High-school student Chen Chien-ying (陳芊穎) said she hopes to help others after so many helped her overcome the limitations of cerebral palsy, once she obtains a psychology degree from National Taiwan University (NTU).
On Thursday last week, Chen became the first student from Changhua County’s National Lukang Senior High School to be accepted into the prestigious university through its program to help disadvantaged students.
Born with cerebral palsy, Chen said that she has always found movement difficult.
Photo: Liu Hsiao-hsin, Taipei Times
When she was an infant, her parents thought that she was just developing slowly, but after she was diagnosed at one year old, her parents took her to different specialists in the hopes of taking advantage of an early intervention.
Her mother took her to rehabilitation and acupuncture clinics for treatment, which Chen said helped, but was painful to endure.
Due to her condition, she must wear foot braces and has difficulty performing small movements, she said.
Writing notes during class is challenging to her, so she often takes photographs of the blackboard with her phone and uploads them for her classmates — in addition to preparing in advance to ensure she does not fall behind, Chen said.
For essays, her teachers let her type on a laptop, she said, but added that math class is challenging, as she has to use a pencil to write out calculations and proofs.
Fortunately, she is given more time to take tests, enabling her to advance in her studies, Chen said.
Chen, who has never attended a cram school, received good-enough grades in her high-school entrance exam to attend National Changhua Girls’ Senior High School, but decided to stay closer to home.
She said that she has encountered many kind teachers and students during her time at Lukang Senior High, who are happy to help her move around the school.
“The teachers are all sympathetic and have been very kind to me,” she said.
Chen said that she was inspired to choose NTU’s Department of Psychology after becoming fascinated with her brother’s book about Sigmund Freud’s dream interpretations.
Since so many people have helped her throughout her life, she said that she hopes to help even more people by becoming a psychologist.
Chen’s counselor, Yu Chih-ting (余志挺), said that the choice of a study program suits her well, as Chen has a very sharp mind.
Chen is not deterred by limitations, but works hard to realize her dreams, Lukang Senior High principal Lin Yi-hsien (林宜賢) said.
NTU provides an additional admissions track for students from disadvantaged backgrounds that employs a holistic approach.
Hong Kong singer Andy Lau’s (劉德華) concert in Taipei tonight has been cancelled due to Typhoon Kong-rei and is to be held at noon on Saturday instead, the concert organizer SuperDome said in a statement this afternoon. Tonight’s concert at Taipei Arena was to be the first of four consecutive nightly performances by Lau in Taipei, but it was called off at the request of Taipei Metro, the operator of the venue, due to the weather, said the organizer. Taipei Metro said the concert was cancelled out of consideration for the audience’s safety. The decision disappointed a number of Lau’s fans who had
A tropical depression east of the Philippines became a tropical storm early yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, less than a week after a typhoon barreled across the nation. The agency issued an advisory at 3:30am stating that the 22nd tropical storm, named Yinxing, of the Pacific typhoon season formed at 2am. As of 8am, the storm was 1,730km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, with a 100km radius. It was moving west-northwest at 32kph, with maximum sustained winds of 83kph and gusts of up to 108kph. Based on its current path, the storm is not expected to hit Taiwan, CWA
Commuters in Taipei picked their way through debris and navigated disrupted transit schedules this morning on their way to work and school, as the city was still working to clear the streets in the aftermath of Typhoon Kong-rey. By 11pm yesterday, there were estimated 2,000 trees down in the city, as well as 390 reports of infrastructure damage, 318 reports of building damage and 307 reports of fallen signs, the Taipei Public Works Department said. Workers were mobilized late last night to clear the debris as soon as possible, the department said. However, as of this morning, many people were leaving messages
A Canadian dental assistant was recently indicted by prosecutors after she was caught in August trying to smuggle 32kg of marijuana into Taiwan, the Aviation Police Bureau said on Wednesday. The 30-year-old was arrested on Aug. 4 after arriving on a flight to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Chang Tsung-lung (張驄瀧), a squad chief in the Aviation Police Bureau’s Criminal Investigation Division, told reporters. Customs officials noticed irregularities when the woman’s two suitcases passed through X-ray baggage scanners, Chang said. Upon searching them, officers discovered 32.61kg of marijuana, which local media outlets estimated to have a market value of more than NT$50 million (US$1.56