Dr. Abdullah Al-Omari, the head of the Saudi Society for Earth Sciences, shared an anecdote on mbc about his difficult experiences in primary school. When he was in fourth grade, he suffered from severe meningitis due to the cold climate and lack of medical centers in the Tabuk region. The illness resulted in him losing 80% of his hearing and 50% of his speech. Despite using medicinal herbs, his suffering continued.
Al-Omari recounted how his teacher in grade five severely beat him when he had difficulty pronouncing his number due to his weakened speech. He didn’t tell his father, as he didn’t want to be kept at home and miss out on his studies. The teacher wanted him to pronounce the letters correctly and was both fearful and desirous to teach. While the tongue adjusted in grades five and six, his ear remained the same.
In the sixth grade, Al-Omari sat at the end of the class and relied on what he could hear from his teacher to answer questions, as his classmates were not helping him until he reached second intermediate grade. He had a good memory and would answer and write down the page number where he found the answer when the teacher taught them history. The teacher accused him of cheating and hit him on his face; however, the other students defended him and questioned why he was hit first. The teacher was surprised when Al-Omari could correctly answer his questions.
Al-Marsad newspaper: The head of the Saudi Society for Earth Sciences, Dr. Abdullah Al-Omari, narrated the story of the slap he was subjected to by his teacher after he thought he was cheating.
fourth grade
Al-Omari said, during his interview on mbc: “When I reached the fourth grade of primary school, it was known that the Tabuk region was very cold and there were no medical centers, and I had severe meningitis.”
fever
He added, “Fever made me lose 80% of my hearing and 50% of my speech. We used medicinal herbs for treatment, but the suffering continued.”
He continued: “My number was in grade 5, but I pronounced it with difficulty, so the teacher beat me severely. I did not tell my father so that they would not sit me at home while I wanted to study.”
pronunciation of letters
And he continued: “The teacher used to tell me that I had to pronounce the letter completely, so he was in fear and desire to teach on the other hand. In the fifth and sixth grade, the tongue adjusts, but the ear is the same.”
a guarantee
And he continued: “I came late in the sixth grade, and I sat at the end of the class, so the teacher would ask me and I would tell him what I hear. At school, they called me Saman.”
Intermediate second grade
And he added, “The students were not helping each other, until I reached the second intermediate grade. I had a good ability to memorize. The teacher told us about history. I used to answer and write the number of the page on which the answer was.”
The teacher’s reaction
And he concluded: “The teacher said that I was cheating, and two palms hit me on my face. The students said, ‘Why do you hit him first?’ He answered because I write the page number, so he asked me a question and asked to hear, and when I answered, he stood shocked.”
Dr. Abdullah Al-Omari’s story is a testament to the resilience that can be cultivated even in the face of severe adversity. His experience of being slapped by his teacher for what was a misjudgment on the part of the latter is just one among several struggles he faced growing up. Al-Omari’s ability to overcome his hearing and speech disabilities and emerge as the head of the Saudi Society for Earth Sciences is a powerful example of how one can rise above hardships and achieve greatness. Let us take inspiration in his story and push ourselves to achieve our own goals, regardless of the challenges we face.