[NFB-Science] How do I best deal with making graphs and using scientific instruments in my environmental science class?

Tue Sep 24 23:42:08 UTC 2019

Hello Kendra,

I can definetly relate to your situation. Sometines it is necessary to be creative about how to use the resources available to find the best way to accommodate any particular situation.

I am a social science major, and none of the science classes I took required microscope work. So I cannot share any personal experience regarding how to accommodate for the use of a microscope as a part of a science class.

However, there was a lot of graph work in my environmental biology class as well as my current statistics class. I have experience creating graphs using Excel and a human reader. The technique I used depended on the assignment we were given in class.

There was a lab assignment in my environmental biology  class where we specifically needed to create a bar chart graph  using Excel. Since none of the computers that were provided in class to work on this lab assignment had a screen reader on it, I completed this assignment with the assistance of the reader that was assigned to work with me in-class from the disabilities office.

There was also another lab assignment for my environmental biology  class where we needed to create a bar chart graph by hand as part of our assignment. Again, I worked with my reader assigned to work with me in-class to complete this graph. I first determined the scale to use for my graph using the data collected as part of the lab assignment and asking my reader to tell me how many grid spaces appeared on the graph paper that was provided during this lab assignment. I then dictated the rest of the graph elements for my reader to complete the graph. I found this to be rather easy to do with my reader.

We were also required to learn how to read and interpret graphs as a part of my environmental biology class. I was expected to be able to do this in the same manner as my sighted classmates using the tactile graphs that were created for me. Since there are a number of different ways for a person to create a tactile graph, I do not understand how providing a table of data is a reasonable accommodation when you are being taught how to read and interpret graphs. I believe providing a table of data rather than a tactile graph fundamentally alters the nature of the learning objective when you are expected to learn how to read and interpret graphs.

I am not familiar with all the different ideas that have been presented as a way for you to independently create graphs. However, it sounds like some of them could be used to create tactile graphs for you to use as well. My college has a thermal form machine that it uses to create tactile graphs. However, other simple and inexpensive items that have been used to create tactile graphs for me include pipe cleaners, wiki stickts, which are basically sticky pipe cleanres that stay in place better than pipe cleaners, puff paint, and a cork board with a raised line grid and thumb tacks. In general, the specific situation and time available to create the tactile graph would dictate which method and materials are used to create the tactile graph.

I have found that the best accommodation for me when using graphs is a simple tactile graph with a reader to help provide more specific details about the graph. I have chosen to use this accommodation when using graphs because I find it easier to be able to feel the overall shape of the graph and it can be quickly created by the disabilities office. However, it takes more time for them to add braille labels to the graph and a thermalform machine is not the best tool for createing detailed graphs that I can use. I feel like this method makes the best use of the resources available to create the tactile graphs.

However, I understand other people have different resources available to them as well as different skill sets required to make use of these resources. Therefore, what workds best for one person may not necessarily work for another person. But these are some things that have worked for me. Hoepfely this helps you find a way that works best for you.

Warm regards,
Elizabeth

From: Kendra Schaber [mailto:redwing731 at gmail.com]
Sent: Tuesday, September 24, 2019 10:51 AM
To: NFB Science and Engineering Division List <nfb-science at nfbnet.org>
Cc: Elizabeth Mohnke <lizmohnke at hotmail.com>
Subject: Re: [NFB-Science] How do I best deal with making graphs and using scientific instruments in my environmental science class?

Hi all!
I totally get the whole concept of reading and interpreting graphs. However, as of now, I don’t have access to the tactile world except for hard copy braille and my braille display. As far as I know, braille displays don’t make scientific graphs. They only make sertain math graphs and perform calculations for math problems. This one is a totally different ball game. Part of the problem is efficency in being able to make a scientific graph with the redsources that I currently have, not resources in the future. Like in the climatology world, the future is actually my writing class and environmental science lab today, not the year 2100. Since I don’t have resources to the high tech braille printers, I’m looking for the most efficent and effective way to work with scientific graphs to survive my current environmental science class. I suspect the only way is a reader and scribe, even outside of my class. I’ll have to pick the brains of the school’s tutoring center and my accomidations specialist. I did suggest tables because they are the most accessable way to read the kind of information that’s found in a graph with a screen reader. Believe me, most sighted humans find graphs boring to read and because of that, it’s hard to get one who wouldn’t have to be paid an arm and a leg to accurately read one out loud. As it is, I’ve already had to advocate for tables to survive 350.ORG<http://350.ORG> presentations because before most of the more scientific presentations stopped by general consensus of the group, 9 times out of ten, the presentor would have so much information that I always missed out. This is why I’m a strong believer in tables, not graphs. Since you can’t survive science class without graphs, I’m looking for the most effective way around this major problem and do it with the resources and lack there of that’s already available to me now!

