BLINDNESS AND LOW VISION Definitions Low Vision Legal
BLINDNESS AND LOW VISION
Definitions Low Vision • Legal visual acuity is 20/70 - 20/200 in the better eye after corrections is considered partially sighted • Education - can use vision for learning with modifications IDEA definitions of visual impairments emphasizes the relationship between vision and learning Totally blind: Receives no useful information through the sense of vision Functionally blind: Learns primarily through the auditory and tactile senses Low vision: Uses vision as a primary means of learning but may supplement by using tactile and auditory input © 2012 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. Blind • Legal - visual acuity is 20/200 or less after the best possible corrections with glasses or contact lenses • Educational - cannot use vision for learning
PREVALENCE Rate of Visual Impairments is 4 per 10, 000 in individuals in the school population. Many school age children with visual impairments also have another disability From U. S. Department of Education, 2003. © 2012 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
THE EYE © 2012 Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.
CAUSES OF VISUAL IMPAIRMENTS Hereditary conditions Infectious diseases Injuries Retinopathy of prematurity Refractive errors: Myopia (nearsightedness) and hyperopia (farsightedness) Structural impairments: Cataracts, glaucoma, nystagmus, strabismus Cortical visual impairments: Suspected damage to parts of brain that interpret visual information
CHARACTERISTICS Cognition and language Impaired or absent vision makes it difficult to see the connections between experiences Abstract concepts, analogies, and idiomatic expressions can be difficult to understand without sight Motor development and mobility Visual impairment often leads to delays and deficits in motor development Social adjustment and interaction Children with visual impairments interact less and are often delayed in social skills Many persons who have lost their sight report that the biggest difficulty socially is dealing with the attitudes and behavior of those around them
FACTORS INFLUENCING SOCIAL INVOLVEMENT • Several factors influence the limited social involvement of children with visual impairments • Many cannot benefit from peers or adult role models because of the low incidence of the disability • The inability to see and respond to the social signals of others reduces opportunities for reciprocal interactions • Some individuals with visual impairments engage in repetitive body movements or other behaviors which places them at a great social disadvantage • Many report the biggest difficulty socially is dealing with the attitudes and behavior of sighted people
EARLY INTERVENTION A child’s experiences during the period from birth to age 5 are critical to subsequent development. Early intervention programs reduce the number of secondary problems
IDENTIFICATION AND ASSESSMENT Preschool vision screening Snellen Chart Near-Acuity cards Titmus Vision Tester
EDUCATIONAL ADAPTATIONS Adapting the Learning Environment Adapting the Curriculum Adapting Teaching Strategies Assistive Technology
EDUCATIONAL APPROACHES Braille is the primary means of literacy for people who are blind • Braille is a tactile system of reading and writing composed of raised dots Tactile aids and Manipulative Technological Aids for Reading Print Kurzweil 1000 - Optical character-recognition system Hardware/software that magnifies screen images Speech recognition software Software that converts text files to synthesized speech Heward Exceptional Children, 10 e © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved. 10 -11
EDUCATIONAL APPROACHES Special Adaptations for Students with Low Vision • Functional vision teaches the use of remaining vision Optical devices • • Glasses and contact lenses Handheld telescopes or magnifiers Closed-circuit television systems Augmented reality systems Approaches for Reading Print • • • Approach magnification Lenses Large print Heward Exceptional Children, 10 e © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved. 10 -12
ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY FOR VISUALLY IMPAIRED Watch the video on assistive technology for students with visual impairment https: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=Ic. UNnnw. Fm 4 g Meet Mason Heward Exceptional Children, 10 e © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved. 10 -13
EDUCATIONAL PLACEMENT ALTERNATIVES 88% of children are educated in public schools 62% are members of general education classrooms 13% attend resource rooms for part of each day Most students who are included in general education classrooms receive support from itinerant teacher-consultants The most important factor to the successful inclusion of students with visual impairments is a skilled and supportive general education teacher 12% are served in separate classrooms 6% attend special day schools 4% attend residential schools Heward Exceptional Children, 10 e © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved. 10 -14
TRANSITION Sacks, Wolffe, & Tierney, 1998 31% of students with low vision worked for pay 19% of students with blindness worked for pay Need a stronger focus on career development and social skills competences Increase training in mobility and orientation
EXPANDED CORE CURRICULUM Orientation and mobility training (O&M) Cane skills Guide dogs Sighted guides Electronic travel aids Listening skills Functional life skills Cooking Personal hygiene Shopping and financial management Transportation Recreational activities Heward Exceptional Children, 10 e © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved. 10 -16
SCIENCE AND STUDENTS WITH VISUAL IMPAIRMENTS AND BLINDNESS Watch the following videos: 1. 2. Student with visual impairments and blindness in science classes Making Sensational Happen 10 -17
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