[nabs-l] NFB Training Centers

[Albert Yoo]

Joseph, are you still in Oregon? I think I wrote you about colleges for the blind a while back. I guess what you were saying about putting in effort at the nfb center Colorado center can be said about school. What you put in your school work will get you a good grade. You will do well on that exam if you study and work hard. If you put the effort in what you study at school you will be finished in no time. The academic part of it is that you have good study skills you put the effort to follow the directions to complete all assignments and study for exams you will finish in no time with good grades. Whether we as blind people use alternative techniques blind people need to know school can be finished just like an nfb training center is boot camp. School can be too. Albert> Date: Sat, 15 Nov 2008 21:32:49 -0800> From: carter.tjoseph at gmail.com> To: nabs-l at nfbnet.org> Subject: Re: [nabs-l] NFB Training Centers> > Sarah, let me offer most of what I wrote on another list just days ago on > the subject of what I got out of the Colorado Center for the Blind:> > > I am an alum of the Colorado Center, like many on this list. I can tell > you honestly that the CCB did not teach me all of the things I learned > while I was in Colorado, but the experience put me in the right places at > the right times to leave the center a far stronger individual than I > arrived.> > When I first went to the CCB, I was a cluttered, disorganized "high > partial" who depended extensively upon my vision (which I already had > accepted as mostly useless). I had accepted the label of blind, and I > used a cane, though not well. I couldn't cook, didn't really clean up > after myself, and was afraid to cross streets in sunlight. Busy streets > made me nervous even at night when I can see better. I didn't know > Braille, and I had never really used tools other than for fixing computers > before.> > I came back from the CCB still cluttered and disorganized (it'll take more > than eight months to change that in my case!), but I now know how to clean > up after myself. I can cook well enough to feed myself, and the food I > make is good, if simple. I can do and have done basic home repairs on my > own, and I know that I can use the tools in a shop safely.> > While I never got near the record for Braille speed, I did set the record > for fastest Braille reader who had never known Braille as an adult--165 > words per minute. Closer to 250 if I can predict the words as on a warm > read or a Homerian epic or something. (How many times would I have to > read "wine dark sea" before I began to read the phrase automatically?) I > can say with certainty that I've since lost almost all of that speed > because I have not had the opportunity to practice in three month > stretches over the course of graduate school. But you know, I can still > feel the dots, if more slowly now, and I know my contractions--I can get > it back, any time I am ready.> > And then there are travel skills. I've got some of the best you'll find > anywhere. Some blind people wield their canes with big, heavy-handed, > clumsy movements. I use very light, highly controlled movements in a > style that is uniquely my own, developed because the way taught by Brent > and Eric hurt my hand at first. Eric Woods showed me how to attend to > distant sounds and track information available from sometimes several > blocks away. I had a natural talent for direction-tracking, and very > sharp ears once I began learning what to listen for, but the rest was > learned. Combined with problem-solving skills I learned years ago and a > few basic tips, it's not really a boast that I'm one of the best travelers > to come out of any training center.> > Just about everything I did is achievable by any blind person who really > wants it badly enough. There's nothing really that special about me. It > is a testament to the NFB that a guy who is pretty clever can go from > virtually no skills to mastery level performance in just eight months. > Most state-run centers would have told me 40 words per minute was all an > adult Braille learner could do or that there were just some intersections > that aren't safe to cross or that one thing or another just wasn't > practical.> > At the CCB, the usual answer to the impractical thing was, "Okay. That's > gonna be hard, but okay. How much are you willing to invest to make it > happen?" My answer was whatever it took. I won't lie to you, it took a > lot. But I put the effort in, and look what I got for it!> > I believe that what a person will get out of the Colorado Center for the > Blind is a function of what they put in to it. The thing is, you'll > always get more out than you put in.> > > Hope that helps Sarah! I will be happy to answer any questions you have.> > Joseph> > > On Sat, Nov 15, 2008 at 12:17:55AM -0500, Sarah Jevnikar wrote:> >Hi all,> >I have a question. What do you learn in NFB training centers? There isn't> >anything comparable in Canada but I'm wondering what you guys learn so I can> >try to seek out similar opportunities here, though probably in a less formal> >or organized setting. Who can access these centers? Are there scheduled> >classes or is a drop-in type deal?> >Thank you for your help.> >Sarah> > _______________________________________________> nabs-l mailing list> nabs-l at nfbnet.org> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nabs-l_nfbnet.org> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for nabs-l:> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nabs-l_nfbnet.org/albertyoo1%40hotmail.com
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