‘Don’t let anyone make you feel inferior’

Budding storyteller: Aaron won the first prize at a recent competition.

IT is important to believe in our own abilities and forge our individual pathways towards achieving our life goals – that is the principle that special needs student Aaron Yong Tzy Seng lives by.

Fresh from gaining recognition at a storytelling competition, the 17-year-old had this to say to his peers: “Believe in your own capabilities, ideas and paths. Don’t let anyone make you feel inferior.”

“We are often pressured by our peers to meet certain criteria in order to feel included and accepted. This could be unhealthy, as it causes us to diminish our opinions of ourselves, and we become pessimistic about our future. Such misconceptions could dampen our chances to fully reach our potential,” he added.

At the “Under the Skies of Australia” International Festival Online Competition held on Feb 20, the Keningau Vocational College, Sabah, student, proved his potential by bagging the first prize for his animated tale entitled “Gimbaran”.

It was his first time participating in such a competition, he told StarEdu. “I gained a lot of experience from it. I learnt to identify the correct pronunciation of each word. This built my confidence in my English proficiency,” he shared.

“One difficulty I faced was in pronouncing non-English words with accuracy, like gimbaran (genie) and Bajau (a native tribe), so my teachers and I removed or replaced certain words,” he added.

For his entry submission, Aaron did a voiceover for his animated tale in the format of a video.

“Prior to the recording process, I had to first read the story and fully comprehend it. This was important for me to be able to visualise the story and play it out in my mind. Hence, I could portray the character and the story’s context effectively through my voice,” he explained.

Motivated by his win, Aaron expressed interest in taking part in future competitions that aim to showcase students’ mastery of the English language.

Commenting on Aaron’s performance, Keningau Vocational College English language teacher Sirhajwan Idek, who wrote the story, said special needs learners are equal to other learners in terms of capability. “Aaron’s achievement has proven that individuals with special needs just require specific support and alternatives to help them progress and develop their skills and talents,” he said.

He stressed that it is crucial to encourage students to participate in such competitions.

“Taking part in competitions gives students strong motivation to delve into a particular activity until they attain the desired results.“Such motivation is essential to boost students’ engagement in their education. Competitions also introduce students to the real world, which is vital for them to broaden their minds and push themselves out of their comfort zones,” he said.

To watch Aaron’s animated tale, go to: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DgSIeM90szE&t=12s

Li Lian, 17, a student in Kuala Lumpur, is a participant of the BRATs Young Journalist Programme run by The Star’s Newspaper-in-Education (Star-NiE) team.