One of the biggest challenges
that visually impaired students face every day is the overwhelming mass of
printed material that they are unable to see. This holds them back from being able to read
standard size text in notebooks, classroom handouts, and schedules. They also
cannot access material written on the chalkboard or an overhead projector, and
cannot participate when media, such as slides, are used. To overcome some of
these obstacles, students with low vision usually require magnification in some
form to read the print. Magnification is provided through decreased working
distance, enlarged print, optical magnification devices, and electronic magnification
devices. Some of these visual aids include: closed-circuit television reading
aids, magnifying glass, telescopes, headband aids, and of course, Braille.
For literacy, there are 2 Braille
alphabets:
·
Grade 1 (alphabetic Braille) is referred to as the
simplified Braille. This Braille matches print exactly.
·
Grade 2 (abbreviated Braille) is more common and
much faster, although it has many rules underlying its structure and its many
abbreviations.
There is also a Grade 3 Braille (Nemeth code), which is code
for math and scientific symbols.
Students who are visually
impaired can participate in practically all aspects of school activities;
however, reading is one potential area of difficulty, often because of slower
reading speed. For the students who use braille, extra attention must be paid
to English spelling forms. Math may be the most problematic because students
need to explore the dimensions of shape, and build up a vocabulary of
mathematic terms.
Education for children with
visual impairments can be grouped into 7 major areas to form a curriculum that
combines general curriculum goals, with specialized instruction. The areas of focus include the general
curriculum; use of special aids and equipment; communication skills; visual
stimulation; orientation and mobility; personal competence; and vocational
guidance and career education.
When children with visual
impairments are in a classroom, special accommodations must be made to ensure
the children’s safety while at school. It is important to walk the child
through the classroom, pointing out landmarks. Assign the student a buddy if
needed, but do not move furniture in the room without informing the
student. It is best to cut down lighting
glare on items such as glass and desks, by covering them with papers if needed.
Know how, when, and under what circumstances that the child can use their
vision most effectively. Give many verbal instructions, and stress legibility,
not size, in students printing, because most low-vision students write in a
size compatible with their own visual capacity.
Some
behavioral approaches are also referred to as skill models or task-based
prospectives.
These focus
on the mismatch between school tasks and the unique abilities, patterns and
learning styles of students with learning disabilities.
Direct Instruction: Refers to activity – focused highly
scripted teacher instruction that incorporates numerous opportunities for
students to respond.
Steps in
direct Instruction:
1. Review and check previous: do a
review and homework check, and reteach if necessary.
2. Rapidly present new concepts or
skills in small steps.
3. Provide guided practice under close
teacher monitoring.
4. Check work for understanding;
provide corrective feedback and reinforcement.
5. Provide plenty of independent practice
in seat work and homework.
6. Review Frequently
The
components of Direct Instruction include explicit, step-by-step teacher
procedures that account for student mastery, immediate feedback, practice, and
gradual fading from teacher direction. Learning is achieved by identifying the
specific objective to be attained, arranging appropriate stimuli to elicit the
responses, Programming learning sequences in small steps, and reinforcing
desired behaviors.
Metacognition: Knowledge
of one’s own cognitive processes. The steering, regulating, and orchestration
of cognitive processes - which in turn rely on cognitive processes, which then
rely on cognitive objects, such as language, attention, and memory.
What are Metacognitive Processes?
Within the
general concept of metacognition, there are two types of behavior: knowledge (or cognitive strategies or control executive strategies) and skill
(learning strategies).
Knowledge
is the overachieving, organizational process - the general strategies used in
accomplishing a learning goal.
Learning
strategies (skills) refer to an individuals approach to tasks, and are either generic
or domain-specific (problem-solving skills).
Winser, M. (2008). Children with
Exceptionalities in Canadian Classrooms (8th ed.).
Toronto, Canada: Pearson Prentice Hall, pp. 159 - 161 & pp. 380 - 388.
Toronto, Canada: Pearson Prentice Hall, pp. 159 - 161 & pp. 380 - 388.
