[nabs-l] Special Ed Certification

Fri Jan 31 04:35:59 UTC 2014

Most sighted people can't time the punch either.  I have hit enough of them
to know.

-----Original Message-----
From: nabs-l [mailto:nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Arielle
Silverman
Sent: Thursday, January 30, 2014 11:31 PM
To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list
Subject: Re: [nabs-l] Special Ed Certification

A blind person can definitely learn and apply first aid and CPR intervention
to someone in an emergency situation, and call for trained nurses,
paramedics, etc. depending on the type of event. As for academic work
checking, if a student is high enough functioning to be doing written work
of some kind, they should be able to verbally communicate their process to
the blind teacher and respond to pointed questions.
As for dealing with a violent child, a blind teacher might not be able to
anticipate the exact timing of the punch, but, I imagine, could learn to
tune in to signs that a child is getting wound up.
In addition to the National Organization of Blind Educators list, I would
suggest that perhaps your friend should talk to the directors of our
training centers, who are all blind and have worked with youth and adult
students at the centers with various disabilities. Even though those
students are blind, many of the techniques for working with multi-disabled
students should also apply to working with sighted multi-disabled students.
The bottom line is that the certification programs' actions are illegal and
the burden of proof is on them to demonstrate that a blind person cannot
accomplish the required tasks. If a blind person can teach multi-disabled
students at a school for the blind, they can teach those students in any
school setting.

Arielle

On 1/30/14, NMPBRAT at aol.com <NMPBRAT at aol.com> wrote:
>
> Hi,
> I'm not sure how much help I can be...but I will try.
> First, and probably my best, suggestion is to post this message to the 
> NOBE
>
>  listserv....this is the listserv for educators.  Although you may 
> find assistance here....I think you may also have luck on that listserv
too.
>
> I, myself, have a Bachelors and Masters in Special Education and am 
> currently teaching in Ohio.  I have taught for 12 years, working with 
> students with a variety of disabilities...more on the Mild to Moderate  
> range....in fact, that's my actual area....Mild/Moderate Intervention  
> Specialist.  I have actually worked with students with learning  
> disabilities, higher cognitive
>
> disabilities, ADHD, ODD, Autism, some  behavioral/mental health 
> disorders, hearing impairment, vision impairment,  orthopedic impairments,
etc.
> Now, I will state that I am legally blind, so I have some usable 
> vision (I'm around 20/200 range)....so some of my techniques may not 
> be the same as
>
> someone who is totally blind.  That, however, doesn't mean they can't 
> do it
>
> though...it's just different.   A short little tidbit about my journey
> though....when I was looking at colleges and deciding what I wanted to 
> pursue, my vocational rehab counselor told me that teaching wasn't a 
> "blind friendly  field" and that if I pursued it, I would be making a 
> huge mistake.
>
> Needless to say, I didn't listen to him....course, I've never been 
> afraid to
>
> take the road less traveled.  I have also proved him and many others 
> that it is possible.....with lots of work....and some advocacy on my 
> part.
>
> Just a couple quick things on working with students.
> 1.  It is amazing how much behavior management can be done just with 
> hearing.  I have had multiple students "test" me over the years, 
> thinking I
>
> would not be able to see what they were doing.  And in some cases, 
> they were right...I couldn't see what they were doing....but I was 
> always able to catch them just by listening.  They soon realize that 
> when you can catch  them doing things without even seeing them, their 
> perspective and behavior changes.
>
> 2.  When dealing with academic work.....when I have difficulty seeing  
> what
>
> they are doing...I use questioning as a technique to determine if they 
> are
>
> doing things correctly.  If you are able to ask them to talk through 
> what they are doing....or ask them very specific questions that will 
> give you feedback as to whether they understand a concept, you don't 
> necessarily need
>
> to  "see" their work.
>
> 3.  In terms of medical emergencies....that is hard to say because  
> every medical emergency is different.  For example, if a student 
> faints  lets say...the other kids, simply out of shock or surprise are 
> going to inform you of it....its their natural tendency.  You can 
> develop a classroom  atmosphere
> that creates good communication between you and the students.   If you
> develop an atmosphere where you teach the students to care about one 
> another, they can be your eyes.  Once you know about the emergency, 
> there  are ways to deal with each situation.
>
> These are just some thoughts off the top of my head.  If I think of  
> more, I will pass them along.  Like I said, the other listserv would  
> probably be
>
> helpful too.
>
> If you have further questions, feel free to email me off list as  well.
>
> Nicole
>
>
>
> In a message dated 1/30/2014 8:50:15 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, 
> jsoro620 at gmail.com writes:
>
> Hello,
>
>
>
> There's a student in Texas who is having  difficulty obtaining a 
> certification in special education. The student has  been told they 
> would be better off pursuing a second Master's to become a  vision 
> itinerant teacher or using the credentials they have to be a  
> counselor in the state's vocational rehabilitation agency. The student  
> would rather work with general special ed, specifically elementary-age  
> students with behavioral disorders.
> Unfortunately, there are a lot of  concerns about making special 
> accommodations and the student's independent  ability to make certain 
> observations. Now, I have zero experience in  education, special or 
> otherwise. Are there people here who have, or are,  pursuing this type 
> of career path who could pass along some tips for  success? The 
> student is a hard-working 4.0 GPA achiever. It seems generally  and 
> legally incorrect that placements in general special education classes  
> suddenly disappear when the student informs the coordinators they are  
> blind. Further, the student should not be sent to a state school for 
> the  blind by default just because the student is blind. Any thoughts, 
> advice  and referrals would be welcomed.
> Thanks in  advance.
>
>
>
> --
>
> Twitter: @ScribblingJoe
>
>
>
> Visit  my  blog:
>
> http://joeorozco.com/blog
>
>
>
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