Include Us - Zimbabwe Deaf people and Families.

Deaf mentors play an important role in raising awareness and building acceptance of deaf people in communities. At Nzeve when parents first come to the Centre with their child, they don’t know much about deaf culture nor sign language, they don’t know how to interact, play and communicate with their deaf child. Deaf mentors help bridge the gap of understanding and acceptance.

8 Deaf mentors and 12 parent mentors were trained and now work together with staff to provide support to new families of deaf children, and those still struggling to communicate with their child. Mpo is a both a Deaf student with Nzeve’s Vocational Training project and a Mentor. He shared his story of what it means for him to be a mentor.

Mpo’s story

“When I was invited to be a mentor, it was my first time to hear about mentoring and I wasn’t aware of the duties of a mentor. In the training I learned different things including being a role model. My experience working with ECD children was good; they like to learn and ask questions freely. Some parents were just sitting and looking at what we were doing with the children. I encouraged them to join the children during learning sessions to help them improve their communication. During home visits, I found that some parents have negative attitudes towards their deaf child. I was surprised by this, but when I explained to them about deafness, they changed. It is important for me to be involved in home visits, I am an example for other parents and children. If the community only see hearing people, they might not accept. There is no deaf person as proof. It is easier for them to accept when they see a deaf person. In the future, I am hoping to see more deaf children coming to school through awareness done by deaf mentors.”