Netball and basketball help student-athletes overcome dyslexia, health scare

SINGAPORE – The first few years of primary school were difficult for Kaela Si-Hoe, whose confidence took a hit as she struggled to read.

Whenever Kaela, who was diagnosed with dyslexia in Primary 1, opened a book, the words on the page would move, which made even subjects like mathematics a challenge. 

As a result, she became more withdrawn and did not have many friends at Methodist Girls’ School (Primary).

But that slowly changed with netball, and the support of those around her.

“Netball is a different playing field for me. In school, I tend to compare myself a lot to my friends who are academically better than me and that really discouraged me and I didn’t really like going to school,” said the 16-year-old, who received her O-level results on Jan 11.

“But since I joined netball (in Primary 3 or 4), I realised I was quite good at it – physically I’m quite fit and my shooting is quite good and it felt like I was good at something for once.

“In school I was struggling to pass my subjects while my friends got A1s, but netball was where we were on the same court.”

On the court, she was in her element. The 1.68m player, who plays in goal attack or as a goal shooter, used to keep quiet during practice and games, but is now unafraid to ask for the ball and encourage her teammates.

Off the court, she now finds it easier to approach teachers for help and speak in front of a crowd.

She said: “In lower primary, I didn’t have a lot of friends. I was a very quiet student, I didn’t dare to talk to the teachers or answer questions during class.

“But after netball, I started to make more friends because in order to play well, your team need to be very bonded. I had to bond with my teammates, so that helped me make a lot of good friendships.”

The teenager is grateful to the educators who have helped her through her 10 years at MGS. They include the special education needs officer, who taught her techniques such as using a ruler to make reading paragraphs easier, and teachers who helped ease her transition to secondary school when subjects like history and literature were introduced.

While she declined to reveal her O-level score, she was pleased with her results and will be looking to continue her netball journey with Victoria Junior College.

Kaela, who was part of the West Zone and national U-17 teams, is hoping to make it to the U-19 side. She dreams of making the U-21 team and hopefully the Opens squad one day.

She said: “I really love netball and how it has changed me as a person and given me confidence and taught me so many life lessons that I really want to continue this for as long as I can and hopefully one day, I can play for Singapore.”

The love of sport was also what kept 16-year-old Nor Arleesha Noor Azlan going during a tough period in her life.

At the start of 2022, the Swiss Cottage Secondary School basketball player was gearing up for her debut in

the National School Games (NSG),

which was halted for two years owing to the Covid-19 pandemic.

However, tragedy struck a month before the NSG as the 1.65m centre fractured her ankle in training. Things went from bad to worse when her cast caused deep vein thrombosis in her leg, leading to a pulmonary embolism (clotting of blood) in her heart and lungs.

“I noticed that I was really tired at school. I never felt that before, but I just kept quiet because I thought it was normal. I was using crutches and using them is also very tiring,” said Arleesha.

She was breathless for a week after the injury, and one night found herself gasping for air before she fainted at home.

She was subsequently admitted to the intensive care unit at the National University Hospital for three days.

Arleesha credits her family, friends and teammates for their support during her six-month recovery. She retained her captain’s armband and attended every training session and game – yelling instructions to her teammates from the bench.

She finally got her chance to compete in the NSG in February 2023, but was again hit by injury after she sprained her other ankle.

However, there was still some consolation for the teenager. While she got mostly As and Bs before the injury, her grades had slipped during her recovery. But she worked hard to score 11 points for her O levels.

She intends to pursue a diploma in culinary and catering management at Temasek Polytechnic.

After her health scare, Arleesha also has a new outlook on life. That includes a new sport, as she has decided to give up basketball for boxing.

She said: “I think mentally is knowing how I have only one life and it’s very precious and that I can’t take it for granted. This is like a second chance in life and I should do better.”