It is nice to be back in Maastricht! I absolutely love the teaching hotel. The staff is so friendly and makes me feel so comfortable. I still LOVE the breakfast! I missed it while I was in France. So today, we all went to the Special Education school in Maastricht. I was really nervous about going because when I see kids that are mentally challenged by any means, it just kills me. I thought I wouldn't be able to handle the sadness that I thought was going to go along with the visit, but it seemed like the kids really enjoyed their lives. I just cannot believe how the dutch education system alienates these students by lumping them all into one school. They truly need to follow the US in mainstreaming as many as possible!
Anyway, the vice principal gave a little introduction, and explained that this school was for the physically disabled and mentally retarded, (IQ 70-20). This school only has 92 students but a staff of 65 to help care for the students, which is a fabulous for the students. It was sad to hear that the mental age of the students is around 3 to 4 years old even though their mental age is way older. I was glad to hear about the countless services available for the students within the school. They offer education programs depending on each individuals needs, speech therapy, other types of therapies. The only downturn is that it is only offered during school hours, meaning they cannot have additional services paid for my the school. I am sure having a mentally challenged and physically challenged child is exhausting, expensive, yet rewarding. So it would be nice if extra services were available to the children. One thing that the principal said which really bothered me was "it" is handicapped…shouldn't he refer to his students as a he or a she. I think whatever he was trying to say might have gotten lost in translation. The principal redeemed himself by saying that his job is very rewarding. He loves the contact with the children and he may give a lot of himself, but when his students succeed, it truly is the best.
So after, Christina and I went into the physical therapy room and met a student who is becoming a physical therapist and doing her internship there. She also studied abroad in Boston her 2nd year of college. It was great talking with her and having her explain the specific tasks she was doing was great. I learned how much patience you need to have to work with the mentally and physically challenged. I commend all the teachers that had the 'calling' to work with these individuals. I saw how rewarding the job can be! It was also rewarding for the students when they achieved their goals. I was so happy for Dylan when he stepped onto the little step! We all clapped for him and he super excited. I just can't believe how happy and how proud he was of himself. It makes me want to have his spirit and to be more grateful for my life. Americans take so much for granted! ahhhh, it's so hard to change when everyone around you can be so greedy. Okay let me stop and get back to the school. Next, the physical therapy student had another boy come in whose right hemisphere was taken out because of severe seizures. This was strange to me because in the US, in similar circumstances they would just sever corpus callosum and not remove an entire hemisphere! Anyway, this boy had lots of issues just walking normally! I felt so bad!
Next, we went to Ellen's room, the speech therapist's and chatted about the differences in becoming a speech therapist. It seems like it is a little less work over there and it takes less schooling. Ellen had two patients visit while we were there. One had autistic and did not talk and the other was Down syndrome. The autistic boy used hand gestures to communicate to Ellen, which was fascinating. I've always wanted to learn ASL, but Maryland only offers one class and it fills up quite fast. This boy was super shy, but I still could understand his signs because most where iconic. The next patient had the mental capacity of a 2 and a half year old and used a matching game to learn new associations of the word to a corresponding picture. Ellen had such patience and seemed to do a thorough job. I was so impressed by her! I loved the speech aspect of the school.
After we headed to Maastricht University's cafe. I ate an amazing chicken, rice, and green bean meal with a side salad. Boy was I happy about the balanced meal! It was super funny being back on a college campus! I still didn't think we fit in, but nonetheless it was still enjoyable. I sat next to Annie, Emily, and Emilie and it was nice to switch up who I chatted with! I may be closest with Christina, Anna, and Amy, but I still really enjoy being with all of the girls on the trip. It is a special bond we all have and it will be nice to see one another on campus next semester. Speaking of next semester, that is NEXT week! Oh my goodness, life is crazy! After the school, we rested a little bit and got ready for Rene's birthday party! (60th birthday party to be exact!!)
We arrived a little late to Rene's birthday party! But I find that to be best. His house was a tiny old house, but had a lot of charm. It seemed very homey with the moldings on the doors and walls. His daughter Isabella was quite the hostess. She did an amazing job setting up the party. Rene had lots of wine and beer and food out for us. Isabella even made lots of cake pops! YUM! It was a fabulous time, we all mingled and celebrated Rene's birthday. We are all so crazy about him! We bought him a nice bottle of Italian wine! It seems like he'll enjoy it because the Europeans LOVE to drink beverages. I got the chance the talk to Rene's son who was still in high school yet was 22 years old. He went back for some reason. Then I chatted with Dirk, who is such a great guy! He definitely gets a kick out of my facial expressions! ;) We all took a Taxi home and then basically fell asleep early because we are going to Germany tomorrow!
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