"When the student is ready, the teacher will appear", Author Unknown.
Thank you for reading this email! Also, please note that I have eighth grade spelling. I'm well known for spelling mistakes. Ironicly, writing is one of my gifts.
Blessed  Be!
Kendra Schaber,
Student of Chemeketa Community College,
member of 350.ORG<http://350.ORG> Salem,
Member of the National Federation of the Blind of Oregon, Capitol Chapter.
Writing on my Polaris Braille Sense.
Using both Gmail and Outlook.
Go Detroit, Red Wings! Go Pittsburgh, Penguins! Go Portland, Winterhawks! Go Baltimore, Oriels!  Go Baltimore, Ravens! Go Oregon State Beavers, baseball and football teams!

On Sep 23, 2019, at 18:03, Elizabeth Mohnke via NFB-Science <nfb-science at nfbnet.org<mailto:nfb-science at nfbnet.org>> wrote:
Hello Kendra,

Accommodations like these depend on your skills and resources as well as the skills and resources of your college or university. Others have already given you some alternatives for creating graphs that can be handed in to your sighted professor. However, if you do not know how to use the technology they mentioned to you, or you do not have access to it, you can also use a reader or scribe to create graphs using pencil and paper.

We were required to create a simple bar graph by hand in my general environmental biology class. However, I found that I had no trouble doing this using the reader who was assigned to work with me when working on lab assignments and other in-class activities. I know some blind students will pair up with another sighted classmate for this sort of thing. But I never found working with other sighted classmates to work well for me.

Finally, if you are required to learn how to read and interpret graphs as a part of class, then I am not completely sure how receiving all your course materials as tables  will help you accomplish this goal. It seems to me that tactile graphics would be a more suitable alternative as turning graphical information into a table may alter the assignment or course goal of learning how to read and interpret graphs.

I hope you can find the best way of dealing with this graphnical information for your class. I feel like tactile graphics should be considered and discussed for any math, science, or statistics class.

Warm regards,
Elizabeth

-----Original Message-----
From: NFB-Science [mailto:nfb-science-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Kendra Schaber via NFB-Science
Sent: Monday, September 23, 2019 5:00 PM
To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list <nabs-l at nfbnet.org<mailto:nabs-l at nfbnet.org>>; NFB Science and Engineering Division List <nfb-science at nfbnet.org<mailto:nfb-science at nfbnet.org>>
Cc: Kendra Schaber <redwing731 at gmail.com<mailto:redwing731 at gmail.com>>
Subject: [NFB-Science] How do I best deal with making graphs and using scientific instruments in my environmental science class?

Hi all!
I know I don’t post very often in less I run into something major. I ran into something major today for my environmental science class. I wasn’t effected during the first class period itself. When I met up with my science teacher after class during my lunch break, some questions came up that I had some idea on how to answer but was missing critical information. How do I go about making graphs in an environmental science class? According to my science teacher, he informed me that I have to actually turn scientific data and promptly turn it intto a graph. Since I’m blind, there are some major accessability problems around any graph items that come up in any form. I told him to use tables instead of graphs when sending me information electronically. But it still doesn’t answer the question of how to make them. I’m not just talking about the graphs that most see in math classes. I’m talking about things like bar graphs, pie graphs, exponential graphs and simular. How do you all navigate this problem? Also, the other query came up with scientific equipment. One example is microscopes. I said that my in class assistant might be able to look into one for me and give me the information that’s acquired only via looking through a microscope. There might be other tools that I don’t know about, however, it still leaves yet another accessability gap with us blind science students. So, how do I navigate scientific measuring and data colecting instruments? Do I only use my in class aid or will I have to acquire additional tools? Can I use an in class assistant until I can get such tools? The earlier I know this information, the better off I’ll be. Thank you!!!

"When the student is ready, the teacher will appear", Author Unknown.
Thank you for reading this email! Also, please note that I have eighth grade spelling. I'm well known for spelling mistakes. Ironicly, writing is one of my gifts.
Blessed  Be!
Kendra Schaber,
Student of Chemeketa Community College,
member of 350.ORG<http://350.ORG> Salem,
Member of the National Federation of the Blind of Oregon, Capitol Chapter.
Writing on my Polaris Braille Sense.
Using both Gmail and Outlook.
Go Detroit, Red Wings! Go Pittsburgh, Penguins! Go Portland, Winterhawks! Go Baltimore, Oriels!  Go Baltimore, Ravens! Go Oregon State Beavers, baseball and football teams!

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