Journal of Visual Impairment & Blindness

This synthesis examined the research literature from 1965 to 2009 on the assistive technology that is used by individuals with visual impairments. The authors located and reviewed 256 articles for evidence-based research on assistive technology that had a positive impact on educational performance. Of the 256 studies, only 2 provided promising evidence-based practices.

The study presented here investigated factors that are related to social skills measures of youths with visual impairments. It found that participation in extracurricular activities and paid work experiences, as well as the age of onset of visual impairments, were significantly related to differences in the participants’ scores on the Social Skills Rating System.

We analyzed the role of parental overprotection and extroversion in forming relationships with peers among 158 adolescents with visual impairments and 158 adolescents who were sighted. Negative associations of overprotection with the number of friends and membership in a peer group and of low extroversion with having a close friend were stronger in the adolescents with visual impairment.

The study reported in this article sought to determine the degree to which the professional standards for Turkish teachers of students with visual impairments were addressed during preservice training and the degree to which in-service teachers of visual impairments implemented these professional standards. The results of the nationwide survey showed that teachers faced problems in both attaining and implementing certain important knowledge and skill areas for teaching students with visual impairments.