news, local-news, Ramail Isaac, prairiewood

For some students, the start of university can be a daunting task. New classes, new teachers and a new way or working. For Bossley Park resident Ramail Isaac, the prospect of new surroundings is made infinitely harder. The 19-year-old has been legally blind since he was 13. “I was born with cataracts and they were removed and my sight was fine till I turned 12,” he said. “Then I slowly started to lose my sight. A little bit at a time. The day I went home and didn’t get my sight back I wasn’t too sad because I slowly lost it.” It was however a big adjustment for a teenager who was just starting secondary school at Prairiewood High School. First there was learning how to navigate around the school, home and the community. The second was learning how to braille. “It was tough to learn braille – it is a very time consuming task and a bit frustrating,” Ramail said. “The biggest challenge about losing my sight was getting around the community and being independent around the house like cooking and getting clothes ready.” It hasn’t stopped him from achieving his goals. The 19-year-old achieved an ATAR 85.85 and will start a Bachelor of Science at the University of Sydney on March 6. He credits the support of his family, friends and school for helping him adjust and help him complete the HSC over two years. He has also received a grant from Fairfield Council as part of the Mayoral Scholarship Fund to purchase a BrailleNote Touch 32 to assist him in his studies. “It will allow me to connect it to my laptop and take notes without having to hear the screen reader talk to me and the lecturer talk at the same time,” Ramail said of the technology. “I’m really looking forward to starting university and continuing my studies and becoming my independent.” Ramail also intends to give back to the Fairfield community by offering his assistance to the Department of Education Vision Unit and Vision Australia to mentor other vision-impaired students.

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