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From Metal Frames to Micro-chips:
The Role of Technology in Early Braille Literacy
Focus: School years
Topic: Access to Literacy
Tim Connell
Quantum Technology Pty.
Ltd
P.O. Box 390 Rydalmere
NSW 2116
Australia
Tel: +61 2 9684 2077
Fax: +61 2 9684 4717
Email:
tconnell@quantech.com.au
Let me begin by giving
some definitions, in order that we are all on the same page to start with. I
hope that the metaphor, of “being on the same page” translates well into other
languages because it is an important concept that I will return to later. It
means to bring us together at the same starting point.
It is very hard to write
braille without the aid of technology! We often we use the term technology only
to describe advanced or electronic products, but for the purposes of this
presentation I use the term ‘braille technology’ to cover any device that is
used to produce braille, from the simple frame and stylus, to the braille
writer, to the latest electronic note-taker with refreshable braille. And
sometimes there is confusion about the term braille writer so I need to tell
you that I define this as a device with a braille keyboard, which produces
braille on a sheet of paper. There are both mechanical and electronic versions
of the braille writer.
My main goal in talking to
you today is to discuss the role of braille technology in early braille
literacy. And I want to focus on young children and the development of braille
literacy skills from the pre-operational stage (2-6 y.o.) to the concrete
operational stage (6-12 y.o)
It is always good to know
where you come from. If we look to the past we find that in the first half of
the 20th century there was a rich history of innovation during which
many new braille writing options were developed. At this time braille writing
technology provided the key to independent access to information and education
and was a critical component in the emancipation process for blind people all
around the world, a process that is still taking place.
In the middle of last
century the Perkins arrived and it proved so successful that it quickly became
the standard for braille writing in most countries of the world, a position it
largely still holds to this day. Compared to the first half, the second half of
last century saw a marked decline in innovation with the notable exception of
the Versabraille and other refreshable braille devices. However, these latter
developments were so expensive that they achieved very limited use and
certainly played next to no role in early braille literacy.
At the beginning of this
new century we have once again seen major innovation take place with exciting
developments in electronic braille writers and note-takers which have started
to be utilised in early braille education.
However, possibly the most
important recent development is the renewed interest in braille world wide and
the recognition of its importance to literacy for a blind student. This is
happening at a time of great change within education and the rest of society,
with computers and other new technologies providing new opportunities as well
as new challenges for blind students. The move to multi-media and digital
information and the growing reliance on graphical information are but two
examples.
So how are we responding
to these new challenges and incorporating the braille literacy experience into
our new digital world? Internationally
the answers vary dramatically both within countries and between countries.
In terms of sheer numbers,
mechanical braille writers such as the Perkins still dominate and it is time we
questioned why this is so. Undoubtedly in many countries, the available
funding, rather than the best educational outcomes determines what technology
is being used. In wealthier countries we need to look at assistive technology policies
and how they are being formulated and implemented to fully understand the
disparity of educational opportunities that exists between sighted and blind
children.
Overwhelmingly we see
policy development based on tradition and comfort zones rather than the best
possible solution for the blind student or solid research data. There are very
few school districts in developed countries that would present their sighted
students with 50 year old technology as the primary tool and foundation stone
for developing their literacy skills. Yet we do this to blind students every
day.
There is a need for a
fundamental shift in the way we formulate our technology policies that reflects
the literacy task, or the outcome needed by the student. We need to define outcomes
in terms of basic literacy skills but also in terms of the functional skills
needed in a digital world, such as computer and other technical skills, as well
as vocational skills.
When we use older
mechanical braille writing devices for early braille literacy, we are telling
the blind student that braille is a separate and somehow less exciting
experience. It can all too easily become a process to be endured till they can
get on to the really exciting stuff like computers. The experience of first learning braille needs to be a
stimulating and exciting experience. It also needs to be an integral part of
learning the technology skills that they will need throughout life.
Often it is the vision
teacher who has to make the decision about which braille technology is most
suitable for an individual student. These teachers look to their peers and
professionals in the field for determining best practice. But when you examine
the professional journals relating to blindness you will find very little on
braille writing and braille writing technology. For example a quick review of
papers in the Journal of Vision Impairment and Blindness will reveal hundreds
of papers and references to braille reading, but only the occasional reference
to braille writing and even less on braille writing technology.
