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INTERNATIONAL COUNCIL FOR EDUCATION OF
PEOPLE WITH VISUAL IMPAIRMENT
 

Newsline
 

 

October 2003
 
 

Table of Contents
 
 
 

Message from the President:

 

Dear Colleagues:

 

We hope you will enjoy the October 2003 issue of the ICEVI Newsline which will provide you with an up to date information on some of the current activities of ICEVI.

 

As you read this issue you will note that we are making good progress on many areas of our Strategic Plan.

 

Nothing gives me more pleasure than to see how our collaboration with many organizations has grown over the past year. In this issue you will find references to our work with the World Blind Union (WBU), the International Blind Sports Federation (IBSA), the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB) and the Hadley School for the Blind. These collaborations are more than just words on paper; but have taken the form of concrete actions that will contribute to our international campaign to create equal educational opportunity for blind children and youth wherever they live.

 

Of course none of this would be possible without two essential ingredients; 1. your active participation in ICEVI and 2. the support that we are receiving from a growing list of international partners who share our vision.

 

You will also learn that the ICEVI principal officers will meet in Germany in late October as will the 12th World Conference Program Committee. If you have ideas or suggestions you would like to share with us please feel free to contact me directly larry@obs.org or convey your ideas to the Secretary General sgicevi@vsnl.net through your regional chairperson.

 

Please continue to help us build a strong and effective ICEVI by becoming actively involved in the work of your region.

 

Sincerely,

Larry Campbell
President
 

Also see the note on issues relating to the WSIS Draft Declaration of
Principles which was received at the time of release of this Newsline

 

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WSIS Draft Declaration of Principles: Hurry as minutes are ticking away:

 

The delegation of Thailand has pressed for the inclusion of the following text under para 20 B of the Draft Declaration of Principles of the World Summit of the Information Society Geneva 2003. (It was first included in the previous draft during intersessional meeting of the preparatory committee in Paris, but was deleted during the third preparatory meeting in Geneva)
 

"Specific needs and requirements of all stakeholders, such as those with disabilities must be considered in ICT development. Accessibility and inclusiveness of ICTs is best done at an early stage of design, development and production, so that the information society is to become the society for all, at minimum cost."
 

To see the full text of the draft declarations, please go to thewebsite http://www.itu.int/wsis/documents/listing-all-pc-asp?lang=en&cevent=pc%7C3 Inclusion of ICT issues related to persons with disabilities in the text of the draft declaration will enable the information society to recognize the needs as well as abilities of persons with disabilities. Your writing to the authorities concerned may help restoration of the above paragraph in the declaration of principles. Could you please write to the WSIS Secretariat or to the Embassy of each country in Geneva regarding this important issue as minutes are ticking away.
 

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ICEVI-WBU Joint Position Paper on Education:

 

The position paper on "Inclusive Education for Children with Visual Impairment" jointly developed and approved by ICEVI and the WBU has been widely appreciated by readers around the world. Many have expressed that this collaboration between ICEVI and WBU will go a long way in achieving the much cherished goal of education for all visually impaired children by 2015. Motivated by this positive response, a joint committee of ICEVI and WBU has come up with a comprehensive position paper on ìEducationî covering various aspects dealing with education of children with visual impairment. The position paper is currently being reviewed by the Executive Committees of both organizations. Readers will be updated on this through the website of ICEVI.

 

The President, ICEVI attended the Executive Committee meeting of the World Blind Union held in Sofia, Bulgaria in September 2003. The President was pleased to have had the opportunity to represent ICEVI at this important WBU EXCO meeting.

