It is difficult to be Gleb

Who makes education inclusive

In this academic year, in Khabarovsk, a blind boy Gleb Kotin went to the first grade of a comprehensive school. In the class, he is the only special child. The first half of the year passed well, the second began. The correspondent of “such cases” tried to understand thanks to whom and what it became possible.

Gleb puts a briefcase on the desk. Gropes with his hands a boil board and notebooks, laid out on the table. He begins to open all the portfolio departments in turn and tries to find something, checks all departments several times and says very quietly:

- Natalya Vasilievna, - children are noisy in the class, she does not hear.

- Natalya Vasilievna.

- What, Gleb?

- I seem to have lost the griffle. - Gleb turns red and begins to cry.

Teacher Natalya Vasilievna approaches him, once again checks all departments. Gleb stands nearby, rubs his eyes and cries.

- Stop roaring! - She speaks strictly, in high colors. - What are you roaring? Now we will find.

Indeed, he finds a round, light green case in a backpack, checks-a barrel inside. This is the main tool for Gleb: instead of paper and handle, he has a barrel and a boil board, he pierces the points with a neck, that is, he writes letters. Gleb checks with his fingers that the barrier is really here, he rubs his eyes, stops crying and sits down at the desk.

Gleb in the mathematics lesson photo: Victoria Mikisha

Gleb is nine years old, in March there will be ten. It is thin, fragile, the ribs can be counted, below his classmates to the head. He speaks quietly and on a chant. Often turns his head. Continuously rubbing his eyes and presses his fingers forever so that it seems that from this pressing the eyes should be painful.

Gleb was born prematurely. At three months, blinded. It distinguishes only light and darkness, does not see the outlines of objects. In the early days of the school year, Gleb's classmates closed their eyes with their hands and walked along the corridor with their eyes closed, and then told the teacher the result of the experiment: “It is difficult to be Gleb!”

On the canvas of any size, fabric cards on Velcro of different shapes, a weak -visible student moves them to the touch, so, for example, you can engage in mathematics

Being Gleb is very interesting. Every evening he and her mother check the schedule: will all the planned happen? Mom agrees with dad and grandfather: one will bring Gleb to school, the other will take it. Everything needs to be in time. Gleb is engaged in two theater studios, studies at a music school, training with his dad he trains, plays in an experimental children's theater. For diversity: roller skating or skates, concerts in the Philharmonic and last year - riding.

Before entering a comprehensive school, Gleb was engaged in a boarding school for blind and visually impaired children, he studied the preparatory and first classes. It was there that Gleb, his mother Elena and teacher Natalya Vasilievna met. But in the boarding school their relationship was completely different.

How to climb to the top of the mountain

Natalya Vasilievna Skalozub leaves the city scientific and methodological seminar for teachers of defectologists. He goes around the corner of the neighboring house - to smoke. Looks like a teenager: no one sees? Smokes and tells.

- I have an idea of ​​this fix for two years: either to open a visually impaired class, or take a blind person to the inclusions. Just try: is it really unrealistic? I needed such a sick mother as I, you know? So we came together.

Natalia Skalozub is thirty years old. She has two children, both already go to school. She began work in a comprehensive school, and then got into a boarding school for the blind and visually impaired and remained seven years as a teacher, and then the head teacher. A professional teacher for blind and visually impaired children, she perfectly knows the ABC Braille. In a specialized boarding school, where everything has already been created for special children, I came up with a flannelgraph. This is a tactile board that replaces an interactive whiteboard: on a canvas of any size, fabric cards on Velcro of various shapes, a weak -visible student moves them to the touch, so, for example, you can engage in mathematics.

Gleb with mom before music in music photo: Victoria Mikisha

Gleb came to the class of Natalia Vasilievna at the end of the first half of the year. Natalya Vasilievna was not at all happy about such cooperation. Like other teachers in the boarding school, she disliked Gleb's mother. Then Natalya Vasilievna could not go against the opinion of the team: “Babier, you know, as in a pack. She did not immediately enter, did not immediately accept. And it began: "Yes, they want a lot, but the child is generally a fool." And I also said, I was also among them. ”

Gleb lived in continuous stress, Elena convinced the teachers that he was completely different at home than at school: "He was all nervous, he came to school, he was tensing, gathers, put on the portfolio and, like a soldier, went to the corridor to the war." Elena had to fight the misunderstanding and aggression of teachers, Gleb with the hard and ordered style of Natalia Vasilievna.

