[NFB_of_Georgia] Georgia Braille Literacy Bill 2022

[Derrean Tucker]

Georgia Literacy BILL

PURPOSE: To assure that the individualized education program of each blind
or visually impaired child includes provisions for instruction in Braille
and the use of Braille appropriate to the child's current and future
literacy needs; to establish standards of proficiency and instruction; to
provide materials in a computer-accessible format capable of Braille
reproduction; and to require the certification and re-certification of
teachers in accordance with Braille literacy standards.



SHORT TITLE

SECTION 1. This Act may be cited as the "Blind Persons" Literacy Rights and
Education Act.



INDIVIDUALIZED EDUCATION PROGRAM

SECTION 2. In developing the individualized education program in the case
of a child who is blind or visually impaired, provision shall be made for
instruction in Braille and the use of Braille unless the IEP Team
determines, after an evaluation of the child's reading and writing skills,
needs, and appropriate reading and writing media (including an evaluation
of the child's future needs for instruction in Braille or the use of
Braille), that such instruction or use is not appropriate for the child.
Nothing in this section requires the exclusive use of Braille if other
special education services are appropriate to the child's educational
needs. The provision of other appropriate services shall not preclude
Braille use or instruction.

(a) Pursuant to GA Law:

Georgia public schools and Georgia Academy for the Blind, shall provide
braille instruction for visually impaired and blind students.

Shall be a part of the individualized education plan (IEP);



STANDARDS OF COMPETENCY AND INSTRUCTION

SECTION 3. Instruction in Braille reading and writing shall be sufficient
to enable each blind or visually impaired child to communicate effectively
and efficiently with the same level of proficiency expected of the child's
peers of comparable ability and grade level. The child's individualized
education program shall specify:



(a) the results obtained from the evaluations required under section 2;

(b) how Braille will be implemented as the primary mode for learning
through integration with other classroom activities;

(c) the date on which Braille instruction will commence;

(d) the length of the period of instruction and the frequency and duration
of each instructional session;

(e) the level of competency in Braille reading and writing to be achieved
by the end of the period and the objective assessment measures to be used;
and

(f) if a decision has been made under section 2 that Braille instruction or
use is not required for the child.



(1) a statement that the decision was reached after a review of pertinent
literature describing the educational benefits of Braille instruction and
use; and

(2) a specification of the evidence used to determine that the child's
ability to read and write effectively without special education services is
not impaired.



INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS

SECTION 4. All publishers of textbooks (including texts in electronic
media) sold to the state or any local education agency (including
postsecondary institutions) must furnish an electronic version in which the
content (i) is encoded in text suitable for conversion into Braille or
synthesized speech; and (ii) has been prepared using a markup language
which maintains the structural integrity of the information and can be
processed by Braille translation software.



SECTION 5. As part of the certification and renewal process, teachers
certified in the education of blind and visually impaired children shall be
required to demonstrate competence in reading and writing Braille. The
state agency responsible for certifying such teachers may not issue or
renew a license to teach the visually impaired unless the applicant
demonstrates, based upon standards adopted by the National Blindness
Professional Certification Board, that he or she is proficient in reading
and writing Braille.



DEFINITIONS

SECTION 6. As used in this Act,

(a) "Blind or visually impaired child" means an individual who is eligible
for special education services and who:



(1) has a visual acuity of 20/200 or less in the better eye with correcting
lenses or has a limited field of vision such that the widest diameter
subtends an angular distance of no greater than twenty degrees; or

(2) has a medically indicated expectation of visual deterioration.



(b) "Braille" means the system of reading and writing through touch and
includes both Unified English Braille and the Nemeth Code for Mathematics
and Science Notation.

(c) "Individualized education program," and "IEP team" have the meanings
provided in section 614(d) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education
Act (20 U.S.C. Section 1414(d)

(d) "Textbooks and other instructional materials" means any literary or
nonliterary works obtained for use in a course of study.


-- 
Derrean Tucker (secretary)
Phone: 706-333-2413
Email: dtucker at nfbga.org
LaGrange, Georgia 30240