Journal of Visual Impairment & Blindness

Response to intervention (RTI) has become widely recognized and used in education. Propelling its significance is its systematic and schoolwide approach and emphasis on using a problem-solving approach to providing appropriate instruction for each child. Children with visual impairments (that is, blindness and low vision) are primarily included in public school classrooms and educated under the overall guidelines that apply to all children. Therefore, professionals who work with children with visual impairments must understand RTI and its implications within the context of visual impairment.

Key principles of RTI are examined, including universal screening, multitiered models, monitoring of progress, and the use of evidence-based practices.

An RTI framework within the context of literacy instruction for children who are visually impaired is presented.

The benefits of embracing RTI are discussed. First, RTI ensures that collaborative planning takes place by using a problem-solving approach in which data from ongoing assessments are collected and the results are used to plan instruction using evidence-based interventions. Second, RTI can be used to identify students who are at risk of academic failure and can assist in the identification of additional disabilities. Early identification of students who are struggling with literacy is not only essential to providing necessary instruction, but data-driven decisions should be made to ensure that specific skills are addressed by qualified individuals who are familiar with the unique needs of individuals with visual impairments.

The authors conclude by encouraging professionals in the field of visual impairment to become actively involved with the implementation of RTI in their local education agencies.

This study examined the everyday work of eight teachers of students with visual impairments at governmental primary and secondary schools in Queensland, Australia. The small-scale study aimed to capture the scope and complexity of the activities of these teachers and the regular challenges they face in their expected everyday roles.

Telephone interviews were used to collect descriptive data from the teachers. A direct field-sampling procedure was used across the governmental schools to recruit qualified and specialist teachers who met prespecified criteria, most of whom lived in Brisbane, Queensland's capital city. The content of the interviews was generated from two sequenced activities with a different group of experienced teachers of students with visual impairments.

The teachers carried out complex and demanding duties as part of their everyday roles. These duties were consistent with those performed by their counterparts around the world. The most frequently performed and most important activities including providing direct support to students, advocating for students’ needs, and collaborating across school and community contexts. The identified challenges were linked primarily to the lack of time to undertake important activities.

Three important and interconnected findings can be drawn from the results: role complexity, time and collaboration, and the importance of the expanded core curriculum.

The findings provide an initial snapshot of the changing role reported by the teachers. Thus, these data offer a beginning point for future probes into the workplace knowledge and skills required by teachers of students with visual impairments.

The study presented here estimated the occurrence of braille-reading students in Norway who were educated according to their grade-level progression in mathematics from 1967 to 2007. It also analyzed the association among these students’ progression in mathematics and the causes of visual impairment, the age at which the diagnosis was established, the students’ gender, and the students’ use of reading media (braille as the sole, primary, or secondary literacy medium).

A retrospective, population-based study design was used. All the students who had received braille education in the past four decades prior to the study were included. The following data were abstracted from each student's records: birth year, country of birth, gender, year diagnosed, diagnosis, type of reading media, and whether the student's education had followed their grade-level progression.

In total, 248 braille-reading students were identified. Of these students, 141 (57%) had been taught mathematics at grade level. In 19 of the 45 principal eye diagnoses that were registered, all the students were educated according to the normative grade progress in mathematics. There were no statistically significant associations between gender and the abstracted variables or between mathematics education and reading media.

During the four decades under study, there was some variation in the distribution of different diagnoses. Students with diagnoses related to the central nervous system had a comparatively higher risk of not attaining their normal grade level in mathematics.

Teachers may expect that a braille-reading student will follow his or her grade level in mathematics. It is essential, however, to gain information on the causes of visual impairment, in general, and in cases of the co-occurrence of visual impairment and learning disabilities, in particular. It is essential to document typical learning patterns among braille-reading students and intervention strategies for students with visual impairments and learning disabilities.

Children with CHARGE syndrome often experience significantly delayed motor development, which affects their performance in many motor skills and physical activities. The purpose of this study was to determine the status of physical education provided to children with CHARGE syndrome. There were five main areas of focus: (1) physical education setting, (2) modes of communication, (3) modifications, (4) successful units, and (5) difficult units in physical education.

A validated questionnaire was completed by 26 parents of children aged 6–19 with CHARGE syndrome who were attending an international CHARGE conference for families. The questionnaire was used as the primary source to obtain parents’ perspectives on the physical education experiences of their children with CHARGE syndrome. The results of the feedback from parents were used to offer practical suggestions for physical education programming.

The results revealed that the physical education placement affects children's success and parents’ satisfaction with regard to physical education. Also, children who had support staff, such as a teacher's aide, paraeducator, or intervenor in physical education had a more successful experience. A variety of communication methods were used with children with CHARGE syndrome. The physical education units that the parents documented as being successful were swimming, scooters, bowling, fencing, T-ball, dancing, rock climbing, floor hockey, field hockey, and gymnastics. The units that the children struggled with the most were fundamental motor skills, such as skipping, running, hopping, and any sports unit with a fast-moving ball.

Physical education placements, communication, and modifications must be individualized for each child with CHARGE syndrome. In addition, support staff must be trained specifically for the unique needs of a child and the core curricular area of physical education.

Suggestions for improving the physical education program are included to increase children's involvement in class and success in the specific units that are offered.