A study conducted to determine user acceptability of cassette braille systems addressed three concerns: (1) user reaction to the basic concept of cassette braille, (2) the determination of the strong and weak features of the cassette braille machines currently available, and (3) the determination of those features of braille machines which would…

Thirteen congenitally blind students (6-18 years old) who participated in a 2-year Piagetian-oriented remedial program experienced significant gains on 22 of 26 reasoning variables (as measured by a Piagetian battery), compared to a non-treatment group of Ss which achieved significant gains on seven of 26 variables. Results suggested the need for…

A hypothesized hierarchy of tasks in the development of tactual discrimination (an essential skill for reading) was tested in 60 blind primary level children. For five braille and five Optacon (optical to tactile converter) sequences, Ss were asked to identify the different stimulus from the four presented. Scalogram analysis was used to examine…

This document summarizes the activities conducted by Telesensory Systems, Inc. (TSI) from July 1974 to July 1975. During this time, TSI worked on maintenance and updating of the Optacon (Optical-to-Tactile Converter) and Optacon peripheral equipment. The Optacon is a direct-translation device which allows the blind to read normal printed…

To stimulate research proposals, the report stresses the need for a comprehensive research and development program regarding sensory aids for the visually handicapped and describes 17 representative projects viewed as warranting immediate attention. The 17 projects are categorized in two different ways. In a brief summary section, projects are…

A Title III project was initiated to develop and test a program of computer-assisted instruction (CAI) in mathematics and reading for approximately 400 visually or aurally handicapped students in Cincinnati. Students were identified and given pretests to determine their needs, and their special education teachers were trained to prepare…

When an older person confronts vision loss, the perceptual categories of space and time are disrupted. This forces newly blind older persons to question their ability to manipulate their environment and participate in social relationships. It makes them vulnerable to self-imposed tentativeness and externally generated labels of incompetence.…

Reports that a congenitally blind child, as well as sighted but blindfolded children and adults, can determine the appropriate path between two objects after traveling to each of those objects from a third object. Explores relationships of finding to geometric principles underlyinq innate spatial knowledge and inferential ability. (Author/CS)

This article discusses self-employment as an employment option for individuals who are blind. Analysis of trends indicates the total number of facility managers who are blind in the Randolph-Sheppard Program declined from 3,524 in 1994 to 2,711 in FY 2001 and that self-employment outcomes typically cost less than competitive outcomes. (Contains…

To select an adapted mobility device for a 5-year-old boy with blindness and spastic diplegic cerebral palsy, a multidisciplinary team used 8-millimeter videography to evaluate the subject's joint angle during ambulation with one of three canes and with no cane. The I-style cane provided optimal posture and gait pattern. (Contains references.) (CR)

Analysis of survey responses from 33 residential schools for the blind found that 45% of students were classified as without other disabilities, 39% of graduates went on to college, 49% were in grade 8 or lower, over 30% of students were day students, and most schools provide mainstreaming opportunities (particularly during high school). (DB)

This article reports the results of digit-span tests administered to 314 children who were visually impaired. Results found that gender, first language, and educational setting had no effect on the children's scores and that the congenitally totally blind children scored higher than did sighted children, whereas those who had had some sight did…

This study examined communicative expressions used by and interactions between 10 blind infants (less than a year old) and their mothers. The videotaped observations suggested that sighted mothers need special educational and psychological support. The recordings, when replayed to mothers, provided them with useful feedback. (DB)

This study found that, of 18 children with severe visual and multiple impairments assessed using the Acuity Card Procedure (originally developed for assessing the visual acuity of infants), 42 percent responded. A similar group received a simple instructional intervention prior to testing and that group's response rate was 85 percent. (Author/DB)

This study compared the performance on perspective-taking tasks of 8 congenitally blind children (mean age 13.5 years), using either haptic exploration or a vibrotactile prosthetic device, with the performance of 4 children having low vision using their limited visual abilities. The vibrotactile device improved perspective-taking performance…