Skip to main content

Shortage of teachers of the visually impaired

A few days ago I had several posts about the systemic challenges that often lead to unemployment or underemployment in the blind community. Then I saw this article in the St. Charles, Mo. newspaper. It makes one of my points exactly.

On a side note, just for a little humor, some years ago I served on an advisory board for issues concerning employment of the blind and visually impaired. There was discussion about starting a program in Kansas so that teachers could get certified to teach blind/low vision students without having to go to other states. The program never went anywhere, but there was a discussion about what the certification would be called. Someone suggested "teacher of the visually disabled." I guess I have a sick sense of humor because I started giggling in this very serious meeting. When asked what was so funny, I answered, "That would make them a VD teacher." That title was immediately dropped. Grin!


Teachers hard to come by for blind, visually impaired students


By Elizabeth Perry
Francis Howell School District teacher Terri Bales has been instructing blind and visually impaired students for nearly 25 years.The Dallas native - whose accent sounds like a smile - said it has always been difficult to find instructors in her field.


After a three-month search, the Francis Howell district was able to add another teacher for the blind and visually impaired to its staff."I think that's fast. If you were in a rural area I think it would take three years," Bales said.

The need for teachers certified to teach the visually impaired has increased for a variety of reasons, and St. Charles County districts are adapting to that rising need.

THE NATIONAL PROBLEM

Kevin Hollinger is a teacher for the visually impaired certified in orientation and mobility at Francis Howell.

Hollinger teaches braille, and instructs blind students to move safely and independently.Hollinger said baby boomers are retiring from the profession in droves as more children are born with visual impairments.

More premature babies are surviving than ever before, but many with cortical visual impairments resulting from brain damage.

Cortical visual impairments can result from lack of oxygen at birth or infection, according to the American Foundation for the Blind.

The low incidence of blindness in the disabled community is another contributor, Hollinger said, many teachers being drawn to areas where the need appears to be greater.Karen Carl has been an instructor with the Fort Zumwalt School District for 15 years and is thankful the district hired another instructor to take on part of her case load.

"I finally have help this year, so we are fine," Carl said.

Rural school districts have a greater difficulty finding teachers, Carl said.

To put the shortage in perspective, Carl said providing five braille-reading students of varying ages with adequate instruction is challenging.

Carl said that in rural areas sometimes a single teacher covers several counties.Hollinger said 73 teachers in Missouri belong to the professional organization for educators of the blind and visually impaired.Hollinger estimated there are only about 100 instructors for the blind in the entire state.

"By law, the district has to provide (instruction for the blind), and I don't know how they're doing it in some cases," Bales said.

Recently, more online courses have been offered for teachers who want to become certified to teach blind and low-vision students, Bales said.

Oftentimes, the online courses don't prepare instructors comprehensively, Bales said.Fort Zumwalt and Francis Howell are making strides to make sure blind and visually impaired students aren't left behind.

THE LOCAL APPROACH

Fort Zumwalt Deputy Superintendent Patty Corum said the district's Grow Your Own Teacher program can be tailored to recruit teachers interested in educating the visually impaired.

The Grow Your Own Teacher program is a scholarship spearheaded by Corum that pays college tuition for students who elect to come back and teach "high need" subjects for the district.

At Francis Howell, which has the largest program for blind and visually impaired students in St. Charles County, Bales said the staff has used creativity to meet the challenges in staffing the department.Hollinger's undergraduate degree was in a different field, but with direction from Bales and the director of special education at Francis Howell, Hollinger decided to become certified to teach the visually impaired.

Hollinger earned dual certification at limited cost by taking advantage of several programs, one at Western Michigan University and another at Missouri State University with a scholarship called Project Diverse.

Julie Ituarte, instructor with Project Diverse at Missouri State, said only eight applicants of upwards of 60 who apply for the scholarship program designed to instruct teachers for the visually impaired can be accepted.

"We were given funding to teach 32 students and we just excepted our last eight people on the grant," Ituarte said.

The school is reapplying for another grant to extend the program, but for now, the future of the scholarship, which has trained teachers from Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma, is unknown.A representative with the Wentzville School District could not be reached for comment on this story.

Bales said the small size of the blind and visually impaired community offers teachers a unique opportunity educators normally don't get.

Bales said she's been able to build a personal relationship with students from grade school through high school."There's a love," Bales said. "It's a great field. I wish more people would go into it."


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Ratner's Cheesecake

Here's another recipe from Toby! Thanks Toby......and I'll get the others posted soon! Ratner's Cheesecake and plain cookies Ratner's was a Jewish dairy restaurant in the lower East Side of Manhattan. This recipe, from my disintegrating, no longer in print Ratner's cookbook, is the closest I've ever gotten to reproducing the rich, heavy cheesecake my mother made when I was a kid. It's worth the time it takes to prepare and every last calorie. Dough Can be prepared in advance. Makes enough for two cakes. Can be frozen or used to make cookies – see recipe below. 1 cup sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 cup shortening 1 teaspoon lemon extract 1 cup butter 2 eggs 3 cups sifted cake flour ½ teaspoon salt 2 cups all purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1. In a bowl, combine all ingredients with hands. Refrigerate 3 -4 hours, or preferably overnight. Filling (for...

The next generation with Hermansky-Pudlak Syndrome

I'm so behind on posting about the trip to Puerto Rico. Since the episode of Mystery Diagnosis on Hermansky-Pudlak Syndrome ran right after we got home, it's been a little busy. These, however, are my favorite pictures from Puerto Rico. I know, not pretty senery etc - but these little guys and gals inspire me. They are the next generation of folks with HPS, and if we keep up the hard work, they will live better lives because of it. They motivate me.

Some good news about Pirfenidone

Below is a press release from Intermune, the company that makes Pirfenidone. They have essentially reviewed the various clinical trials going on, and decided that Pirfenidone is safe and well tolerated. That would pretty much go along with what we've observed in the HPS community as well. We have a few folks that have been on the drug since the late 90s and continue to do well. Of course, as a journalist, I do have to say consider the source - but at the same time, as someone in a Pirfenidone trial, it's good to know. Results of Comprehensive Safety Analysis of pirfenidone In IPF Patients Presented At European Respiratory Meeting - Analysis shows safety and tolerability of pirfenidone across four clinical trials - VIENNA, Sept. 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- InterMune, Inc. (Nasdaq: ITMN ) today announced that the results of a comprehensive review of safety data from four clinical studies were presented at the 2009 European Respiratory Society Annual Congress in Vienna, Austria...