Visual Impairments: An Online Guide Book
How important is being aware of visual impairments as a teacher?
What are the different types of visual impairments and their characteristcs?
What are some teaching stratiges to use when having students with visual impairments?
Are there rescources for teachers to use?
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Title Page
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Introduction: What are visual Impairments?
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Challenges
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Teaching Stratiges
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Resources
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Conclusions
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References
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Introduction: What are visual impairments?
Visual impairment inckuding blindness is defined in the regulations accomplanying the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (PL 108-446) as "an impairment in vision that, even with correction, adversely affects an individual's educational performance. The term includes both partial sight and blindness" (34 C.F.R. 300.7 [c][13]).
Over the years, the term legally blind has been used as a federal definition of blindness. This definition involves using a Snellen chart, which is used to make a clinical measurement of the true amount of distance vision an individual has under certain conditions. A vision acuity of 20/200 or less in the better eye with correction or a visual field that is no greater than 20 degrees is the defintion of legally blind.
What are causes of visual impairment?
Refractive Errors
- Mytopia: commonly called near-sightedness; a student is able to read his textbook but has difficultiy seeing the chalkboard
- Hyperopia: commonly called far-sightedness; a student can see objects far away but has difficulty seeing them up close
- Astigmastism: an irregularity in the curvature of the cornea resulting in disorted or blurred vision
Defects of the Ocular Muscle
- Strabismus: an improper alignment or imbalance of the eyes, commonly referred to as crossed eye, which, left untreated, will cause pernament blindness
- Nystagmus: a rapid, involuntary movement of the eye
Disorders of the Cornea, Iris, or Lens
- Cataracts: a clouding of the lens of the eye resulting in blurred vision; may be corrected surgically
- Glaucoma: a build-up pf fluid pressure in the eye; central and peripheral vision may be permanently impaired
Other
- Retintis pigmentosa: a common hereditary condition, usually causes "tunnel vision" and night blindness prior to total blindness
Challenges of Visual Impaiments
Visual loss imposes three basic limitations on children. These limitations include the range and variety of experiences, the ability to get about and the limitations in the ability to control the environment and oneself.
Special provisions to this group of children must take into consideration all implications of perceptual restrictions which go far beyond adaptation of tool subjects.
The main importance of the sense of hearing to a child with blindness is to facilitate verbal communication and aid in movement. Hearing therefore is of very limited value in acquisition of concrete clues of an object for a blind child.
The blind child who hears the twitter of a bird may know with more or less accuracy from where the bird sound comes from, but all his listening will not give him any idea of the shape of the bird’s body, or of his size or its physical characteristics, It becomes very challenging for a learner who is blind to perceive spatial qualities of objects without being provided with materials in form of models or embossed diagrams for touch and manipulation in which kinesthetic sensation participates.
Teaching Stratiges
Adapting your classroom to accommodate a student with a visual impairment is a relatively easy task—it just requires an awareness of the student’s level of visual functioning (how the student sees) and how the student works and learns. For example, for the student with low vision, make sure that he is near the front of the room where he can see the board. Control lighting variables when presenting learning materials to those students who are sensitive to light and glare. Use verbal cues with those students who cannot see body movements or physical cues.
One key accommodation that is absolutely essential is access to textbooks and instructional materials in the appropriate media and at the same time as their sighted peers. For students who are blind this may mean braille and/or recorded media. For the student with low vision, this may mean large print text or the use of optical devices to access text and/or recorded media while in class. Working closely with a student’s teacher of students with visual impairments in advance helps ensure accessible materials and availability of these materials in a timely manner.
These straitiges may be used for multiply grade levels, however larger text may be used for older visually impaired students. The lighting and neat classroom may be used with all grade levels including pre-k levels.
Rescources for the Teaching Stratiges
There are mulitple resources for teachers to adapt in their classroom for visually impaired students. On this page, we have provided mutlpile website links, videos and a picture to help make your classroom friendly to those visually impaired students.
Games:
- Hot Potato: This game really keeps things moving. The players form a circle and sit with the leader sitting in the middle. The leader tosses a ball that is called Hot Potato to one of the players. The leader is blindfolded and the players pass the Hot Potato quickly. The leader calls out Hot Potato at random and the player holding the ball is out. The game continues until only one person is left. The game assists in social interaction.
Adapting cririculum
Cirriculum Adaptation for visually impaired students
Teahing visually impaired students:
Sound puzzel game:
Conclusions
Learners with visual impairments encounter several challenges. Due to the heterogeneous nature of visual impairments, it was difficult for most teachers to plan for these learners according to their academic needs. Most learners with visual impairment are placed in inclusive schools without specially trained teachers to handle the technical areas: Braille. Learners with visual impairments lack support from educational power, which may cause withdraw when from the school.
The Government should train more teachers in special needs education so that at least each regular school has one. Parents to students with visual impairments and community should be concious on the student and their education. The awareness could facilitate networking for better performance of the learners with visual impairments.
References
"Visual Impairments." Project IDEAL. Texas Council for Developmental Disabilities, n.d. Web. 20 Apr. 2017. <http://www.projectidealonline.org/v/visual-impairments/>.
Willings, Carmen. "Teaching Students with Visual Impairments." Teaching Students with Visual Impairments. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Apr. 2017. <http://www.teachingvisuallyimpaired.com/>.
Loftin, Marnee. "Paths to Literacy." Formal Evaluation of Students Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired | Paths to Literacy. Paths to Literacy, 08 Sept. 2015. Web. 20 Apr. 2017. <http://www.pathstoliteracy.org/blog/next-step-intervention-formal-evaluation>.
"Basic Principles of Blindness and Visual Impairment." Basic Principles of Blindness and Visual Impairment | CCVI. Children's Center for the Visually Impaired, n.d. Web. 20 Apr. 2017. <https://ccvi.org/basic-principles-blindness-and-visual-impairment-0>.
Richard M. Gargiulo and Debbie Metcalf. "Cengage Learning." Teaching in Today's Inclusive Classroom.