[stylist] Blind and segragation

Mon Dec 29 21:02:03 UTC 2008

Donna:

The Braille literacy situation you describe is familiar to me.  That whole
"'least restrictive environment" thing--what it really means is what is
least restrictive for everybody else, not what is least restrictive for the
child in question.  Teachers and parents naturally want blind children to
use as much of their sight as possible, because it is least restrictive for
the parents and teachers.  The child pays dearly.

John

-----Original Message-----
From: stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:stylist-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf Of Donna Hill
Sent: Monday, December 29, 2008 11:29 AM
To: NFBnet Writer's Division Mailing List
Subject: Re: [stylist] Blind and segragation

When I was pursuing my career as a singer/songwriter in the Philadelphia 
area, I used to do school assemblies, singing original songs to motivate 
kids to reach out for their dreams and showing them my guide dog, 
Braille and so on.  I had never been to a school for the blind, but had 
friends who told horror stories about them.  I offered to give an 
assembly at the Overbrook School for the Blind and spent a memorable 
afternoon there.  Despite the fact that the school had invited a 
reasonably successful, blind college grad with two albums at that time, 
they insisted upon having all of the students at the assembly.  Many 
were profoundly disabled children in wheelchairs with no capacity to 
benefit from my program -- other than perhaps enjoying the music, which 
I was willing to do for them separately.  They made lots of 
uncontrollable noises to the point that my interaction with the blind 
kids of normal intelligence was significantly hampered. 

My experience with St. Lucy's School for Blind Children, which was at 
the time a school within a school in the catholic school system, was 
quite different.  The blind students had their own area where they 
learned Braille, computer, etc and they went to classes in the main 
school based on individual needs and abilities.  It was a wonderful place.

The main reason that Braille is not taught in public schools is 
two-fold.  It's expensive so blind kids' priorities are subservient to 
the need to keep costs down.  Also, the general population has lost so 
much in the way of literacy, that they don't even know what that word 
means.  No one would call a sighted child literate just because they 
listen to someone read to them.  Also, many children are still being 
encouraged to use the remaining vision they possess for reading, though 
it is hard, even hurtful to them physically to read.  Braille has such a 
stigma that they don't want to learn it.  Then, when they're out of 
school and their vision drops to a point where they can't read, no 
matter how hard they strain, they have to go out of their way to learn 
Braille.  I say teach it to all low vision kids.  It's a skill; if you 
wish to abandon it in later life like you abandon algebra or Spanish, 
fine, but learn it.
Donna

-- 
For my bio & to hear clips from The Last Straw:
http://cdbaby.com/cd/donnahill

Apple I-Tunes

phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?playListId=259244374

Performing Arts Division of the National Federation of the Blind
www.padnfb.org

Alan Wheeler wrote:
> I never went to any school for the blind, but I know someone who has.  I
think the only problem is that nowadays, the schools for the blind also
serve multi-handicapped students as well, taking a lot of the focus off os
someone strictly blind.  This makes for lower standards and less support for
integrating the people who are blind, and blind alone, into regular schools
at some point.
>
>
> +-+-+-
>
>    But God commends his own love toward us, in that while we were yet
sinners,
>  Christ died for us.
> Romans 5:8
> ~~~
>
> Alan D Wheeler
> awheeler at neb.rr.com
> IM me at: outlaw-cowboy at live.com
> Skype: redwheel1
> Check me out on the Q, Fridays from 10 AM to 1 PM eastern time at
www.theqonline.net
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "The Crowd" <the_crowd at cox.net>
> To: "NFBnet Writer's Division Mailing List" <stylist at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Sunday, December 28, 2008 09:43
> Subject: [stylist] Blind and segragation
>
>
>   
>> Here is a big ol can of worms!
>>
>> I have the opinion that blind children, at least for several years in
their 
>> schooling should go to schools with other blind children. There they can 
>> learn their blind skills.
>>
>> Braille literacy would go back up, there would be confidence in mobility 
>> from the very beginning, home economics, typing, research, it would be a 
>> whole balanced thing, rather then trying to learn blind skills in a
school 
>> for sighted people.
>>
>> yeah, yeah, I know, main stream makes them like everyone else, which is a

>> load full, if you ask me. I've been in the public schools and I went to a

>> school for the blind and it gave me the chance to do things I wouldn't do
in 
>> public  schools. I was on the track team, cheer leading, swimming,
bowling 
>> teams. I learned how to cook, cut wood, shop, read Braille, type, we did 
>> plays, competed against other blind schools and sighted schools in pros
and 
>> chorus. Instead they teach you a few fundimental things in public school,
so 
>> you don't accidently kill yourself out in the parking lot, so you can do 
>> school work, but the skills that kids learned in those schools for the
blind 
>> are lost.
>>
>> I find it sad that there are no more track teams, little five, wrestling
and 
>> cheer leading multi school competitions.
>>
>> Blind children are not sighted children. They need to  be with their
peers, 
>> learn from one another, experience things among themselves. Then after
they 
>> have those things in place, go check out the public schools. That is my 
>> opinion.
>>
>> I know many people think that blindness is just a nucience, but it is a
lot 
>> more then that when you don't have the skills in place or the comarodery
you 
>> need to understand it. I went many years being ashamed of being blind and
it 
>> hurts people.
>>
>> Atty
>>
>> Life is short ...forgive quickly, kiss slowly, love truly,
>> laugh uncontrollably...
>> and never regret anything that made you smile
>>
>> "Qui docet, discit."
>> "He who teaches, learns"
>>
>> I have learned that people will forget what you said,
>> people will forget what you did,
>> but people will never forget how you made them feel.
>> Maya Angelou
>>
>>
>>
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om
>>     
>
>
>
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