Food for Thought

One challenge I have faced in teaching in the Bible College is the lack of proper education afforded Deaf people here in South Africa. We all know Africa is behind in many areas, and their educational system is no different. While they do have programs for training teachers to work solely with Deaf children, there are simply not enough.

There are currently 46 recognized Deaf schools in South Africa. Schools always have a lack of teachers. One common practice here in South Africa is to place teachers where they are needed, regardless of their 'fit' within that school. Therefore, many hearing teachers who have never even been exposed to sign language are placed into Deaf schools in order to 'fill' a place.

Many Deaf children who attend these schools do not receive any kind of education. Imagine yourself living in America. Your school is short of teachers, so the government places any certified teacher in your school. The problem is, your class gets a teacher who only speaks Russian. She does not know any English whatsoever. She continues to be your teacher until you 'graduate'.

Now, when you have 'graduated' from this school, are you prepared to be involved in American society? Of course not. While you have physically attended school, you have not learned anything, because your teacher did not speak your language. That is how it is for many Deaf people in South Africa.

The majority of Deaf Africans are illiterate. They have great minds, and are very interested in learning things. The Bible is no exception. They are limited only by their lack of quality education. It is difficult to teach an adult the basic skills necessary for reading and writing English properly. They have acquired so many bad habits. Where do you begin?

Where did this lack of care in Deaf education come from? Well, Socrates and Aristotle had definite ideas on Deafness. Aristotle made the statement:

“All those who are deaf from childhood are also dumb; they certainly make some kind of noise, but they have no language.”

Aristotle, believing that speech was the distinctive characteristic of humans, and that because the speech of Deaf persons was clearly not intelligible, thought that Deaf people lacked the important attributes that could impart intelligence upon humans. Aristotle has been accused of propagating the untruth that Deaf persons were not capable of abstract thought and were somehow a bit less human than hearing persons.

He influenced not only the Greek mindset, but the western world as well. Because a person has no spoken language does not mean they have inadequate learning abilities, or that their form of communication is inferior.

The problem lies in the type of education offered them. If people (whether consciously or not) continue to have the mindset that Deaf people are inferior, there will be no effort made to ensure they receive the same quality education available to hearing people.

So, please think of this as you pray for our ministry, that God would show us how best to help the people we are ministering to. We are very thankful the Holy Spirit leads ALL people into ALL truth, regardless of their education level, societal standing, or language.

Praise the Lord.