The Language Teacher
August 1999

Led by the Blind

by John Herbert

Ritsumeikan University


Preparations for the start of a new university year had gone well. My courses were prepared and I was ready for the start of classes and the new intake of students the following week. Four or five days before the start of classes, a faculty member mentioned to me that there was to be a blind student, Satoshi, in my freshman English class that met twice a week. "Well, in actual fact, he is not totally blind, but visually impaired to a considerable degree," the faculty member corrected himself. He continued, but I was only half listening. My carefully prepared syllabus (I had designed a varied course to motivate my first year students for the seventy-five hours of class time that I would spend with them over a nine month period) was flying around my head, and I was imagining how a blind or visually impaired student would be able to cope with it. How on earth would Satoshi be able to deal with work based from the textbook? How would he cope with information that was written on the blackboard? How about extra materials that I would throw together at the last minute to flesh out certain lessons, or to deal with problems that had come up for students in a previous class? How about the video elements of my course? And what about the class computer sessions? Even the listening elements of the course relied on textbook questions or handouts. How, in short, could he possibly take part actively in all parts of the English syllabus?

My initial panic gave way to a determination to find a way to sort out as many of the problems as possible. Looking back over the whole process, we managed to overcome some, but unfortunately, not all of the problems that we faced. However, in future years, I will have a better understanding of the problems to be faced and their remedies, and that is what I hope to set out in this paper.

Blindness

According to the Japanese Association of the Blind, there are 350,000 blind and visually impaired people in Japan. The degree of blindness is divided into six grades, with grades one and two considered as severely visually impaired (Otomo, 1997). Satoshi falls into this category.

A lot of us sighted people feel uncomfortable with the term "blind," as if we could compensate for our relative privilege with euphemisms like "visually impaired" or "visually challenged." It has been pointed out by the U.S. National Federation of the Blind that politically correct euphemisms "at their worst . . . obscure clear thinking and damage the very people and causes they claim to benefit" (Jernigan, 1997).

Jernigan maintains that an individual "maybe properly said to be 'blind' or a 'blind person' when he has to devise so many alliterative techniques [to do efficiently those things which he would do with sight if he had normal vision], that his pattern of daily living is substantially altered." (Jernigan, 1995).

Throughout the year I thought of, and referred to, Satoshi as "visually impaired" because he was not totally blind. However, it is with the words of the U. S. National Federation and Jernigan's definition in mind, that I refer to Satoshi as "blind" in this paper.

Setting the Scene

Satoshi is a 19-year-old man, one of 25 male and female students in my first year English class at a private university in Japan. Satoshi is not totally blind. He describes the world he sees as a white blur, yet he can vaguely discern outlines, enabling him to walk independently, with the use of a collapsible cane commonly used by the blind. Visual equipment such as glasses, unfortunately, are of no help. He has not been blind from birth, but his blindness was a hereditary condition that afflicted him when he reached third grade.

I found that Satoshi could make his way to the classroom, open the door, find his way to a seat at the front and arrange his materials for the class on his desk, all unaided and without apparent difficulty. However, he could read nothing from either the blackboard, prepared handouts, or the textbook in their original English format. Neither could he watch video or read material directly from a computer monitor. He could hear the teacher's voice, and the voices of the other students, but until those students spoke, he could only make guesses as to their identity based on their location in the classroom.

To read and write, Satoshi uses braille, the system whereby combinations of raised dots arranged in cells, represent letter. To read, he brushes the tips of his fingers over the raised dots. (For an excellent description of braille systems and the history and development of braille, visit the New Mexico State University web site at www.nmsu.edu/Resources_ References/access/ public html/braille.html) To write, he either creates braille manually on paper or inputs braille into what he calls his "small computer."

Our Problems and Attempts to Overcome them in the Early Stages of the Course

My English syllabus emphasized speaking, listening and writing skills. Although reading skills were not stressed, their importance was paramount in carrying out exercises in the other three skills. The major problems Satoshi faced in this syllabus were as follows:

The textbook and written materials: One of our major problems was the provision of written material in English, but in braille format. This meant that somebody had to transcribe all written materials for the course into braille. It would have been possible to record the written material on tape, but Satoshi preferred to have a braille version on paper, as it made life much easier for him in the classroom for two reasons. First, he could search for materials more simply skimming the braille with his fingertips than rewinding and fast-forwarding the tape recorder. Second, just like the other students in the class, at times he needed to read the materials while listening to the teacher or his peers. Had his materials been on tape, he would have found listening to two sources very awkward.

