Just because we have a disability, we are not given the same learning opportunities like our neurotypical peers. We are segregated in classrooms where we are taught the same thing repeatedly, irrespective of our age or grade. I was tired of learning the same alphabet and numbers from kindergarten to 5th grade.Just because I could not show my teachers that I could understand everything that was taught to me, they assumed that I was not capable of any intelligent work. I was wrongly diagnosed as having an intellectual disability. Also, because I am nonspeaking, it was assumed that I couldn’t understand anything that was told to me. My parents advocated for a communication device for me for many years,but I was repeatedly denied one by the school district and every time the speech therapist told my mom that I did not have the ability to use it.
I would advise students with disabilities to believe in themselves, and to never give up, and to continue working hard to succeed in their education. I would also advise them to seek a mentor who has a disability they can identify with, who can support and guide them on their educational journey.
Himani, a 12 year old nonspeaking autistic girl who uses an Accent 1000 device to communicate (with both symbols and independent typing) , gives a speech for the Heumann-Armstrong award about the ableism she has faced in education.