 

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ICEVI - Hadley Globe All Program:

 

The ICEVI-Hadley Globe All (Growth and Learning Opportunities in Blindness Education) Distance Education Program formally launched during the Executive Committee meeting of ICEVI held in Stellenbosch, South Africa in March 2003 is evoking good response in different parts of the world. Hadley School is providing the courses free of charge for those who register through ICEVI. A mechanism to track the registrants through the ICEVI website has also been developed, thereby the click on the link to Hadley School at the ICEVI website will automatically be registered as ìReference Through ICEVI websiteî with a default copy to the Secretary General. Through this mechanism, both the Hadley School and the ICEVI Secretariat can track those candidates who register for the Hadley courses through ICEVI website. The regional chairpersons are popularizing this program for the benefit of professionals and parents in their regions.

 

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Kudos Hadley for celebrating the 50th Year of Hadley China Branch:

 

The Hadley School for the Blind is offering distance education courses since 1920. The program has a profound impact in China, which has a current enrollment of nearly 600 persons in the Hadley programs. The 50th year of Hadley's presence in China was celebrated in a grand fashion during September 2003. Congratulations to the Hadley for this remarkable achievement and ICEVI wishes many more years of productive services of Hadley for the benefit of developing nations.
 

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ICEVI - IBSA MOU in the offing:

 

The President, ICEVI attended the World Games of the International Blind Sports Federation (IBSA) in Quebec City in August 2003. ICEVI and IBSA are likely to sign a Memorandum of Understanding in the near future to support the efforts of each organization for the promotion of sports activities for children with visual impairment.
 

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New Director of ONCE's International Relations Department:

 

Mr. Rafael Gonzalez has taken over as the Director of the International Relations Department of ONCE. ICEVI congratulates Mr. Gonzalez and looking forward to effective collaboration with ONCE for promoting educational services for persons with visual impairment, especially in the Latin America region.
 

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Welcome to Luz Liane, ONCE's Representative on the EXCO of ICEVI:

 

ONCE has become an international partner of ICEVI and has appointed Ms. Luz Liane, as the representative of ONCE on the Executive Committee of the ICEVI. The EXCO of ICEVI is extending a warm welcome to Luz Liane.
 

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Regional Committee Meetings:

 

During the period July to September 2003, the East Asia and West Asia regions of ICEVI conducted their regional committee meetings. The East Asia regional committee meeting was held at Kuala Lumpur on 28-29 August 2003 which was attended by country representatives from Thailand, Malaysia, Hong Kong, China, Philippines, Vietnam, Japan, and Indonesia. The regional committee decided to strengthen networking within the region to increase the coverage of visually impaired children in education programs in Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos, and Indonesia. The region has also resolved to conduct the East Asia Regional Conference in Bangkok from 29 November to 1 December 2004. More information on the conference will be available at the website of ICEVI : www.icevi.org
 

The West Asia Regional committee meeting was held at Kathmandu, Nepal from 29 September to 1 October 2003. Country representatives from India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Nepal attended the meeting. The West Asia region is proposing to organize a regional conference in 2005. The venue and dates of the regional conference will be decided soon and more information on the conference will be posted on the website of ICEVI.
 

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Recognition to ICEVI in the Tool Kit developed by the World Bank:

 

ICEVI is glad that the World Bank has thanked the contribution of ICEVI in the development of a toolkit by name EnVISIONing Education in Low Income Countries: Ensuring that visual disability no longer prevents children from benefiting from Education for All. Most of the contributors for the tool kit are directly associated with the ICEVI regions. ICEVI believes that this publication will be of help to policy makers, teachers, and other professionals to plan and implement educational services for persons with visual impairment. The publication will be posted on ICEVI website soon.
 

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Projects under the Drs. Richard Charles and Esther Yewpick Lee Charitable Foundation Grant (LFG):

 

The Africa, East Asia, Latin America and West Asia regions are actively involved in the implementation of various projects for the benefit of visually impaired OCTOBER 2003 6 children, teachers, parents, and professionals under the auspices of Drs. Richard Charles and Esther Yewpick Lee Charitable Foundation. Some regions are also proposing new activities for the year 2004. ICEVI has brought out a handbook providing guidelines for the implementation of the projects under the Lee Foundation. More information on the grant, guidelines, etc., can be seen at the "Projects" section of ICEVI website.