Svetlana Valentinovna tells another rule: she always organizes the process so that the parents of special children are in parental committees

- Parents pity them, and if I still relate to them, then nothing will work out of the child. But he doesn’t care go into the lives of the sighted, so he needs to fuck him so that he understands: no one in his life, excuse him, doesn’t bed, right? He came to the classroom, and it was such a ass! Gleb stream, Gleb cried, there were tantrums. He can simply go nearby now, and earlier he clung, scratched, he even kicked me! I drove him: "Come on faster, faster!"

- Why did you do that?

- This is my teaching style. I also have girls: “Faster, put it there, closed it, put it on the left,” she says the voice commander in the voice of the voice. And then he abruptly switches to a whisper. - This is a training. This is not possible, of course, to speak, but with children with everyone, even though they are normal, although they are abnormal, this is the main thing - a dream. How to put, how to get up, how to sit down. When you teach these basics, then you will start working normally already.

But six months later, Natalya Vasilievna decided to leave the boarding school to a secondary school. And then with the aggression of the team she had to face herself.

- When I left, I was also sang a lot and still scream. I understood this with my head, but emotionally I took it so hard, I had a depressed man all summer. I am an asthmatic, I was lying all summer, choked, I lost weight. That is, my roof went really.

- Why?

- I went into depression like this. I'll explain to you. I purposefully did this ... I realized in some period that I am somewhere upstairs, I can fall. And I myself purposefully made myself so that it is better for myself to go down and climb to another mountain - she smiles and speaks conspiratorially. - I read one good thought of the Chinese sage. When you stand at the top of one mountain, you see the top of the second mountain, but in order to get there, you must go down and get up. And I got into my head so! And I think for myself: I’d better go down now and begin to rise in a new school, re -gain authority. And, apparently, this was the moment when a person just falls, he is hard, bad, painful - and I purposefully did it.

Gleb reads a Russian language textbook, written by Braille's font photo: Victoria Mikisha

Gleb’s mother admits that she always had a confident position: Gleb should study at a regular school with ordinary children. “Even when we have not yet gone to school, we talked with my grandmother in the kitchen, she says:“ Here, specialized! ” -I say: “Well, how is it wrong, well, why a specialized school? Then there will be no specialized society, there will be no specialized life, only again within some kind of boarding school for the disabled, maybe. Well, why?” Elena's dream came true in the summer after the first grade she was called one of those teachers who did not accept and did not understand Gleb, and said: “But you do not want to leave after me?” This was Natalya Vasilievna Skalozub.

Now that the mother of the blind boy and his teacher had so much courage and impudence in order to risk changing the boarding school for a comprehensive school, they had to make the most difficult thing: to rebuild their relationship. How did they do it? We talked a lot. They discussed every case when they did not understand each other, expressed all claims, resentment. They even spoke what they said by the eyes before. “This is a great internal work. Find everything explanations, excuses for everything. It’s really difficult, ”Elena says slowly, pressing on every word.

I smoke, I'm swearing! I'm different! I am not a teacher, I am a guide, master, friend. I am so chasing Gleb now, and he understands my jokes

- We have reached this cooperation through mutual statements, insults and all different things. Now we can meet, we can drink, I can calmly smoke with her, ”says Natalya Vasilievna. - Initially, I had to change the attitude towards this family and the child, that is, roughly speaking, I re -accepted this child, you know?

- How did you do it?

- No way. I just removed all my ambitions. I removed my whole past impression and I looked at him with different eyes. Last year I did not know how to communicate with them, they were an intelligent family, it would seem that I should be like that too, but I am not like that, I am a gouging! I smoke, I'm swearing! I'm different! I am not a teacher, I am a guide, master, friend. I am so chasing Gleb now, and he understands my jokes. He also accepted me, I don’t know how he did it. He accepted me again!

Where the comfort zone ends

About six in the evening, Gleb eats, and grandmother helps him get dressed. Dad Gleb Edward arrived, his grandmother also put a plate with dinner for him. We are going to classes: first we take my mother from work, then we go to the theater of the young viewer, we need to record music for Gleb’s performance in the Philharmonic in honor of the Day of the Disabled, then to the pool, twice a week, Gleb has swimming.

During physiotherapy physical education photo: Victoria Mikisha

Gleb is dressed, and I am instructed to go down with him to the car. The ninth floor, the elevator does not work. I am surprised how easily and quickly my grandmother trusts me with his blind grandson - he does not see where they lead him, and I can take him anywhere.