Before the start of the school year, the administration sent the textbook to an organization for the blind called Kyoto Lighthouse. There, for a fee, they transcribed the textbook into braille manually and would transcribe small quantities of subsequent course material free. I had to provide materials well ahead of time for the braille versions to reach Satoshi in time.

Alternatively, the material could be input for Satoshi as a text file on disk or sent as email. He could then listen to the material using voice software and make a braille copy himself.

I could ease Satoshi's burden by organizing future classes early, so that he could receive the relevant material in advance. It was extremely important for Kyoto Lighthouse and myself to label materials dearly, using page numbers wherever possible, so that Satoshi's fingertip search of materials could be efficient.

Writing: Satoshi had to be able to take notes during class, and to write assignments in a form that I could read, because I am unable to read braille. In the first few weeks of class, Satoshi took notes in braille with primitive-looking equipment: He placed paper over a wooden board and a metal grid over the top of the paper, splitting the paper into many small rectangular cells. He created a series of dots in each cell with a small tool resembling a stubby awl, forming the braille letters which allowed him to read. The process was far from silent and I remember the surprised looks on the other students' faces when they heard the clatter for the first time. Satoshi worked remarkably quickly. It appeared to be a tiring exercise in which he used up much energy. It also took a greater amount of time to write in this manner than it took for the average sighted student to write with pencil and paper.

The situation improved after a few weeks when Satoshi brought to class equipment that he called his "small computer." It had no monitor and was about the size of a lunch box, approximately 25cm by 15cm by 4cm.The machine was called Braille Lite, made by Blazie Engineering. On the surface of the machine were a series of eighteen rectangular cells with eight white protruding dots on each. These dots combined to create a refreshable braille display, and Satoshi could both input braille himself and read braille that had been previously stored in the machine. The machine also had a seven-key braille keyboard for data entry and speech output. (For detailed information on this machine, including a picture, visit the web site www.setbc.org/res/equip/braillelite/default.html.)

For written assignments, Satoshi was familiar with the layout of a regular English keyboard, was competent at word-processing, and simply submitted work in the normal manner.

Blackboard information: Satoshi couldn't read important information that I wrote on the blackboard, so I made concerted efforts to read all the information on the blackboard clearly to the class as a whole, always keeping in mind that one student relied only on sound for this information. I checked regularly that Satoshi had understood. As a matter of course, I list new vocabulary that comes up during class on the right hand side of the board. At the end of class, either I or another student would relay the spellings to him.

Computer discussions using local area network software: Students took part in whole-class, computer assisted classroom discussions (CACD) with the use of local area network software. At first, I thought that it would be impossible for Satoshi to take part. However, I paired him with one of the more proficient English users, and this student read aloud the comments of fellow classmates that appeared on the computer screens. Satoshi then responded to comments made by others and joined the discussion, for as noted, he was proficient with word-processing on a regular keyboard, even with no braille display. Unfortunately, the student reading the information aloud had less time to spend composing her own contributions to the CACD.

Video: Students watched video clips, including extracts of a film critique given by native speakers, in order to give their own critiques of videos that they would watch at home. How could Satoshi deal with this part of the course? This turned out to be the most difficult area. Fortunately, video accounted for only a very small part of my course, but this part, was, quite frankly, unsatisfactory for Satoshi. I sat next to him and described the action on the screen where I thought it appropriate. At first I described scenes in English, then in Japanese, as I became less certain whether the description was of any help whatsoever. The exercise simply became a very difficult listening exercise for Satoshi and I felt relieved (as I'm sure Satoshi did) when the class was over. The other students in the class thoroughly enjoyed the video element, and this fact posed the question of how much teachers should change their syllabus to accommodate the needs of one, or perhaps in other cases, a minority of students.

The Latter Stages of the Course

In the latter stages of the course, the school purchased a computer with braille translation software (Braille Star 3 software version 1.3 from New Braille System Inc. which allows both output and input of braille, along with Nihongo Eigo Jidou Tenyaku Program Extra version 3.1 from Amedia Inc. which creates braille transcription from either English or Japanese text). The computer had a refreshable braille display, which displays the text from the computer's monitor in braille, changing as the user reads the text, and a braille printer (ESA721) imported from the Netherlands.

