[Nfb-editors] Purpose of an NFB publication

[Wunder, Gary]

Hi Lori. This is a war I would be willing to fight. It won't be an easy one. I just attended an IEP meeting where a little girl in the second grade who had been receiving braille since kindergarten and pre-braille before that had her braille instruction discontinued by the director of special education. The director said that the responsibility of the school was to teach this child the core curriculum, that right now she could see well enough to use print, and that if, at some time in the future, this changed, the school would be receptive to starting braille once again. She noted a significant discrepancy in the reading speed when the child used braille and print. She was nearly 4 times faster using print. Investigation revealed that print was tied into everything that one associates with the advantages of reading and writing. Her assignments were read in print; they were written in print. Braille was completely divorced from any of the curriculum - no characters to meet through stories, no characters to create through writing, just flash cards and contractions, and the number of contractions mastered being the yardstick by which the learning of braille was being measured.

The situation is terrible. It exists even though the parents are firmly convinced their child needs braille. It exists even though the national Federation of the blind of Missouri is on their side. It continues even though the Missouri Protection and Advocacy Service has decided to take the case.

What we have identified here is not an issue of student attitude or generation. The issue is whether a school district will come up to the line and do what is right, or whether they will continue to look at short-term progress reports and a teaching methodology that makes no sense whatsoever. Many of our folks in rehabilitation complain that they receive new students fresh from the education system where it is clear that the school worries about immediate goals and leaves the future to rehab.

President Maurer has put together an educational task force charged with looking at how to reform the education system in the country. It is a large undertaking. It is one where we have to concentrate on eating the elephant one bite at a time.

Gary

 

-----Original Message-----
From: nfb-editors-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nfb-editors-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of LoriStay at aol.com
Sent: Sunday, April 10, 2011 6:21 PM
To: nfb-editors at nfbnet.org
Subject: Re: [Nfb-editors] Purpose of an NFB publication

If we need a war, it ought to be against mainstreaming blind kids before 
they have a chance to learn Braille.   when deaf kids go to school, they get 
at least a year learning sign, etc.   Blind kids ought to have the same 
privilege, learning Braille and mobility, keyboarding, etc. among their peers.
Lori
In a message dated 4/10/11 2:50:47 PM, k7uij at panix.com writes:


> Okay; I'll bite.  Here goes something controversial.
> 
> Perhaps we need another war to unify us.  Perhaps we are like Captain 
> Bligh; he was a great leader in adversity but had troubles in fair 
> weather.
> 
> Perhaps we need another go at the airlines; they've irritated me a bit 
> lately. (mischievous grin)
> 
> Mike
> 
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