[nabs-l] The Top Dumbest Reasons For Not Teaching Braille

[Beth]

A good resource for most people would be the recently published 
"Let Freedom Ring: Braille Letters to President Obma."  I think 
that's a good book about Braille, and it calls to something and 
someone who neeeds it most.
Beth

 ----- Original Message -----
From: Hai Nguyen Ly <gymnastdave at sbcglobal.net
To: NFBnet National Association to Promote the Use of Braille 
Mailing List<napub at nfbnet.org
Date sent: Fri, 21 Oct 2011 13:07:39 -0400
Subject: [nabs-l] The Top Dumbest Reasons For Not Teaching 
Braille


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The Top Dumbest Reasons For Not Teaching Braille: The 
Not-Time-Yet Excuse

The Top Dumbest Reasons For Not Teaching Braille: The 
Not-Time-Yet Excuse

If your house isn’t burning right now, do you really need smoke 
detectors? If you have a good income, do you really need savings? 
If you know that “yes” is the answer to these questions, you 
already understand the faulty logic behind the Not-Time-Yet 
excuse for not teaching Braille.

Studies by the Jernigan Institute (Baltimore) link Braille 
literacy to post graduate degrees, employability and earning over 
,000 a year. Since the 1950s, when blind children started being 
mainstreamed into public school, Braille literacy has been 
declining. A shortage of qualified Braille instructors is the top 
reason listed by the National Organization of Parents of Blind 
Children. Parents, however, are given excuses not reasons. 
Accepting these excuses can sentence their children to lives of 
dependence and low achievement.

Most of the kids who should be learning Braille are legally blind 
or very close to it and have normal intellects. Legal blindness 
is 20/200 in the best eye with correction or a visual field of 20 
degrees or less. People with this degree of visual loss cannot 
receive drivers’ licenses. Nonetheless, many of them have enough 
vision to see print. They are, therefore, encouraged and even 
forced to read print. Large print books and CCTVs (Closed Circuit 
Televisions) are common remedies for these students.

]]

But, being able to see print on a page or enlarge twenty times or 
more on a screen is not the same as being able to read at a level 
appropriate to the child’s grade and intellect. Many of these 
kids need to get right on top of the screen or book and need far 
longer than their peers to complete homework. Some suffer painful 
headaches. As reading becomes more complicated and homework 
increases, many visually impaired children fall behind both 
academically and socially. Even when this happens, parents who 
ask if it isn’t time for Braille are given the Not-Time-Yet 
excuse.

“He won’t need Braille for years.”

Yeah, like after he’s graduated and you don’t have to pay for it. 
Large print, CCTVs and audio books are far cheaper for 
budget-conscious schools than hiring a qualified Braille 
instructor. Don’t allow the school to balance its budget at the 
expense of your child’s future!

Many visually impaired kids have degenerative eye conditions such 
as Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP). While they may not be totally or 
even legally blind during their school years, experience shows 
that most will be unable to read by the time they get into 
college or out in the working world. Giving them a skill which 
can improve their independence while they are young is the 
prudent thing to do. Children pick up many things more easily 
than adults, and adulthood is not the time to be learning 
something that should have been part of your basic education.

Relatives and friends of families with blind children can get 
help and information by visiting the National Organization of 
Parents of Blind Children (NOPBC):
http://www.nfb.org/nfb/Parents_and_Teachers.asp

Learn more about Braille at:
http://www.braille.org



Donna W. Hill is an author, singer/songwriter, speaker and avid 
knitter. She works to improve opportunities for blind Americans 
through the Performing Arts Division of the National Federation 
of the Blind.
http://www.padnfb.org
Hear clips from her CD “The Last Straw” at:
http://cdbaby.com/cd/donnahill



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