her most dreaded experiences were oral examinations.
"Even if I studied hard, how could I answer questions, if I have trouble hearing them?" said Galuh.
To overcome her predicament Galuh, whose principle is "communication is not an obstacle but a challenge", applied unconventional means of learning. One of them was by becoming a guide for foreign tourist at Dieng Plateau, Central Java.
From the experience, not only could she practice English, Galuh also regained her confidence and made acquaintances from abroad.
Developing confidence was an issue that Galuh and her parents had to face when she started university. They felt that the campus environment and workload surely would be more complex than her past academic experience.
"I always have to remind her that individuals were born with their own advantages and shortcomings" said Soejanto. He also took her to Father Adrianus, a director of a school for the handicapped in Wonosobo, Central Java, who gave her some advise.
Through Adrianus, Galuh learned about the Alexander Graham Bell Association in the United States. The association is a nonprofit organization with a mission to empower individuals with a hearing impairment for full participation in society.
After a selection process, Galuh became one of 74 recipients of college scholarships from the association. The recipients were selected from a pool of outstanding hearing impaired students in the United States and abroad.
Galuh received the scholarship with mixed feelings. On one hand she felt relieved that her achievement in overcoming her disability was commended, on the other hand she felt frustrated at the lack of local awareness for someone like her.
"There is a lack of attention for disabled students in universities in Indonesia, while in universities abroad they give permission for an oral interpreter to be present in lecture rooms," said Galuh.
Her experience generated an obsession to advocate recognition for hearing impaired individuals in Indonesia. By studying psychology she hopes to specialize in psychology for hearing impaired individuals and hopes to encourage people with a similar condition.
Recalling Galuh's inquisitive nature as an adolescent, Soejanto remembered some of Galuh's disturbing questions about God.
"Now I realized it was more about her restlessness at that time, yet her closeness to Him, her motivation and persistence overcame everything," said Soejanto.