- And you are not afraid to go with me, you don't know me at all? - I ask Gleb when we go down.

“No,” his sonorous voice sounds easy and confident. He holds my hand and walks bolder than me.

In training in swimming with Gleb, father and coach Olga Grishina are engaged in. One of the exercises: Olga carefully holds Gleb by the legs, Gleb waves her hands, working out the technique of swimming with a rabbit. In each hand, Gleb has yellow plastic tubes, they hit them on the barass of the pool. One swing with a hand - one light blow of plastic on metal.

When Gleb gets used to moving freely in water, he will adapt faster in any space

Two years ago, Gleb was afraid of water. His movements were sharp, the body was tough, he continuously clung to the coach. He said something endlessly and laughed loudly. His laughter resembled the screeching of the sounds of marine animals. Olga at first did not understand why Gleb laughs, and then guessed: not having the opportunity to see, he checks the space with sound - is there any obstacle?

Olga confidently states that she does not train Gleb and does not teach him to swim with a rabbit or a brass, there are no such tasks. Task: to help Gleb allow yourself to move more widely and more smoothly, to trust space and learn to adapt as quickly as possible in it. To train these skills in water, as Olga says, is most effective, because water is not the environment in which we live, and each time it is a discomfort zone, no matter how we convince ourselves the opposite. When Gleb gets used to moving freely in the water, he will quickly adapt in any space. This will help him boldly manifest and create something, because only after complete adaptation in a new place do we begin to create.

“Parents help him a lot, they try to convey to him that the comfort zone is everywhere. That you need to try everything so that you can manifest itself as much as possible. I see my parents like this: their main idea that the comfort zone is everywhere! Because someday Gleb will be left alone, and if the comfort zones are limited, then it will be limited. ”

Olga has never been saying about Gleb the word “disability”, the words “blind” or “blind” also does not speak, does not even say “special child”, invents a new term - “multitasking”. After all, each task was created in order to begin to solve it.

On the left: At the beginning of swimming training, Gleb is crossing the pool several times, listening to the guiding voices of the coach and dad. Right: Gleb and his dad Edward photo: Victoria Mikisha

Olga claims that we become more tolerant and loyal to special people. And he explains: in order to start taking others, you must first accept yourself with all imperfections and difficulties. “What will happen to such a person who does not perceive the blind boy if he, too, at some point loses his eyesight? How long will he live with this task? We cannot perceive the world differently - only through ourselves. If I do not accept another in the outside world, then most likely I do not perceive this and at home. ”

What is tolerance

The secondary school of the 68th city of Khabarovsk, where Gleb Kotin is studying, is very crowded. Now it has 1417 students, of which 21 are a child with health features, three for home schooling, the remaining 18 in classes.

Children with disabilities at the school appeared thanks to the neighboring kindergarten of a combined species, in which healthy children, and dull and hearing -impaired people were engaged in the same group. The children who were released from this kindergarten went to the 68th school. They sat at the school at school, and after lunch went to kindergarten, where they were continued by the psychologist, speech therapist and defectologist.

But at the end of the 2000s, in kindergarten, there was not enough money, and the escort of schoolchildren was canceled. Then the leaders of the 68th school understood: it is necessary to recruit specialists for special children. In 2006-2007, there were no bets for psychologists, speech therapists and defectologists in secondary schools of bets. Therefore, the director of the 68th school, Svetlana Valentinovna Filatova, recruited these specialists at 0.25 and 0.5 rates for the position - which ones would be. This is later, in 2014, the law appeared, and bets appeared.

Svetlana Filatova has been working as the director of the 68th school since 2006. According to first education, she is a teacher of Russian language and literature, in the second - a defectologist. In education, she has been more than thirty years old, of which eight worked as a teacher in a boarding school for hearing impaired. On Thursday evening, we are talking in her office.

- We will not be cunning, Gleb blindly went after his teacher. I only had one doubt: how would he go here at all, to navigate? This doubt is always the most difficult. How does a acquaintance always happen? I invite parents and the child, traditionally we go through school, such as an excursion with us - I see how the child is guided by at least in empty corridors. There are children who are afraid, they immediately have a panic, and I say to parents: “Think! Is it worth it to run when he is afraid of step to step in an empty school? "

Teacher Natalya Vasilievna Skalozub, Mom Gleb Elena and Gleb photo: Victoria Mikisha

- And how was it with Gleb?