This latest available technology was a major asset in conquering the challenges that Satoshi faced. Unfortunately, the equipment was not cheap. The total package cost approximately \ 2.6 million yen, the printer alone almost \1 million yen. Universities can apply for funding, and in the case of Satoshi, the local prefectural government contributed to some of the cost.

The new equipment made the provision of materials for him much simpler. I simply emailed text files of English to Satoshi, who saved them on disk. He would insert the disk into the computer and with headphones listen to the voice software giving him the instructions as they appeared on the screen. He could then navigate around the screen, and with the push of a few keys, the text from the disk appeared on the screen in English. He then listened to the text in English to check for completeness, and when satisfied, he pushed several more keys and the English text was transcribed into braille, both on the braille display as raised dots, and on the screen as pixels. At this stage, he can either read the material with his fingers on the refreshable braille display, or print out a hard copy through the braille printer. A two page English text on A4 size paper translates into eight pages of braille on B5 size paper. The whole process, from start to finish, took Satoshi about five minutes.

Difficulties that Remained

At the beginning of the course, at times I was the fifth link in the information chain. I found it difficult to obtain accurate details from the administration about which materials Satoshi had received, which materials the voluntary organization were translating and which materials the teaching assistants were preparing.

I found help with this advice from a University of Washington guide, "The student with a disability is the best source of information regarding necessary accommodations .... [it is the student's responsibility to request special accommodation if desired, but a faculty member can make a student comfortable by inquiring about special needs" (Univ. of Washington). In effect, I decided to cut out as many of the links in the information chain as possible and deal with Satoshi directly as often as I could.

However, even dealing directly with Satoshi, and with the new, wonderful equipment, some difficulties remained. At times, Satoshi would tell me that he had all the materials necessary to carry out a classroom assignment, but checking later, I realized that this was not the case. Rarely would he volunteer any information that would have been mutually beneficial. I soon noticed that his listening test scores were not as high as his English ability warranted. I believe this was because he needed more time to carry out the reading required for the tasks, even though he assured me that he didn't. I am convinced that he did require more time, but that he was not prepared to hold up the flow of the class and become a burden on his fellow students.

Furthermore, the video portions remained unsatisfactory and the computer-assisted classroom discussions also relied heavily on cooperation from another student to make them worthwhile for Satoshi.

Steps to Ensure Greater Success in Integrating Blind Students into University Classes

Equipment: Purchase of the latest available technology may be expensive, but it is invaluable.

Knowledge of the Equipment Being Used: Teachers of blind students should find the time to understand the actual workings of each machine the student uses. When I did so I learned about the braille system, the difficulties that Satoshi faces in class and out of class, the much larger than average volume of materials that the student has to carry around with him, how much more time blind students usually need to spend on schoolwork and routine daily activities, and the validity of excuses given for not having completed work on time. In particular, the teacher can learn how to make life simpler for the student, when to give the extra attention to the student that is required, and when to leave the student to his own devices and not be overzealous in attempts to help.

Design of Course and Classroom Management: Be aware that one student in your class is reliant on sound and not on vision. I was intensely aware of my own voice in the very first class. It reminded me of the time I heard my voice on audio-tape for the first time. Make sure other students speak clearly and loud enough. The blind student cannot rely on gestures to gain understanding. If the teacher takes the time to close his eyes and experience a world where sounds become extremely important, he can go a certain way to understanding the difficulties the blind student faces, and the need to supply the missing visual information that all the other students rely on so heavily.

Blind students will often invest time in detailed planning in advance, in order to complete workloads. It is therefore very important to try and avoid "last minute changes in classrooms, assignments, or examination dates" (Univ. of Illinois). However, wholesale changes to a syllabus may not be the answer. Nobody, especially the blind student, would want all references to the visual world wiped from the course. However, a video course, for example, seems totally inappropriate, and Satoshi actually withdrew from one course because it was heavily dependent on video. However, in a course that covered over seventy-five hours of class time, the use of video acted as a motivator and novelty for the students in the class, and just as other students made sacrifices in helping Satoshi, I felt that here was a necessary sacrifice he could make in return.

