[nabs-l] Taking Action to Improve Braille Literacy

[Anmol Bhatia]

Justin,
I really like the points you brought up here.
I grew up in a residential school in the 90s. I graduated from the Arkansas School for the Blind and they did not teach braille unless you were blind or really low vision. Infact I was one of the few students who could read braille or use a cane. The standards set at blind schools in my oppinion are really low and usually the students who attended these schools were students who could not make it in public school or were just simpely lazy. During my time at ASB, I saw quite alot of people who would start at the school for the blind and do really well, transfor to public school and not so well, and come back to the school for the blind and do well again. There is something really wrong with this in my oppinion. Every blind person know matter how much vission they have or if they have additional disabilities to their blindness has to be able to function in a mainstream "sighted" society. Those who are successful in making this adjustment, are the
 individuals who will grow up to be successful adults. Therefore, I personally favor to shut down blind schools or turn them as independent living centers to provide training in braille, mobility, independent living skills, and adaptive technology  for youth. Alot of students who graduate from the school for the blind including myself are simply not prepared for college or whatever is after graduation. Alot of teachers who teach at the school for the blind are not properly trained to work with blind students. Very few teachers at the school for the blind could read braille and hardly any of the teachers had the positive attitude about blindness or the willingness to work with blind students required to insure that all students including those who are totally blind receive proper training. To often I had teachers who wanted to put me in a separate class because I was the only blind student and they did not want to take the extra time or provide the
 necessary accomadations to insure that I received equal opportunity. So it comes as a total surprise when I tell people that I have received better support and accomadations in a mainstream public university than I did at the school for the blind.
Far as training TVIS, I agree with you that funding is a major problem. But I believe there is a grant available to train students who want to be TVI through the RSA similar to the grant that the rehabilitation counseling department has at my university available for individuals who want to enter this field. The Rehabilitation Counseling department at the University of Arkansas has a grant through the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) which pays for the student's tuition and provides a sstippen of 2,200 dollars a semester with the agreement that the student will work in this field for at least two years eather for a government agency or a non-profit organization serving people with disabilities. If a student fails to do so, they must pay back the grant. If there is not a similar funding opportunity available for TVIS, perhaps this kind of program could help to recruit more and better individuals to this field. Frankly every teacher who wants
 to be a TVI, should be required to learn braille and mobility, and every teacher who wants to work at a blind school or a blind center, should be required to learn and use braille. If the blind schools are to remain open, then much higher standards should be expected from the teachers and students. 
Anmol
I seldom think about my limitations, and they never make me sad. Perhaps there is just a touch of yearning at times; but it is vague, like a breeze among flowers.
Hellen Keller


--- On Wed, 5/9/12, Salisbury, Justin Mark <SALISBURYJ08 at students.ecu.edu> wrote:

> From: Salisbury, Justin Mark <SALISBURYJ08 at students.ecu.edu>
> Subject: Re: [nabs-l] Taking Action to Improve Braille Literacy
> To: "nabs-l at nfbnet.org" <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
> Date: Wednesday, May 9, 2012, 2:35 PM
> I agree with the points that Arielle
> made, and I particularly think that we need to focus on the
> proper training of Braille teachers at this point in the
> game.  I don't think we currently have enough good
> Braille teachers in the United States to fulfill the needs
> of an optimal system.  
> 
> I was fortunate enough to grow up in Connecticut, so I was
> urged to start learning Braille by my high school and state
> agency at the beginning of my junior year, only a few months
> after I became blind.  I wanted to resist it at first
> because no kid likes the idea of more classes that aren't
> dominated by the opposite sex or physical activity, but I
> soon realized that my school and state agency were right;
> Braille is important!
> 
> I just finished 4 years of college in North Carolina, where
> I am also finishing my second term as President of the NC
> Association of Blind Students.  I have learned a lot
> about both states' systems, and I observe a vast difference
> in the prioritization of Braille.  There are often
> trained Braille teachers in the wealthy and
> densely-populated school districts in NC, but students with
> residual vision are encouraged to depend on what they have
> left.  I wouldn't know Braille today if I had grown up
> in North Carolina.  In my understanding, students who
> are not from equipped school districts who wish to receive
> Braille instruction are often forced to attend the
> residential school for the blind in Raleigh.  Veteran
> teachers at the residential school for the blind have told
> me that it has become the place for students with multiple
> disabilities or from impoverished backgrounds (while anyone
> who can be mainstreamed is), and they have seen a decrease
> in the morale and expectations as this shift has occurred.
> 
> I bring up the residential school topic because, if we were
> able to make the shift tomorrow to a most efficient system,
> I believe we would need all of the students and Braille
> teachers to be located in centralized hubs.  I believe
> attending a residential school should be a choice, but it
> seems to currently be a requirement for many students if
> they want a shot at learning Braille. 
> 
> We need more Braille teachers who are properly
> trained.  
> 
> The Next Step:
> To inspire people to enter the field, we need widespread
> budgetary allocations for the positions of Braille
> teachers.  North Carolina Central University
> consistently struggles to fill its TVI program because
> people aren't applying.
> 
> We should all write a book on this topic.
> 
> Justin
> 
> Justin M. Salisbury
> Undergraduate Student
> The Honors College
> East Carolina University
> salisburyj08 at students.ecu.edu
> 
> “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed
> citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing
> that ever has.”    —MARGARET MEAD
> 
> 
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