 

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ICEVI/ON-NET Mathematics Project:

 

ICEVI in collaboration with Overbrook-Nippon Network on Educational Technology (ON-NET) is in the process of developing a mathematical package for the benefit of teachers of visually impaired children throughout the world. The sample materials developed by the project team was tested with visually impaired children, teachers, and teacher educators in Bangkok on 28-29 July 2003 followed by a workshop for special and general classroom teachers in the Philippines from 18 to 22 August 2003. The initial feedback to the materials is very encouraging and the team is in the process of finalizing the first draft by the end of December 2003. The ON-NET will be conducting a Masters Training Program for trainees from Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines, Vietnam, Hong Kong, and Mongolia in Bangkok from 12 to 29 January 2004 using the mathematical package. After incorporating changes on the basis of feedback from users, the package will be available in mid to late 2004. Development of this package is likely to address the problems faced by teachers in teaching mathematics to visually impaired children. Periodic updates of the project will be available at the website of ICEVI.
 

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ICEVI/LIONS Network for the Regions:

 

ICEVI has initiated dialogue with Lions Clubs International Federation (LCIF) on the possible collaborative activities. The Regional Chairpersons of ICEVI have suggested that early childhood intervention and education may be the main area of focus for the ICEVI-LCIF collaborative project. Detailed project proposals for this collaboration will be drawn up soon by ICEVI and submitted to the LCIF.
 

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Criteria for the selection of country delegates in ICEVI conferences:

 

ICEVI desires that each country should be well represented at the world and regional conferences of ICEVI. Often times, country delegates are elected from those who are present at the conference. In order to encourage active participation of the countries in ICEVI activities, it is proposed to provide the status of country delegates to those who are evincing interest in ICEVIís mission and also willing to work with ICEVI in its initiative to advocate equal educational opportunities for persons with visual impairment. ICEVI has started the process of developing such a criteria which will be discussed by the Principal Officers and Executive Committee in the subsequent years and come up with a criteria for adoption in the next world conference of ICEVI.
 

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World Conference Update:

 

ICEVI in collaboration with the Malaysian Association for the Blind will be organizing the 12th World conference in Kuala Lumpur in July 2006. Dr. Heather Mason, who was the Chairperson of the Program Committee of the memorable Golden Jubilee Conference of ICEVI held at the Netherlands has again agreed to be the Chairperson of the Program Committee of the 12th World Conference. ICEVI thanks Heather for her support and the first meeting of the Program Committee consisting of Dr. Heather Mason, President - ICEVI, Dr. Jill Keeffe (Australia), Mrs. Lucia Piccione (Argentina), Dr. Henoch Schoeman (South Africa), Prof. Ismail Md. Salleh, President, Mr. Liew Yoon Loy, Vice-President, both from Malaysian Association for the Blind and the Secretary General ñ ICEVI will meet at Bensheim, Germany on 29-30 October 2003 to decide the theme and program schedule of the conference. More information on the world conference will be posted on the ICEVI website in November 2003.
 

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Principal Officers Meet:

 

The Principal Officers of ICEVI will be meeting for the second time during the present quadrennium at Bensheim, Germany on 24-25 October 2003. ICEVI's outreach work, networking, publications, position papers, work of the regions, database, world conference, etc., will feature the main discussions of the meeting. A strategic update of the meeting will be presented in the forthcoming issue of The Educator.

 

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Teacher Preparation - Theme of the next issue of The Educator:

 

Since the beginning of June 2001, ICEVI's biannual magazine "The Educator" is focusing on specific themes. The June to December 2001 issue focused on ìLiteracyî and the January to June 2002 issue was devoted for the Golden Jubilee World Conference. The July to December 2002 issue dealt extensively on "Early Childhood Education" and the January to June 2003 issue highlighted "Inclusion". Comments from the readers indicate that the focus on these thematic issues is good and the contributions made by the authors are useful references. The next issue of The Educator will focus on "Teacher Preparation" as human resource development is one of the gigantic tasks the field of special education is facing.


