FEED YOUR INQUIRY ON HOW WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT

TEACHING and INTERACTING!!!

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW ON HOW TO INTERACT AND TEACH THE VISUALLY

IMPAIRED.

What are the visually impaired students functional limitations?

Difficulty finding objects • Difficulty identifying objects • Difficulty seeing objects edges, and discriminating

foreground/background differences • Missing objects when reaching for them • Disappearing objects in visual field (the area of vision) • Tripping, falling, or bumping into objects when walking or moving

about room • Difficulty reading print • Reduced reading rate • Reduced reading endurance • Difficulty seeing handwriting • Difficulty seeing writing on board, or projector • Difficulty seeing characters or numbers in books/media • Inconsistency in seeing objects over time (fluctuating vision)

Classroom Environment - How should it be?

Students with visual disabilities may need preferential seating. Your student should be seated near the front of the class to hear clearly what is being presented and to see as much as possible.

Well before the beginning of your class, leave a list of required and recommended texts at your department office, and tell the office staff that students with disabilities should be permitted to make copies of the list. (Or put the book-list on your course website.) Some students with visual disabilities will need to order their textbooks from Recordings for the Blind and Dyslexic, and receiving taped books takes time.

When using an overhead projector with transparencies, use a large print-size: at least 18 points. Provide additional time for students with visual disabilities to copy the material on the transparencies, or provide them with printed copies.

Whenever possible, modify the presentation of material to make it accessible. Allow the student to audiotape lectures or use a notetaker. Pace the presentation of material; if referring to a textbook or handout, allow

time for students with visual disabilities to find the information.

Classroom Environment continued……

When lecturing, avoid making statements that cannot be understood by people without sight: for example, "This diagram sums up what I am saying about statistics." (Don't worry about using words and phrases that refer to sight: for example, "See you later!" Such expressions are commonly used, and most people with visual disabilities don't find them offensive.)

Read aloud everything that you write on the chalkboard. Verbally describe objects and processes whenever possible.

In making comparisons and analogies, use familiar objects that don't depend on prior visual knowledge. Foods and objects found around the house are good choices. You might say, for example, that a particular dance movement requires a lot of weaving and turning, "like getting from one side of the living room to the other on moving day."

How do they learn: what are the ways of learning?

Most students with visual disabilities take advantage of assistive technology.

Computers can enlarge print; convert printed material to Braille; read the text on a computer screen aloud;

or scan books, articles, and other printed materials and then read their text.

Some students also use audiotape recorders, portable note-taking devices, or talking calculators.

Assistive Technology Computers are essential tools in all academic studies. They can enhance

the independence, productivity, and capabilities of people with disabilities. Access to

computers for students with disabilities involves two major issues: access to the computers

themselves and access to electronic resources such as word processors, spreadsheets, and the

World Wide Web. Assistive hardware and software can facilitate computer access for

people with disabilities. Assistive technology solutions may involve simple, readily available

adjustments such as using built-in access devices on standard computers, or they may require

unique combinations of software and hardware such as those needed for voice or Braille output. Accommodations for students will be presented by considering computer

input, output, and documentation for a specific impairment. Many accommodations require

advance planning with the student and an advisor from the Office for Students with Disabilities.

What can I consider to use in the classroom in terms of the assistive technology?

Optical Character Recognition: An optical character recognition (OCR) system interprets characters and words from a scanned printed document and saves it to the OCR system's memory or a personal computer. The visually impaired or blind individual can access the information with tools that can magnify the screen or convert the information to synthetic speech or Braille. Systems are available separately and self-contained or as part of a personal computer bundle.

Assistive Tech continued…

Braille Technology: Several types of equipment offer Braille technology to the visually impaired or blind. Braille displays provide Braille from material on a computer screen. It displays as many as 80 characters and refreshes as the individual reads. A portable electronic Braille note taker features a Braille keyboard. The information can later be transferred to a personal computer or retrieved from the note taker using Braille display or a speech synthesizer.

Assistive Tech continued…

Speech Systems: Synthetic speech systems convert written words into spoken language. The user presses key commands that work with a screen reader. The screen reader then instructs the synthesizer which words or lines of text to read. These systems can be instructed to locate specific text, such as sections highlighted or in certain colors. They also work with the use of spell check. Synthetic speech systems are included with screen readers

Assistive Tech continued…

Magnifiers: Magnification systems, for the visually impaired, include video magnifiers and programs specifically for computers. A video magnifier works with a television, video monitor or computer screen. A magnification program for a computer is software that is loaded into the memory of the computer.

References Looking Through Their Eyes: Teaching Suggestions for

Visually Impaired Students. (2012). Retrieved February 21, 2015, from Bright Hub Education: http://www.brighthubeducation.com/special-ed-visual-impairments/62427-ideas-for-how-to-teach-visually-impaired-students-seeing-the-big-picture/

Presley, I., D’andrea, F. M. (2008). Assistive Technology for Students Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired. Retrieved March 1, 2015, from American Foundation for the Blind: http://www.afb.org/assistivetechnology/book.asp?ch=appA

Teaching Students with Disabilities. (2011). Retrieved March 1, 2015, from Berkerly University of California: http://www.dsp.berkeley.edu/teachstudentswithdisab#14