By Casey Stribbell
For former TIS student Marika Veith, life in Macau began at an early age.
The Veith family moved to the city to start a church when Marika was less than a year old, so to her, Macau has always been home. The early beginnings of the church involved meeting people at restaurants and teaching English in the Veith’s apartment. Marika says her parent’s work is “often idealized” but can be “really hard.”
“It’s difficult to start and keep a church going in Macau due to the many stresses of a fast-paced life and the many casinos, however, I have learned a lot from my parents planning a church here,” Marika said.
Marika still remembers attending TIS when the school was just a small building being rented out from MUST. She graduated in 2014 and now attends Canadian Mennonite University in Winnipeg, Manitoba where she studies occupational therapy. Toward the end of this school year, she longed to return to Macau for the summer.
“My parents don’t live in Macau anymore and I thought ‘what would be a good way to spend time in Macau while getting some experience?’ so I emailed the school asking if there were any job openings or internships available for the summer,” Marika said.
Marika was in luck, and can now be seen sporting a staff ID as an intern in the Inclusive Education Department. Before starting her internship, she didn’t realize just how intensive Inclusive Ed would be, and that she would be working one-on-one with special needs students.
“With Inclusive Ed, you really have to work at the student’s level and pace. It’s so much more effective if students are on board with what they are learning instead of having a set curriculum forced upon them.”
Marika also participates in Physiotherapist Julie Kirkman’s sessions, where she has had the opportunity to do a couple of one-on-one sessions with the students and provide extra support in the classrooms.
“Watching Julie is really cool because often she will go with what the kids want to do and work physiotherapy into that activity, which I found really interesting and really valuable. I think it’s very different working in the general school setting because there are a lot more factors to consider and students have more aspects that are difficult and that bother them.”
“The special needs students are really benefiting from TIS having an Inclusive Ed department. It has built programs around individual needs for each student. I think it’s a really positive aspect for both the students and the school.”
Marika is excited to see what lies ahead for Inclusive Ed at TIS and hopes to return in five or ten years when the department will be located in the new Phase II building.
As she finishes up her last couple of weeks at TIS, Marika is constantly reminded of the many happy memories she has of Macau, a sure sign that she will return in the not too distant future.