Classmate Participation: At times I had to give Satoshi my undivided attention for several minutes, especially to assist when he was finger searching braille documents for the correct material for a particular exercise. I couldn't pay attention to the other students at these times. Fortunately, the classroom atmosphere was cooperative; students were only too willing to help Satoshi and myself, without making Satoshi feel like an exhibit, once they could understand the problem.

One idea to make the students more aware of the needs of a blind student is to set various activities which help them gain understanding in the difficulties that a blind student faces. (For a list of suggestions visit the web site www.viguide.com/vsninsvc.htm.) However, it is extremely important that the teacher has spoken to the blind student beforehand to determine whether the student is comfortable with this approach or not. In many cases, the student may be very uncomfortable with this approach. As Schulz has noted, "Although blindness or severe visual impairment does not cause self-consciousness, it definitely affects the ability of a self-conscious person to function" (Schulz, 1977).

Better Communication: A lot of the responsibility for better communication falls on the teacher. Not all of the problems are the fault of the teacher, but it is in the teacher's classroom that the problems occur if the administration, teacher and student do not all communicate well. To ensure a successful course, teachers must from the start insist on clear, practical information from the administration about the situation that the blind student faces. Meetings that include the student in question should be arranged to solve minor problems quickly before they become major.

The chief difference in communicating with a blind student is that miscommunication has more serious consequences and may lead to the student's inability to take part in the class at all. The extra attention that the teacher pays specifically for the blind student -- planning well ahead, putting extra effort into speaking clearly, simply the heightened consciousness of the effort successful communication requires -- will benefit the remainder of the students in the class.

Conclusion

Teaching Satoshi forced me to look at my teaching methods and doing so helped my teaching generally. The experience was both rewarding and beneficial. However, Satoshi, the administration and I all experienced plenty of headaches during the year. We could have solved many of the problems more efficiently had Satoshi been more outgoing, had the administration been more communicatively competent, and had I been more aware of the problems facing Satoshi, the administration, and the teacher of blind students.

The blind student is faced with a lifestyle spent among students who have access to the visual world. As I said good-bye to the students at the end of each class, Satoshi would say, "See you next class." I replied, "See you," intensely aware of the irony in this exchange. However, that initial unease is exactly what the teacher, the other students, and the administration must learn to overcome. As the University of Illinois, Division of Rehabilitation Education Services points out, "You need not worry about hurting the feelings of a student who is blind by mentioning the word 'see'. Students who are blind 'see' ideas or concepts .... Focus on the person rather than on the disability" (Univ. of Illinois).

The challenge of incorporating a blind student into an English syllabus where his peers are all sighted is a challenge not to erase the visual world elements from a course, but a challenge to make the classroom setting as accessible as possible to a blind student in a world where most have the ability to see. Jernigan (1997) states, "We can make our own way in the world on equal terms with others, and we intend to do it." Through better awareness, better communication and use of modem technology, conditions can be created to allow that statement to ring true in the foreign language classroom.

References

Jernigan, K. (1995). Who is blind? Available: www.blind.net/ bgOOOOOO.html

Jernigan, K. (1997). The pitfalls of political correctness: Euphemisms excoriated. Available: www.blind.net/bpgO0005.html

Otomo, N. (1997). Keynote report. Available: www.tsbvi.edu/ cosbnews/japan.htm

Schulz, P. J. (1977). Mobility and independence for the visually handicapped: Psychological dynamics of the teachingprocess. California: Muse-Ed Co. Available: www.spedex.com/resource/documents/txt/schulz.txt

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Teaching shudents with disabilities: A practical guide. Available: www.empowermentzone.com/teaching.txt as of Dec. 1998.

University of Washington. Working together: Faculty and shudents with disabilihes. Reprinted as Academic accommodations: Suggeshons for the classroom, laboratory, examination, and fieldwork. Available: www.empowermentzone.com/ accomm.txt as of Dec. 1998.

Appendix of Useful Related Web Sites

General Information and Guide to Internet Resources for Parents and Teachers of Blind and Visually Impaired People:

www.viguide.com

www.empowermentzone.com

www.spedex.com

www.bllnd.net

Technology and Equipment

www.the-fbc.org/techcenter.html

www.the-fbc.org/notetake.html

www.setbc.org/res/equip/braillelite/default.html

www.sighted.com

www.braille.com

Braille and Its History

www.nmsu.edu/Resources_References/access/public_html/ braille.html

www.nmsu.edu/Resources_References/access/public_html/ brlhist.html



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