However, there is
definitely evidence that the Perkins is starting to lose its almost
monopolistic position in early braille education. There is an emerging trend in
some European and Scandinavian countries and to a lesser extent in North
America and Australia, to move to electronic note-taking devices as the initial
tool for braille writing and early braille literacy. These typically have either speech output or a combination of speech
and refreshable braille output. Speech
only note-takers have a very limited role in early braille education if
any. Note-takers with refreshable
braille typically have a line of braille of between 20 to 40 characters, which
refresh or change to new characters, at the touch of a button.
These are powerful and
exciting tools and they have an important role to play in braille literacy,
however, I am suggesting that, just like the older mechanical braille writers,
they too are not the ideal choice for beginning braille writers in early braille
literacy, and I will explain why shortly.
What I am proposing is that there is a
mid-point between these two extremes that does offer the ideal platform for
early braille literacy, and it is the electronic braille writer. During the
remainder of this presentation I would like to justify this proposal. To do
that I will start by listing what I see as the shortcomings of both mechanical
braille writers and braille note-takers.
Older mechanical braille
writers.
There are very few
products that we use today that have remained unchanged for 50 years. Those
that have usually have clearly identifiable characteristics that make them
superior. For the Perkins the only
superior characteristic is its durability; a true testament to its design but
not necessarily to its continuing viability. In so many other areas it falls
short of what we expect in a modern product, and ergonomics is the most
obvious. There remains a tradition in many countries to start using the braille
writer when the student is strong enough, often 7-8 years of age, and this is
simply an indefensible position in this day and age. Children need to start
scribbling and playing with braille from the earliest possible time, certainly
no later than kindergarten. We certainly don’t let physical limitations inhibit
pre-literacy learning for sighted children.
Finger layout, the
pressure required to press the keys, the difficulty to move or carry are some
of the smaller problems. The really big problem is that we are not providing
the student with the opportunity to learn independently. Jean Piaget has said
that each time we teach a child something, we keep him from inventing it
himself. A Perkins is only really
meaningful when a braille literate person is present and in integrated
education that cannot be assured.
The second major problem
is that there is no serendipitous or concurrent learning taking place. The
skills acquired through using a Perkins are simply no longer relevant to other
technologies, and this makes the transition to the electronic note-takers and
computers a major undertaking instead of a sequential step up the technology
ladder.
The third major problem is
that it doesn’t create opportunities to use braille as a means of communicating
with peers, siblings and classmates. Instead of braille facilitating
integration and communication of blind students, it becomes a barrier that
others can’t use or understand. Braille needs all the help it can get and a
Perkins, while it may create passing interest is never going to become “cool”!
Before I leave mechanical
braille writers I want to clarify that I am not altogether against them, and I
believe it is important that blind students still learn how to use them. I am
however strongly disagreeing with them being the sole choice of tool for early
braille learning.
Electronic Note-takers
with Refreshable Braille.
Now I am obviously a big
fan of technology, and I am certainly a big fan of note-takers. These are truly
exciting developments that can potentially greatly enhance the educational
opportunities for blind people.
So what I am asking you to
review is when you introduce them,
not if you introduce them. In terms of early braille literacy
electronic note-takers have one major problem and this is the limitation of
having a single line of braille only.
I want to return
to the metaphor I used at the beginning of this talk, and that is for us to all
“be on the same page”. The concept of a page is an integral part of our
language and intellectual landscape. Our books are made of pages, increasingly
our information is coming from web pages, and ultimately our understanding of
the ‘page’ is important for many other literary and technical concepts.
Amongst current
educational philosophies, there is an acceptance that there are clear
developmental stages of intellectual growth. Piaget identified 4 stages of
intellectual development as being
Sensorimotor - birth to 2 years
Pre-operational Thought –
2 – 6 years
Concrete Operations – 6-12
years
Formal Operations – 12 –
adulthood
It is only in the latter
part of the Concrete Operations stage that children start to develop the
ability to think on the abstract level. If this is the case then it is
reasonable to assume that up until this point blind students require the
concrete experience of working on a full page of braille.
When we give a
young student a single line of braille that refreshes we are asking them to
think in the abstract, to be able to imagine a full page of braille and extract
a single line and make it separate. This places many limitations on their
literacy skill development, including;
and many more. Clearly it
is essential that students first learn braille on a page.
The point at which a
student can make a transition to a note-taker is highly individual and
certainly academically gifted students can do this much earlier than others.
