[blindkid] BrailleNote use

[Richard Holloway]

On the equal access subject, you may be in a situation where your school (as ours) has textbooks which can be accessed on-line. I think in our case, sighted students at school can opt to have a print book as well.

Sometimes school personnel will point out you don't even "need" a physical textbook. After all, your blind student can simply listen to text content. This may be true, but listening is not reading. Sighted kids have both options. Blind kids need the same. Further, diagrams won't work well in either presentation. Obviously a photograph may be of little use for a totally blind student beyond a verbal description of the content, but some diagrams, charts and such are adapted in Braille textbooks.

The point is, you're not asking for too much to tell them you want, and indeed expect access on-line if other kids have that, PLUS an electronic copy on a BrailleNote, as well as a Braille copy of the book, and a print copy for yourself. Better to start with all of them and not use one "flavor" all the time, because goodness knows you'll wait the better part of a school year to add one later. 

We expect a print copy always, if for no other reason than the fact that we frequently find errors in braille-transcribed textbooks. It is short-sighted at best given the way textbooks are headed for the schools not to be getting electronic notetakers into our kids' hands just to offer improved access to actual textbooks, and that is just one in a long list of reasons these are appropriate accommodations for our children.

-RH

Sent from my iPad

On Sep 6, 2012, at 1:06 AM, Sally Thomas <seacknit at gmail.com> wrote:

> My son began using a braille PDA in 2nd grade. He always had the technology
> at school and at home.  He is a very responsible user of his technology.
> If you believe that your son will use the technology responsibly, you
> should fight for the ability to bring it home.  Technology is both the
> present and future for our kids.  They need to learn to use it well.
> Besides, if a kid is using the BrailleNote to do school work and then has
> to do additional work at home, how will that happen if he can't take the
> BrailleNote home?  Find out what the sighted 4th graders are doing.  How do
> they access the 4th grade curriculum?  Does the school provide your blind
> child equal access to the curriculum?  Are they preparing him to do work at
> the 5th grade level and beyond?  Supposedly each school year builds on the
> prior year.  Will the school have all the braille ready for your child when
> it is needed?  Wouldn't it be helpful if they could give him a file that he
> could load on the BrailleNote without having to go through the process of
> creating hard copy braille all the time? Do the sighted kids get to take
> home their notebooks and pencils?  Why shouldn't your child take home his
> BrailleNote--his equivalent of notebook and pencil?
> 
> I think that you will probably need to reconvene the IEP meeting.  Make
> them justify removal of the BrailleNote.  Make a recording of the meeting
> and get them to say, on the record that your child doesn't need access to
> the technology.  If they aren't cooperative, it can get very contentious
> but you need to push.  Some people will say that they don't want the school
> to get mad at them.  In my experience, although the school got very mad at
> us, they finally realized that we were sincere in our desire to have our
> child succeed and we weren't going to back down.
> 
> You will need to look at your situation to find out what will motivate the
> school to provide the technology.  I think it is rare that a school
> provides a blind child with everything he needs without significant pushing
> from the parents.  The school needs to know that you are informed and will
> keep up the pressure on them to provide what your child needs.  We had to
> put constant pressure on the school.
> 
> I wish there were magic words that would make the schools do the right
> thing.  Best of luck.
> 
> Sally Thomas
> 
> 
>