- He went with Natalya Vasilievna, that is, they held a tour without me. And when he came to my office, he told me: "Everything suits me at your school, except for the call." I say: "Why is it not happy with the call?" “He is very loud, I'm very scared of the call.” Well, when he talked in this mass in this mass at a break, we met with him just a week in September in September, I say: “Well, Gleb, I don’t succeed, the big costs are cash, I can’t change so quickly,” but he says: “You know, this is no longer a problem, because your call does not scare me.”

- Was teachers resistance to special children?

On Sunday, my mother goes to the Philharmonic with Gleb - this is a tradition, even when Gleb was four, Elena bought subscriptions

-When a new law on education entered into force, the 273rd, teachers brought to the fact that you will either improve, or you will leave school. So it happens. We left five people. They cannot rebuild! On new principles, to teach everyone. All! Look, now the classification of children from smart to weak is still used in elite institutions. Here, we will collect smart ones in one class, and it will be some kind of class with in-depth study, and we will collect the weak into class for children with mental retardation. Well, this system did not work. In education, this system is not fought-b-t-la! Why they say - maybe it cuts hearing, because it is not quite Russian this word - tolerance. In fact, the adoption of everyone and everything is tolerance.

Svetlana Valentinovna tells about another rule: she always organizes the process so that the parents of special children are in parental committees. Then they begin to see not only the problems of their child, but also the needs of the whole class. The rest of the parents cease to be a hostile environment for them, and a mother or dad of a special child from an observant and wary person becomes acting and authoritative.

- You studied in the Soviet education system, and then there was no acceptance of everyone and everything. Mentally retarded and complex people isolated. What helped you rebuild?

Глеб и его одноклассница Алина общаются, они оба не ходят на физкультуру Фото: Виктория Микиша

— Ну, не знаю… у меня не было как таковой перестройки. Может быть, потому что я начинала с интерната. Мало того, у меня дети поступили потом в Бауманку. Я никогда не чувствовала, что, не дай бог, ко мне какой юродивый подошел. Это идет от человека, я бы так сказала.

— Но в человеке это идет от чего-то, вот у вас это откуда?

— Наверное, от семьи.

— А что у вас такого в семье?

— Да ничего такого. У нас просто в семье пожизненный был колхоз, мы все время за кем-то ухаживали. То прабабушка, то прадедушка.

— Они были лежачими?

- Yes. У меня так в жизни случалось, я постоянно кого-то выхаживала. Well, I don't know. Какие-то вы мне такие вопросы задаете, честно говоря, никогда не задумывалась над этим. Where did I get it from? Вот, если некоторых раздражают больные люди, меня не раздражают они. Маму же не раздражало, она, видать, внушила это мне, что это естественно — вот так случилось с людьми. Под закат моей жизни у меня, простите, муж слег. У него случился инсульт, и он просто превратился во что превратился. Перед этим мама с онкозаболеванием, и я опять за ней ухаживала. И хватало — и на этих инвалидов, и на своего мужа. Я не знаю, откуда это, правда, не знаю. Даже не отвечу.

На лошади галопом

Отец Глеба Эдуард рассказывает, что в роддоме про Глеба сказали, что он будет растением, его судьба — всю жизнь лежать на кровати. «Сначало было обидно, злость. А сейчас уже обидно то, что он не может то, что мы можем. Поэтому стараемся его вывести как можно больше в люди, чтобы он не просто был обыкновенным ребенком, а уже человеком. Пианист какой-нибудь или еще чего-нибудь. Знаменитый — уже совсем по-другому отношение же».

Слева: Глеб скачет на лошади Капле галопом. Справа: Глеб на лошади Капле Фото: Виктория Микиша

В воскресенье мама идет с Глебом в филармонию — это традиция, еще когда Глебу было четыре, Елена покупала абонементы, и они два-три вечера в неделю пропадали в концертном зале. После концерта Эдуард заезжает за ними, и все вместе едут за город, на тренировку по верховой езде.

Мама Елена Котина и папа Эдуард Оккель стоят за деревянной оградой из нескольких бревен и наблюдают. Елена спрятала руки в карманы пуховика, улыбается и выглядит очень спокойной. Эдуард оперся на перегородку забора, в его глазах недоверие и требовательность, он хмурится и выкрикивает: «Глеб, давай! Кружочек! Let's!" Их незрячий сын Глеб Котин скачет на лошади галопом. Ровно половину круга.