[Pibe-division] Any suggestions?
EricGuillory at aol.com
EricGuillory at aol.com
Fri Sep 16 20:14:15 UTC 2011
Greetings Cindi et al,
This will serve as a multifaceted email. Firstly, I would like to address
Cindi’s inquiry, and then, on to other Federation business.
My wife and her colleagues in northern Louisiana have become fans of BOP.
that is to say, it far out-distances the original Patterns series in
several respects—particularly in the speed at which the code is introduced, as
well as in the method of doing the same. Whereas Patterns is widely thought
to be ponderous and far too slow in introducing new signs and symbols, BOP
is markedly faster, giving cognitive kids the credit they deserve in code
acquisition and setting reasonable expectations, not lowering the bar.
The homework debate is one that will rage no matter the content area. I
personally do not believe that a “magic bullet” answer for that question
exists. Rather, you have to use professional judgment when taking this into
account. I realize that family pressures (especially not to send homework
home) do exist in some instances. However, I also know that my sighted
5-year-old son has homework every night save for Friday, and he is in
kindergarten. As teachers of the blind and VI we have to ask ourselves if we truly
believe our kids can compete in terms of equality. As someone who is blind and
has been both personally and professionally successful (even if I didn’t
become a stand-up comedian lol), I hope that your answer to this question is
yes. If yes, then what are we doing to prepare them for future successes?
If their peers get homework (complete with all of the time management,
problem-solving, character-building lessons that entails), shouldn’t our kids?
Again, good judgment is crucial. But, I believe that never sending homework
home is ultimately detrimental.
Now, for those of you who care to continue reading, I would like to
discuss PIBE as an organization.
In July of this year, the National Organization of Professionals in
Blindness Education (PIBE) was officially recognized as a division of the
National Federation of the Blind. Yours truly was elected president thereof, along
with other officers and boardmembers. For those of you who wrote checks to
PIBE for your annual $25 dues and wonder why those have not been cashed,
there is a simple answer—namely, the bank with which I am dealing is putting
up more roadblocks to establishing a division account than one might
expect of the police as they try to stop a high-speed motorist. That is,
establishment of a bank account has proved extremely frustrating. I won’t bore you
with any more details, but suffice it to say that we are redoubling our
efforts. I have also been in preliminary talks with NOPBC President Laura
Weber about a couple of things, as well as with the Jernigan Institute about
upcoming collaborative opportunities. I am very excited about the
possibilities for our division and look forward to working with all members to
strengthen and further enrich our efforts to serve those in the field of working
with blind and visually impaired students in k-12 programs.
For those on the PIBE list who would be formally interested in joining our
organization, we would be happy for you to do so. I am hoping to have our
bank account established within a couple of weeks and will let you know
once that is done. I truly hope you will consider doing so, as $25 is far less
than the fees asked by other professional organizations. Granted, we have
yet to accomplish a great deal. However, that will change going forward—
with your guidance and support.
Please do not hesitate to contact me off-list if I can be of assistance to
you with regard to follow-up or more specific PIBE inquiries. I also look
forward to continued on-list discussions and questions of the type raised
by Cindi, Dr. V, and others. I learn so much through these dialogs. Wishing
everyone a good weekend,
Eric Guillory, PIBE President
Director of Youth Services
Louisiana Center for the Blind
101 South Trenton Street
Ruston, LA 71270
Phone: 800-234-4166
Fax: 318-251-0109
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