AMERICAN UNIVERSITY

Bayamon, Puerto Rico

COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
Edesp-645
CURRICULUM

Name: Johanna Rivera Rodríguez Date: June 24, 2022.

Value: ____/100
Final project for the EDESP-645 summer 2022 course

Movie year: 2021

Main character
So Wa Wai - Louis Cheung
Mrs. So- Sandra Ng

Secondary characters:
Chin Siu-Ho Suet-Ying Chung
Chung-Hang Siu Hin Ng
Lo Hoy-Pang
Tony Wu

Awards received: Nominated for the 2022 Oscar.

In which country does the plot take place?

The plot takes place in Hong Kong.
How does the plot begin?
The plot begins in the Beijing race where the film ends, then So Wa Wai's mother
is seen racing to the hospital with the baby in her hands.
What is the child's exceptionality?
So Wa Wai is a boy with Hemolytic Jaundice, a condition in which his antibodies
are different from his mother's and this causes an increase in his bilirubin levels,
affecting the part of his brain that controls muscles, creating Cerebral Palsy.

What treatment did the pediatrician who examined you recommend?

The pediatrician recommends an exchange transfusion as a diagnosis; which is
an effective procedure to remove abnormal blood components and surrounding toxins.
In this technique, the patient's blood is replaced with fresh or reconstituted blood.
How was the child transported?
The mother always carried the child on her back.

What signs do you make with your fingers?

The mother and Wa Wai make a sign with their fingers pointing to their eyes as if to say:
“I'm looking at you” to provide security.

What happens in the laundry?

Mrs. So took Wa Wai to work and one day he moved from the place where she
placed him while she worked, the desperate mother asks her who moved him. Then she
sits him on the work machine and turns on the belt to pressure the child to walk. At first
it didn't work, but when she starts crying, Wa Wai stands up and starts walking holding
on to a railing.

1993, What happens when you are selling lottery tickets?

In 1993, Wa Wai was selling prints of the god of fortune in his neighborhood and
some bandits tried to take half of his money, but he recovered the bill and began a
career in which he began to cultivate a talent for racing.

Where does your mother want to register you?

The mother wanted to REGISTER Wa Wai in the Sports Association for People
with Physical Disabilities, in the athletics team. The person in charge of the Association
did not want to register him because the young man was 13 years old and to practice in
the association he had to be 14 years old, but Ms. So did not give up.

What is the young man's expression?

The young man from the Association became upset at Mrs. So's insistence.

Describe the incident with the coach?

Coach Fong ordered Wa Wai to do ten (10) laps of the track as part of his
training; As the coach's sister told him not to pay much attention to her and to walk,
when the court lights went out, Wa Wai thought he was finished and was going home.
Wa Wai made a mistake because Coach Fong told him that he had only done eight (8)
laps and had two more to go, so he put a flashlight on his head and he had to finish his
training. This teaches Wa Wai discipline, as it is very necessary to develop in the sport.

Explain the incident between the athletes. Exceptionalities?

In the last Paralympics in which the athletes had participated, Coach Fong chose
Tren Tung, Keung and the third young man to run the 4 X 100 relay with him. They had
all trained to win a medal in the event, but when Keung was going to pass the baton he
made a mistake and they lost time so they came in fourth place, losing the chance to
win a medal. That year was the last year that Coach Fong would participate in the
Paralympics, fading his chance of winning a medal. In order to win a medal, the coach
decided to make some changes in the order of the athletes, which upset Tren Tung and
he gave up his participation in the race and left the track. After a conversation with Mrs.
So where she showed him the admiration that Wa Wai felt for him, he decided to return
and motivate Wa Wai.

What did I need to go down to 15”?

Wa WAi needed to improve his balance to lower his time to 15 seconds.

In 1996, what happened?

In 1996, the boys arrived in Atlanta, United States to participate in the Paralympics.

What is the mother's new job?

The mother got a new job washing toilets.

What happens when you get to the US Olympics? USA?

Upon arriving in the United States, Wa Wai called his mother and did not want to
run because he felt alone; But his mother motivated him and asked him to imagine that
she was seeing him and waiting for him at the finish line. Wa Wai cries because he
misses his family.
What does the younger brother want to do?
The one from the Wa Wai race wanted to go to the bathroom but his mother
asked him to wait because the race on television would begin. At another time, when
they grew up, the younger brother wanted his mother to pay attention to him and get
money.

Did they win the medal? Explain the situation

The athletes worked as a team and although there was a setback, they managed
to recover and won the gold medal, after watching the replay on the screen because it
was a very close finish.

What did the mother request from the government?

Ms. So asked the Hong Kong government for equal pay for equal work, since an
Olympic medalist was remunerated economically and a Paralympic medalist is not paid
the same and it is unfair. In addition, she requested equality since there is no
differences between both.

What did the seller offer the mother?

The salesman Victor was a specialist in representing athletes, seeking to
promote them and increase popularity, with which they could make money.

What does his mother force him to do?

. The mother forces Wa Wai to be Wonder Boy to promote various items such as
t-shirts, pants, sneakers, socks, and health drinks. Then, when recording a commercial,
the director asks Wa Wai to speak with a stutter because speaking well does not seem
like a person with disabilities, he wanted to change his way of being and the mother
supported the director by asking him to follow her instructions, which made him feel bad
to Wa Wai.

