[nabs-l] First O/M lesson

[clinton waterbury]

Uh...  Wow...  The whole purpose of sleepshades and o and m is to...   
Gain the skills like finding landmarks and being able to go anywhere.   
Really, I would talk to 1 of the higherups about this.
On Jun 17, 2009, at 1:53 PM, Jim Reed wrote:

> Hey all,
>
> I just had my first O/M lesson under sleepshades, and I was not  
> impressed. I am not convinced
> that my O/M instructor has the time, skill, or proper additude  
> towards blindness to
> teach me what I need/want to know. My goal of O/M training is to be
> able to safely travel and navigate non-visually anywhere I want/need  
> to
> go in Billings (or anywhere else for that matter).
>
> Given
> the goals I just mentioned, I told/asked my O/M instructor  to teach  
> me under sleepshades, and I asked her to teach me universal
> travel and navigation skills, rather than teaching me specific  
> routes. Before I could turn
> around twice, she is teaching me a specific route to campus. Then,  
> even
> though I was under sleepshades for the purposes of learning non-visual
> techniques, she insisted that I take off my blindfold nearly every
> block so that I could check out the terrain ahead, and she also made  
> me
> take off my sleepshades quite frequently so that I could visually see
> the landmarks that she was pointing out. I must have took off and put
> on those sleepshades about 20 times during the lesson. There were also
> two times where she told me to take off my sleepshades and walk with
> her, "so that we can find the best route visually". I think I probably
> walked 4-5 blocks without my sleepshades on. I'm sorry, but I don't  
> need a lesson on sighted O/M, I've
> been doing that since birth. And what the hell good does it do me to
> see a landmark visually that I may not be able to see visually when I
> am walking to school at night? Additionally, she wasn't letting me
> figure out anything for myself. She was telling me of all the  
> landmarks
> that were around, she was telling me everytime there were bushes
> sticking out into the sidewalk, or trees overhanging it, she was
> telling me everytime there was a bench, lightpost, sign, or any other
> obstacle in my way, and she kinda made a gasping sound everytime I
> approached a curb at full speed. She was doing all of this before I
> even had the chance to detect the obstacle with my cane, and she was
> doing all of this without having seen me run into anything; I guess  
> she
> just assumed that I would not/did not have the skills to be able to
> detect and avoid obstacles on my own.
>
> Towards the end of the
> lesson I got sick of her pointing out where every curb was, and I told
> her that she wasnt doing me any favors by pointing out every curb. She
> seemed to be taken by suprize at this, and she said something like
> "fine, I'll let you walk off the curb". Whenever we get our next  
> lesson
> I intend to tell her to stop pointing out every little obstaclle,  
> and I
> intend to leave the sleepshade on for the duration of the lesson.
>
> Additionally,
> I asked my O/M instructor  if she herself actually gets under a  
> sleepshade and
> travels. Her response was, " I was trained under a sleepshade, but I
> havent been under one for years." A blind friend of mine (who wants to
> become an O/M instructor) made a good point that I am begining to  
> agree with, she said, "if your O/M
> instructor can't/won't travel under a sleepshade, then she really
> doesnt have any buisness teaching O/M. All the theoretical knowledge
> learned in O/M masters programs are nice, but without practical
> application of the theoretical knowledge, she will never be as good of
> an O/M instructor as her counterparts who routinely practices or works
> with clients under sleepshades."
>
> Thoughts?
>
> Jim
>
> "From compromise and things half done,
> Keep me with stern and stubborn pride,
> And when at last the fight is won,
> ... Keep me still unsatisfied." --Louis Untermeyer
>
>
>
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