The issue is expected to describe various innovative strategies adopted in different parts of the world for preparing competent teachers and also enumerate the need for reorientation of general teacher preparation curriculum for facilitating inclusion of children with visual impairment in the mainstream. The Publications Committee has invited experts around the world to contribute to this issue.

 

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Japanese version of The Educator soon:

 

ICEVI is glad to inform its well wishers and members that the Japanese translation of The Educator is underway. The January to June 2003 issue of The Educator is being translated and Edited into Japanese by a team of volunteers headed by Dr. Walt Spillum and Prof. Kurokawa. Other members of the team are Gi Nakatsukasa, Sumiko Shigihara, Yoshitake Misaki, Kazuko Aoki, Hiroshi Katoh, Yasuko Kohda, Kazuhiko Amano, Hiroyuki Nagai, and Martin Pauley. The translated version will be ready soon and will be posted on the ICEVI website under the publication section.

At present, The Educator is available in English, Spanish, and English Braille and the addition of the Japanese version will expand the readersí network of ICEVI.
 

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The next General Assembly of IAPB:

 

The International Agency for Prevention of Blindness has decided to hold its next General Assembly at Dubai on September 18-24, 2004. The exact venue and the details of arrangements are being worked out. ICEVI Team will be organizing a symposium on ìEducation of Children with Visual Impairmentî during the general assembly.
 

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International Updates:

 

Many international events have taken place since the last issue of The Educator. Similarly many more events will be organized internationally in 2003 and 2004. They are summarized as follows:

1. A UNESCAP Workshop on Protection and Promotion of the Rights and Dignity of Persons with Disabilities will be held in Bangkok from 14 to 17 October 2003.
Website : http://www.unescap.org/

2. New York Conference on Disability & Latinos Attracts Government, Advocacy and Business Leadership organized by Proyecto Vision, National Technical Assistance Center - was held on 6-9 August, 2003 in Manhattan.
Website: www.proyectovision.net

3. Forum on ICTs and Gender: Optimizing Opportunities was held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from 20 to 23 August, 2003.
Website: www.globalknowledge.org/general2003/

4. The Asian and Pacific Launch of the United Nations Literacy Decade was held in Bangkok on 8 September 2003, International Literacy Day.
Website: http://www.unesco.org/education/uie/activities/CONFVReviewindex.shtml

5. The Asia-Pacific Disability Forum (APDF) INAUGURAL MEETING & CONFERENCE 2003 will be held in Singapore from 26 to 28 November 2003.

6. ICCHP (International Conference on Computers Helping People with Special Needs), will be held in the Summer of 2004 in Paris.
Website : http://www.icchp.org/general/downloads.html

 

The Hesperian Foundation brought out a new publication Helping Children Who Are Blind (ISBN 0-942364-34-1) by Sandy Niemann and Namita Jacob.
Website : www.hesperian.org.

" DisabilityWorld", an Internet magazine, can be downloaded as Word or PDF Document for Offline Reading: Website : www.disabilityworld.org
 

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Bid Adieu Gunilla:
 

Ms. Gunilla Stenberg Stuckey retired from service after nearly four decades of services to persons with visual impairment in Sweden. Gunilla was committed to international movement in promoting services for visually impaired children and was closely associated with the ICEVI. ICEVI recognizes her significant contributions to blind welfare and wishes her a happy retired life.
 

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This electronic Newsline of ICEVI comes to your mailbox in April and October every year. Please provide us the e-mail addresses of individuals and organizations that may be interested in receiving the Newsline and The Educator.

 

For further details, contact:
 
Dr. M.N.G. Mani
Secretary General
International Council for Education of People with Visual Impairment
IHRDC Campus, Sri Ramakrishna Vidyalaya Post
Coimbatore – 641 020
INDIA
Phone : 91-422 -2697530
Fax : 91-422 -2692353
e-mail : sgicevi@vsnl.net
Visit us at www.icevi.org

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