THE BEST LEARNING METHODS FOR BLIND STUDENTS
4 min readJan 25, 2023
According to professionals from different Schools in Hyderabad, Pune, Mumbai, Kolkata, and Delhi — Multiple teaching methods have been developed which are as follows :
TEACHING METHOD 1
- Any visuals should be explained. It is critical to thoroughly describe all visual materials while teaching a visually impaired or blind pupil. If you’re illustrating a point with a picture, for example, you should describe the image. “I’ve put a picture of Queen Elizabeth I on the board to demonstrate the way she was depicted,” you could remark. She’s dressed in a voluminous gown with intricate embroidery. This indicates her financial and political clout.”
It’s also a good idea to start dictating what you’re writing on the chalkboard or whiteboard. Students who are unable to see the board will be able to follow along with the material and take notes in this manner.
- Always offer instructions orally. Do not hand out a handout containing assignment instructions to your students. Students who are visually challenged or blind in your class may have difficulties seeing the words and understanding what is expected of them. Instead, for every assignment and activity, you should always give spoken directions.
- To ask a question, have students clap. Many classrooms rely on visual signals to raise questions or obtain the attention of the teacher. If a student wants to speak during a lesson, it is customary for them to raise their hand. Students who are visually handicapped or blind may not notice when their classmates raise their hands. Audio cues should be used instead of visual clues.
You may have students clap twice if they wish to ask a question, for example.
- Make tactile learning experiences available. When educating a class of visually impaired or blind students, tactile learning activities should be incorporated whenever possible. Instead of discussing rocks and presenting pictures of various types of rocks, you should actually have physical rocks in the classroom for children to touch and experience.
This can also be done with various foods, shells, matter qualities, and so on.
Your children will be able to explore and learn without relying entirely on sight.
- Address each student by their first and last name. Visually handicapped or blind students may not always be aware of who is speaking. As a result, whenever you call on students to answer or ask questions, you should always address them by their first name. This allows visually challenged students to learn to recognize their peers just by the sound of their voices.
- Allow visually handicapped or blind students more time to finish their assignments. Visually challenged or blind students may require additional time to complete coursework and assessments. This is usually due to the fact that reading braille or using technology help takes more time.
While you want to allow visually impaired or blind students enough time to finish their work, you also don’t want them to exploit their vision as an excuse to hand in work late. Establish deadlines and ensure that they are met.
- Treat all of your students with the same respect. Even if you have to adapt your teaching style and classroom structure to accommodate students with visual impairments, you should still hold these students to the same high standards as the rest of their classmates. All classroom rules and behavioral standards, for example, should apply to all pupils in the class. Students who are visually challenged should not be given preferential consideration.
- Take a look at the curriculum. In order to fulfill the needs of visually impaired or blind students, you may need to change the curriculum and the manner you teach it. When teaching painting, for example, you’ll want to depend more on tactile encounters. Instead of drawing or coloring, try sculpting and working with clay.
TEACHING METHOD 2
- Make a recording of your classes. Recording all classes is the simplest and cheapest technique to improve the learning environment for visually impaired or blind students. This allows pupils to listen to the instructions or lecture several times to ensure that they fully comprehend what is expected. Students can use smartphone apps to record courses, which can be downloaded for free. The school may invest in a microphone and recorder to improve sound quality and then transfer the audio file to the student’s personal computer.
- Textbooks and handouts in braille are available. You should order all class textbooks in braille as soon as you know you’ll have a visually impaired or blind student in your class. Using braille translation software, you can have all of your course materials and handouts converted to braille. This program is available for purchase online and costs around Rs 50,000.
- Allow smart scanners and readers to be used. The usage of smart scanners and readers can help students who are visually challenged or blind. Documents such as books and handouts will be easily converted to speech using these technological devices. Students who are unable to see the information offered in a written document can still access it in this manner. The materials will be read aloud by the machine. These devices are available for purchase online and range in price from Rs. 5–10 thousand to Rs.70–80 thousand . You can also use a Mobile reader application, such as the KNFB Reader , etc. to turn written text into speech.
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