[blindkid] Schools for the Blind vs. Education in PublicSchoolSystems

[David Andrews]

I agree with Mike.  The important thing is the education and training 
you get, not the setting.  I went to both, got good blindness skills 
in school for the blind and good education, and socialization in 
public school.  My state, at the time, had good support for kids in 
public school though, as they have never had a school for the blind, 
and population is dense.

If a public school can give you the skills and support, I think it is 
generally a better setting, but if you aren't going to get enough 
Braille travel etc., you may be better off in a school for the blind.

Dave

At 09:51 PM 6/16/2009, you wrote:
>Actualy, I don't think it's an "either or" thing: schools for the blind
>and public schools each have advantages and disadvantages. In the end,
>it depends upon how good the program for each type of school in a given
>area is.
>
>When I went to a school for the blind fifty years ago, I learned braille
>(including nemeth and music codes) and some blindness skills (though not
>O&M back then) and could not have succeeded in public schools without
>them. But the RLF/ROP wave was in full swing and many children with
>additional disabilities beyond blindness were starting to swamp the
>school for the blind and so I went to public school. Contrary to the
>note below, I was more socially active and appropriate in public schools
>and, given that I had the foundation in reading/writing/typing, I
>excelled academically and did better than I would have at the school for
>the blind.
>
>However, that was then and that was a long time ago. Now, as the note
>below indicates, many public school programs aren't up to snuff and many
>blind kids are isolated and sometimes don't achieve up to their
>potential whereas at a school for the blind, they might well be more
>socially integrated and sometimes do better academically. AS I say, one
>cannot generalize but must look at each particular situation and child.
>
>My personal opinion is that a child should attend a school for the blind
>and get his/her blindness skills to a superior level and then go on to
>public schools. But this assumes that there is adequate support in
>public schools -- often not the case these days.