Explain the situation to your friend.

 On one occasion when they were near the train, Wa Wai's mother told him that if
he liked Gil, the coach's sister, he should ask her out, but he got angry and asked her
not to repeat what she said, especially in front of him. she. However, after an argument
they had in front of Gil. Then, in an argument with Wa Wai because he didn't get to sign
some scenes, he tells Gil that he might hear his girlfriend betraying what he had talked
about with Wa Wai; to which Gil replies that he is not the man of her dreams, breaking
Wa Wai's heart.

What does So Wa Wai demand from her mother?

The young man complains to his mother about several things during the plot.
First of all, I complain because before he supported him and demanded more from him
in sports and that when he started with advertising and interviews he left sports
demands aside. Then, later on, he claims that he wants to control him and that he has
never treated him like a normal person, but rather has treated him like a disabled
person.

Explain the young man's intervention in his last race. Win or lose?
In the first two races, the 100 meter and the 400 meter, he performed poorly and
lost both races because he had had the argument with his mother and she decided not
to accompany him to the events so that he would not feel that she controlled him, which
made him Wa Wai does not have the necessary security to emerge victorious. Upon
returning home they have a healing and motivating conversation so the young man
becomes stronger and his mother accompanies him to the last race. Then when he is at
the finish line he looks at his mother and they make the sign that gives him confidence,
so he decides to take off his hearing aid and run the race like the day he beat the train.
At that precise moment Wa Wai remembers everything he has had to experience, how
much it has cost him to get to the place where he is and that his mother has always
been his support to achieve success and happiness.

What was So Wa Wai's world and personal record?

 The world record was 24.75 seconds in a race and Wa Wai broke it by doing the
Beijing race in 24.65 seconds.

How does the plot end?

The plot ends with the public cheering Wa Wai for winning the race and with him
making eye contact with his mother celebrating the result.

Movie: Soul of an athlete

 As part of the course ESDESP 645- Curriculum and Teaching in Special

Education taught by Dr. Luz Robles Bermúdez, it is a requirement to complete an essay

on the film Alma de Atleta. The plot of this film presents a young man with cerebral

palsy due to a congenital disease and shows all the sacrifices and how fundamental the

support was, mainly from his mother and his family. In addition, it shows the importance

of quickly beginning evaluations, treatments and medical check-ups when a child has a

diagnosis or condition that affects their development. Family support plays a

fundamental role in the development of the individual with disabilities. On the other

hand, one can experience the desperation of a parent with a child with a disability when

thinking about their future and what will happen to that child, young person or adult

when they are no longer in the world.

A valuable detail during the plot that represents a real-life case is that the mother

did not allow other people to treat him with pity. A phrase that the mother said that

represents a lot for the child's development was: “No one will treat you like a normal

person. So just be an extraordinary person.” Mrs. So was a strong woman who never

belittled her son's abilities; on the contrary, if he got frustrated she always motivated him

and encouraged him to do better than she expected. Although sometimes we could see

that he had preference in Wa Wai's upbringing and that he overprotected him at times;

He really did it looking for a secure future and well-being for his son. Sometimes she

was wrong in her decisions or in what she said, but what a mother she is perfect, we all

make mistakes, but the important thing is to recognize them and correct them.

In the mother's search to not leave her son with special needs alone, she makes

the decision to have another child with the thought that she must take care of her
brother, creating some frustration and rebellion in the youngest son since he felt that he

came to this world to help them with their older brother. However, he was always

present and providing security for Wa Wai to achieve his dreams and be happy. When a

child suffers from a condition that affects his or her development and health, a mother

always has the concern of ensuring the well-being of her child. Within her fear, the

mother managed to provide the independence that Wa Wai needed and supported him

in his interest in careers, finding in them a motivation for her son to develop emotionally,

socially, physically and professionally.

From the point of view of education, as teachers we sometimes encounter

students who lack that positive reinforcement at home and who have not been provided

with the strategies and tools to break down those barriers that arise with a diagnosis.

For this reason, I am always aware that my students have their therapies, I provide

support to parents and on occasions I have had to advise them from my role as a

mother and leave the teacher aside seeking the well-being of my children. During this

school year I had several students who were negative when performing some tasks and

at the beginning of the school year I presented them with the Disney movie Luca, which

presents how we must overcome the fears within us to achieve our dreams. Hilariously,

Luca's character silences the negativity in his mind by saying “Silence Bruno” to his

brain and every time they said that it was very difficult or that they couldn't do it I told

them “Silence Bruno”, they laughed and performed the tasks majestically. .

In short, Ms. So is a mother we should admire and emulate her legacy.

Meanwhile, Wa Wai was a young man who overcame all the barriers that were

presented to him in life to achieve his dreams. It is curious to see how sometimes
people without any impediment or disability give up on their goals and this young man

fought tirelessly to achieve all the goals he set for himself and more. As a mother of a

girl with the condition of multiple sclerosis that constantly threatens her development as

an individual and her health, I identified with Mrs. So since I constantly fight for my

daughter to be well and happy. When I saw Wa Wai win I cried because I felt the same

emotion that I felt when I saw my daughter march to graduate from fourth year and with

my faith placed in Almighty God it will be the same when obtaining her university degree

that is about to begin. This movie taught us that the biggest obstacles in our lives are

the barriers that our minds create.