Unable to read as a teen, now a PhD student兒時讀寫難，現今已博士

孟潔

School life can be hard for any child， but if you add severe learning difficulties into the mix， it can be unbearable. This was the case for William Carter， who really struggled throughout his primary education. To make things worse， he was laughed at by classmates for his learning difficulties.

At 13， he was still unable to read. However， when he was properly diagnosed with severe difficulty in reading and writing as well as sport， his education turned around. Eventually， Carter managed to gain a first-class degree in politics and international relations at the University of Bristol in England. After receiving a scholarship， he is now studying for a PhD in political geography at the University of California， Berkeley.

“Learning how to read and write made the world more real and perceptible（可感知的） to me and I got closer to the world，” the academic shared with us.

Spending so long without being properly diagnosed makes his achievements even more incredible. The process to have special needs recognized by an educational body can be exhausting. Yet as soon as the diagnosis is made， life becomes more bearable for the child， with lessons and materials adapted to give him a chance to grasp what he is trying to learn. The fact that Carter's achievements are so impressive demonstrates how capable kids with special needs truly are. Carter seems almost grateful for his learning disabilities. He believes “fundamentally， dyslexia（讀寫障礙） made me who I am today”.

The adult's goal is to become a professor of political theory and Black geographies and then follow a career in politics. He aims to correct a system that he feels is lacking： “The fact that I， through luck and the support of others， ‘made it in spite of social-economic barriers， shouldn't justify our system and society.”

In appreciating the opportunities he was given， Carter will no doubt be a brilliant advocate for other children facing inequality at school and an inspiration for other youngsters and their parents.

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