[Blindmath] Question about having an assistant in the classroom for stem subjects

Mon Nov 16 14:32:29 UTC 2015

Sabra, I respect you for trying to be independent and fiscally responsible about the need for an assistant. I assume we are talking college level. I suggest keeping a tally of how many times you need to access the assistant during the class.

As George said, what are the PowerPoint like? Are there graphics that you need to be aware of?
Is the prof making changes in the way he is speaking and describing what is on the board or on the PowerPoint?

Have you had a good talk with the assistant?  "This is what I need. This is what I do not need."

Can the assistant be working on something while in the classroom while you are not needing help? For example, are there documents he can scan with an iPad, or download things you will need in future weeks? 

Have you had a good conversation with the assistant AND the prof? "Prof, let me show you my notes from today. I think you will see they are complete. I do not need an assistant for: I need an assistant for :

Is this a new class? Are you new to the department? I find sighted teachers seem to need or think they need an assistant in there, but most times the assistant(per my instructions) will sit in the back of the room and do other things, while my student is being independent.

As time goes on the teacher begins to see that the assistant is not doing anything AND that my students are getting excellent grades.  That is the important key here: If my students are excelling, the teachers begin to understand that the blind student will be OK.

Sabra, I am sorry to say, that my students always have to  prove themselves capable. People do not understand blindness. Fear of going blind is a common fear people have. This fear and lack of understanding clouds everything! STEM teachers  especially have trouble understanding how people can learn STEM without sight. They confuse their visual representations of concepts with the actual concept. A blind person does not have to have EVERY Bohr model drawn in raised lines to understand the concept, but they don't seem to grasp that. Funny that STEM people can not think outside the box so to speak, in terms of this, isn't it?? I call them Visually Limited...limited by their vision....their own reliance on vision makes it hard for them to think in other ways. 

Best of luck...hang in there...they do not mean to insult your intelligence! Help them to see that there are many senses that help us learn.

Maureen Murphy Lewicki
Teacher of the Visually Impaired
Bethlehem Central School District
Bethlehem High School
700 Delaware Ave
Delmar, NY 12054
http://www.bethlehemschools.org
Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved. Helen Keller

-----Original Message-----
From: Blindmath [mailto:blindmath-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of George Bell via Blindmath
Sent: Wednesday, November 11, 2015 5:33 PM
To: Blind Math list for those interested in mathematics
Cc: George Bell
Subject: Re: [Blindmath] Question about having an assistant in the classroom for stem subjects

This can often depend on the subject of the lecture, and equally importantly the awareness of the lecturer that a blind student is present.

PowerPoint displays are a classic.  Text is often displayed, but all too often not actually spoken.

Just one example.

George

-----Original Message-----
From: Blindmath [mailto:blindmath-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Sabra Ewing via Blindmath
Sent: 11 November 2015 22:21
To: blindmath at nfbnet.org
Cc: Sabra Ewing <sabra1023 at gmail.com>
Subject: [Blindmath] Question about having an assistant in the classroom for stem subjects

I am having trouble understanding the concept of using an assistant in the classroom for lecture style stem subjects as it relates to blindness. It is getting to the point where it is becoming a problem in my interactions with people who believe that blind people should have assistance for these subjects. I understand that if you are paralyzed, you would use an assistant in lecture to take notes for you because you can't write with a pencil and maybe you can't use an alternative device to take notes on a computer. I understand that if you are deaf, you would use an assistant to translate everything from English to sign language, you could have a condition that would make you run around for no reason or not be able to stay on task in an assistant would help with that. However, none of those apply to me. Let's say A blind student is in a lecture. It could be anything like math, science, or programming. If that person had an assistant in the classroom, what with the assistant do  ? If the assistant is supposed to be taking notes, why can the student not take their own notes and why has an assistant been chosen instead of removing excess ability barriers? I am just really trying to understand this, and I'm not going to go into details, but I am in a situation where I need a rational explanation for why I did not have an assistant in one of my stem classes. After fourth grade, I never really had an assistant in the classroom. If you are saying to just think about why I had an assistant in the fourth grade and before, I tried that, but I can't remember why. In the future if I am offered an assistant for class, should I just take it even if I don't know why so the professor can't blame any problems that occur in the class on the lack of an assistant? It would seem wrong to have an assistant just for that though. I had an assistant and my ceramics class who helped me find things in the room and know how to use the tools and glaze and keep track of my piece  s, but I did not do any of those activities in a stem class. I have really tried to think very hard about it even though it doesn't seem like it, but I just get more confused.

Sabra Ewing
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