Deaf School

Yesterday was really fun! Miriam (a German volunteer here at the village) and I traveled to a village called Jamase (Jugh-ma-see). There is one child in the village who is called Kwame Apomsah who attends the school. He was born hearing, and came to the village perfectly normal but he had a very severe case of spinal meningitis I think??? Since then, he lost nearly all his hearing, and had to relearn how to walk and take care of himself. Now... he is one of the top students at the school. All his teachers were praising him for his hard work and dedication at school.

We toured the entire campus and I was really really impressed. The Jamase Deaf school is the ONLY school in the Ashanti region for Deaf students. So.... nearly 450 students attend and board there the entire school year. They teach grades pre-K thru about middle school which is called J.S.S. (junior secondary school). All the grades have their own classrooms, with very qualified teachers. Everything is taught in English. They use mostly written language and a combination of American/Ghanaian sign language to communicate. They all obtain a basic education and then once they are to move on to another school they have a few options.
#1 - stay @ Jamase school and learn a trade (vocational training)
-this may include Kente weaving, tie & dye of fabric, catering, dressmaking, carpentry, etc.
#2 - transfer to Winneba school for the Deaf, which is a S.S. (senior secondary school)

Currently there are many students learning a trade, some at the S.S. and there are even about 6 at the University. The campus is very well organized, and funded through a NGO in Holland, the Ghana government and also the student's fee's help support the school.

There is a library, full computer lab, assessment center, recreation rooms,etc. There are also currently 2 peace corp volunteers who study Fine Arts for the Deaf of which are interning at the school. They are in charge of the art department there. One of the girls is from IN. :)

Pics on the way from my trip!!