Good afternoon, my name is Stefan

“Stefan is a cheerful, positive child who has always wanted to have friends and spend time with others. With the help of the communicator, his confidence has grown, his desire to socialise has increased, and so has other people’s willingness to spend time with him. Stefan’s life is now easier. And so is our life together with him,” says Marija, Stefan’s eldest sister.

Stefan is twelve years old and attends the sixth grade at Primary School “Mića Stojković” in Umčari. We meet him during a music class. Amid the hum of children’s voices, one voice stands out: “Good morning. I’m Stefan.” The class replies in unison, “Hi, Stefi. How are you feeling today?”

Stefan received “his voice” a year ago. Until then, there was a silence that was difficult for everyone to accept.

“We realised very early on that there was a developmental delay. He was 14 months old when he first went to a health facility, to the Clinic for Neurology and Child Psychiatry, and at that time we expected that he would start speaking. However, speech did not develop, but his understanding did. He used natural gestures and a few simple words. ‘Mama’ was the first word to appear, and for a long time that was the only word he could say. Later came ‘yes’ and ‘no’,” explains Marija.

When Stefan started school, new challenges emerged. Gestures and nodding were no longer enough for his family, teachers and classmates to understand his needs, wishes and interests.

“We needed help, some form of support, to be able to establish two-way communication with him,” says Marija. 

Support came from the school, through Jovana Savic, a school speech therapist who has worked with children for ten years and in this role for the past four. She met Stefan at the beginning of the third grade.

“I quickly understood that he has a lot to say, but that spoken words cannot come out, and that a communicator enables him to express himself in a way that works for him. When it was time for him to move from the fourth to the fifth grade, I decided to contact the Grocka Municipal Intersectoral Committee to request approval for the device. They connected us with the ‘Mara Mandic’ Resource Centre in Pancevo, who felt it would be better to approach the closer ‘Radivoj Popovic’ Resource Centre in Zemun. They scheduled an assessment, where it was determined that Stefan was a candidate for a communicator, which was ultimately provided through the Resource Centre in Kragujevac.

So this was a broad network of different institutions working together, doing the right thing, and ensuring the device for this child. Now we have a voice that supports Stefan through schooling, education and learning, as well as through friendships and social relationships more broadly,” explains Jovana.

For some children, like Stefan, assistive technology makes the difference between exclusion and inclusion. It removes barriers to communication, socialisation, learning, mobility and daily life, while strengthening quality of life and self-confidence.

As part of the project “Improving Quality Education for Every Child through Assistive Technologies,” the Ministry of Education, in cooperation with UNICEF, is equipping resource centre libraries with assistive technology packages. The enrichment of these resources is also supported by the Intesa Foundation.

How much a particular assistive technology helps a child depends, among other things, on the support of family members, teachers and peers. Stefan’s class has shown the real power of that kind of support. During music class, Stefan is often seated next to Magdalena, who explains what communication with him was like before; and how it changed after he received a communicator.

“He usually answered us by nodding his head for ‘yes’ or ‘no’, or he would just smile and shrug his shoulders. Now that he has a communicator, he always tells us if he needs something. It seems to me that he has become more at ease, less shy about telling us anything, and happier,” says Magdalena. 

Jana, who sits at the desk behind him, has known Stefan since kindergarten. She remembers him from that time as a quiet child who often kept to himself. She says the communicator has made a real difference in how Stefan engages with others. 

“It’s not a magic wand that can change everything, but it has strengthened his confidence in so many ways. He is very joyful. He loves to play, enjoys board games, music, movement, colours and animals, and he loves spending time with others. He is a very polite boy and always asks how you are, what you’re doing. He always wants to learn more about us, because for the past four years he wasn’t able to do that,” explains Jana. 

Mia Matković has been teaching Stefan music for almost a year. She recalls that at first he felt hesitant about using the communicator. With her support, as well as the support of other teachers, classmates and the speech therapist, that hesitation gradually faded. 

“Using the communicator has taught us, teachers and students alike, patience, and how to adapt, which I think is incredibly important,” says Mia.

She explains that the communicator has helped Stefan connect more easily with other children at school.

“Since he received this type of assistive technology, which allows him to be more open and express his thoughts, to ask and answer questions, tell us what he wants and show his emotions, we’ve seen a clear change, both in how he interacts with me as his teacher and with his classmates,” Mia explains.

She says the communicator has become an important step forward for Stefan’s education, learning and the development of his potential.

“In my class, Stefan is now more involved in group work, more active, and he often initiates conversations on his own, both with me and with other students,” she adds. 

Life for Stefan’s family is now more joyful, easier, and enriched by one more voice.

“Now Stefan can tell us about his day, what school was like, who he spent break time with, whether he has homework, whether he’s hungry and what he wants to eat. He can really take part in activities at home,” says his sister Marija.

Stefan is a kind, diligent and witty boy who is easy to like. His teachers and classmates don’t hide that at all. His sociable nature, now with a voice of its own, makes it easy to grow fond of him.