I’ve written about Ryan Leitch before, but for those of you who don’t recognise the name, he’s the 18 year-old Auckland boy who topped the world in the Cambridge Geography exam last year. He’s also got muscular atrophy, and I reckon he’s a real inspiration for young disabled people in this country. Yet despite this, for some absurd reason, he can’t get funding for a support person at University, despite wanting to continue with his passion – Geography – at

This is what I love seeing, disabled people doing awesome stuff. It was reported today in the Herald that year 13 Westlake Boys student Ryan Leitch “topped the world” in his NCEA Level 3 Geography exam, such a grade achieved by only around 36 students every year. It is of little consequence to his academic success that Ryan also has muscular atrophy, but nonetheless the entire article has this tone of “Wow, look how well this kid has done, even

Because you could end up like the guy in this video. Be warned: this doesn’t feature some Disney-esque happy ending. The production is great and the suspense is high, but don’t say I didn’t warn ya…

Taken from stuff.co.nz: A centre that cares for severely disabled people faces having to turn people away next year because the Government is refusing to provide extra funding. The Chris Ruth Centre offers long-term, one-on-one care and specialist services for people in Christchurch with very high special needs who are too old to stay in the school system. Six more people want to enrol at the centre next year, but may not be able to because of the Government’s refusal

Just a bit of a personal prattle from me today! This morning I spoke at my old intermediate school’s prizegiving, and wow, what a buzz. I went to Kowhai Intermediate in 1997 and 1998 (whoa, how old am I?!) and it was such an awesome school, playing a huge part in the self-confidence and self-belief I possess today. So it was a real honour to be asked back, especially to speak in front of all the students and their families!

Following on from this post, regarding some right-wing politicians’ view that disabled children are better off segregated within their educational environment, a recent local study has shown that in fact, disabled children usually thrive in an integrated classroom. A huge factor in the success of integration is the part played by the classroom’s teacher, say the researchers from the Donald Beasley Institute and the Children’s Issues Centre in Dunedin. “The teacher has to do two fundamental things — believe that

Thanks to Terry for bringing this to my attention! A local mother has reached out to the media after she says a school went overboard while restraining her child. Isaiah Moore came home from Oak Hammock K-8 last April looking like he had just been in a fight. But the autistic boy’s injuries didn’t come from a scuffle – he was restrained by a school staffer. Moore’s mother obtained a tape from a security camera at the school. She says

As you may or may not have read recently, National’s Associate Spokesperson for Education, Allan Peachey, has copped plenty of flak from all corners over his comments surrounding educational facilities for disabled people, or apparent lack thereof. Mr Peachey, pictured left, seems to want to fill our country with special schools for kids with special needs, going as far to say that Labour “is uncomfortable” about considering such a move; I would venture to say that they’re not uncomfortable, they’re

“If you dream it and believe it, you can achieve it”. This is the motto of motivational speaker and track champion Cameron Calkoen, so it’s no surprise that he’s the one behind the revolutionary step in the world of mentoring, a programme he’s dubbed “Carabiner”. Carabiner is a mentoring project developed in conjunction with the North Shore LIFE Centre, and aims to contribute towards a society where young people with disabilities are optimistic about the future, and are supported and

A Nelson child psychotherapist has spoken up, claiming he sees a handful of children referred to him each year for behavioural and mental health problems, when in reality, it turns out they have an undiagnosed intellectual disability. The doctor, Joe Babinski, spoke at the recent New Zealand Association of Child and Adolescent Psychotherapists conference, which aimed to identify gaps in current services. He says the kids he sees each year with unrecognised disabilities is just ‘the tip of the iceberg’