Regardless of their age it
is most important that children develop these early literacy skills using a
full page of braille prior to moving to the abstraction of a single line, and
to do this they need a braille writer. And hopefully I have demonstrated why
this needs to be an electronic braille writer and not a mechanical one.
Hence this seems like an
opportune time to present some research and evidence to support everything I
have said thus far. I want to briefly describe to you a project that was
conducted by two organisations in British Columbia, Canada, the Provincial
Resource Centre for the Visually Impaired (PRCVI) and the Special Education
Technology Unit, British Columbia (SET-BC).
In late 1997, these
organizations were faced with the problem of developing assistive technology
policies relating to braille literacy for students in integrated classrooms in
their province. At the time they were using a mix of mechanical braille writers
and electronic braille note-takers, specifically the Braille Lite, and had
encountered many of the shortcomings of both products that I have described
above.
As a result they proposed
a study in collaboration with Cay Holbrook from the University of British
Columbia’s Program for Visual Impairment.
Five beginning Braille
readers and their vision teachers from across British Columbia were selected to
participate in the research project. Positive preliminary findings and a demand
to expand the project resulted in a further 11 primary-age students joining the
project in the fall of 1999. All the students attended their neighbourhood
school and had regular support from a teacher of students with visual
impairment. Eleven of the students had little or no useful vision and used
Braille as their primary literacy medium. Five of the students had varying
degrees of useful vision and were learning to read and write in both Braille
and print. Three of these students had additional physical and/or learning
disabilities.
Vision teachers and other
support personnel were trained in the operation of the Mountbatten Brailler.
They also learned implementation strategies to enhance the development of
Braille literacy and arithmetic skills.
Students in the project
were brought together several times to share their experiences, demonstrate
their expertise, learn some new skills, and provide feedback.
Vision teachers and
students provided feedback via surveys, questionnaires and focused discussion
groups. Their findings are summarised as follows:
1. Impact on Literacy Development - Writing.
Teachers reported that
their students made better progress in the acquisition of Braille writing
skills, were more motivated to write for longer periods and could more easily
produce better quality dots (especially dots 3,6) that aided tactual
discrimination and reading. They also reported that the speech feedback feature
was very helpful for students who required multi-sensory feedback, reinforced
learning new Braille contractions, and made writing more 'fun" for most students.
2. Impact on Literacy Development - Reading.
They reported improved
progress in the development of Braille reading skills in 15 of the 16 students
involved in the project. The 'hard copy' Braille output provided immediate
tactile feedback and facilitated editing on the spot. They also reported
increased access to daily classroom materials in Braille.
3. Impact on Inclusion.
Most reported enhanced
opportunities for the student to be included in a wider range of classroom
activities. Sighted primary age classmates were attracted to it and could use
the PC keyboard for cooperative group writing projects and personal
communications. The visual display allowed the regular classroom teacher to
have instant access to the student's brailled work.
4. Impact on Development of Basic Technology
Skills.
In general, teachers also
reported enhanced technology-related skills and noted that these then served as
a foundation for learning more complex technologies, such as Braille notetakers
and computers. You can find more detailed information about the project at
www.setbc.org.ca.
As a result of this
research project the Mountbatten Brailler is now available to students and
teachers throughout British Columbia and other provinces are starting to follow
suit. Similarly several states in Australia now exclusively use the Mountbatten
as the primary braille writing tool and have found the same positive outcomes.
So what does the future
hold? If there is one message that I
hope I have been able to get across it is that braille education has to move
with the times and to do that it needs to use modern technology. The experience
of early braille learning has to be an exciting and inclusive experience, one
that involves the whole class and the whole family, not just the blind student.
And I hope that
professionals in the field will take up the challenge of providing solid
research data upon which policies for adopting braille technology can be based.
Without proper experimentation and research we end up experimenting with our
students’ future.
There is one thing that I
am certain of and that is that technology will continually move ahead. In our
own small part of it, Quantum is developing both new mechanical and electronic
products for braille. The mechanical one is called Jot-a-Dot and it is designed
as a purely mechanical hybrid of the frame and stylus and the Perkins, or if
you like a “pocket sized Perkins”.
The second project is what
I believe will be the future of braille, and it is a full page refreshable
braille display. We are developing a low cost braille cell that can be stacked
closely enough to form continuous lines of braille. With the revolution that is
currently taking place in digital information combined with a full page of
refreshable braille the future for braille reading and writing looks very
exciting indeed.
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