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<DIV>Denise,</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>While I am a fan of technology and use it daily, I am happy to hear you
continue to advocate for some things being done in hardcopy Braille. Saving
trees and expediting the grading process is certainly a very desirable outcome.
But, making our teachers proficient in the tools to be used by our students (in
this case the braillewriter) is pivotal. Thanks to technology, we can improve
environmental conditions while simultaneously continuing to stress the
importance and usefulness of the braillewriter and slate, and making certain
that teachers in training have access to plenty of practice in the utilization
of these must-have devices. A great evening to all!</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>EG</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>
<DIV>In a message dated 9/21/2011 6:35:53 P.M. Central Daylight Time,
dmehlenbacher@yahoo.com writes:</DIV>
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<H3 class="post-title entry-title"><A
title=http://blindgeteducated.blogspot.com/2011/09/in-effort-to-become-braille-certified.html
href="http://blindgeteducated.blogspot.com/2011/09/in-effort-to-become-braille-certified.html">In
the Effort to Become Braille Certified</A> </H3>
<DIV class=post-header></DIV>Oh so many years ago, leading up to my braille
certification, I killed a LOT of trees in the process. I would braille hours
every night after school and after work in order to learn that code. Using 11
x 11 paper and a great deal of it.<BR><BR>Today, things have changed
tremendously. I have everyone download <A title=http://www.duxburysystems.com/
href="http://www.duxburysystems.com/">Perky Duck</A>, which is free and is a
minor program compared to its parent <A title=http://www.duxburysystems.com/
href="http://www.duxburysystems.com/">Duxbury</A>, which is a very powerful
and superb braille to print, print to braille translation program, but cost
money. I also use the Library of Congress Braille Handbook and many
supplements for my adult students to work from. They six key in their work,
then email it off to me for correction. In this process, we save hundreds of
trees. When there are too many students, I have them sign up with the Library
of Congress, which the National Federation of the Blind has taken over in the
correction and helping mode. They too are set up to receive everything through
email and they respond using email also, with a grade and or corrections that
need to be made.<BR><BR>When taking the Braille certification test, you can
use your reference manuals. When I take them through the lessons, I have them
mark the sections and underline the areas they are struggling with, so when
the test comes and they are unsure, they can quickly turn to the answer in
their book. A great supplement to the classes is the <A
title=http://www.scalarspublishing.com/
href="http://www.scalarspublishing.com/">Braille Enthusiast's Dictionary</A>.
It has every word and contraction you can think of that may be in
text.<BR><BR>When my students are preparing for the test I have them braille
it out in Perky Duck or Duxbury to get an electronic copy. Then they move to
the brailler and braille another copy out. Next, they compare their hard copy
to the electronic copy. Proofreading your own work is one of the hardest
things for students. It was for me too, so it is great with these new
techniques to use to double check your work. If they are really in doubt, they
rebraille another copy on Perky Duck or Duxbury. When they are practicing
their proofreading or slate n stylus, once again, they can use Perky Duck to
braille out all the different options they believe it to be. <BR><BR>I have
had more people pass their braille certification quicker using these methods
versus not using them. Using everything at our disposal gives us a better idea
of how to help our students too. Many methods, mean more success, for more
people.
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 18pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: 'Brush Script MT'"><FONT
color=#4040ff> Denise </FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 18pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: 'Brush Script MT'"></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV>Denise M. Robinson, TVI, Ph.D. <BR>Teacher of the Blind & Visually
Impaired<BR>TechVision-Independent Contractor</DIV>
<DIV>Specialist in blind programming/teaching/training</DIV>
<DIV>509-674-1853 <A title=mailto:deniserob@gmail.com
href="mailto:deniserob@gmail.com" target=_blank
rel=nofollow> deniserob@gmail.com</A></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><A title=http://blindgeteducated.blogspot.com/
href="http://blindgeteducated.blogspot.com/" target=_blank
rel=nofollow>http://blindgeteducated.blogspot.com/</A></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV></DIV><BR><BR>_______________________________________________<BR>Pibe-division
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