The relationships among visual acuity, reading mode, grade level, and type of educational program for blind students were examined in a study of 26,433 students registered as legally blind through the American Printing House for the Blind. (Author/PHR)

Reports results of the administration of a battery of tests of oral language skills to blind braille readers (N=15). Three skills were tested: phoneme deletion, sentence completion, and morphological analysis. Participants were congenitally blind high school students. Subjects differed from sighted readers only in the ability to perform…

Tests of a neuropsychological model for spatial orientation in the absence of vision were developed and administered to 31 children with congenital blindness. Results support the neuropsychological model and indicate that some congenitally blind subjects had focal brain damage, sufficient to impair their capacity to be accurately oriented in…

Analysis of scores of 118 visually impaired children on the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (Revised) and the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scales of Intelligence (Revised) found a consistent response pattern suggesting that the verbal as well as the performance tests provide useful assessment information. (Author/DB)

The Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised (WAIS-R) and the Cognitive Test for the Blind were used to compare verbal and nonverbal abstraction ability of adults who became blind before age 2 or after age 5 (when expressive language would have been developed). No significant differences were found, but variability of scores on the WAIS-R…

This article shows that unexpected gains can happen when teachers develop aggressive, innovative, and adaptive orientation and mobility (O&M) programming for children who are low-functioning. A case study illustrates strategies for using an adaptive mobility device, squaring-up, stepping out, and charting progress. Challenges to a successful O&M…

A study investigated the impact of the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) 1995 on the provision of wayfinding aids in local authority buildings in Scotland. Results indicate that although the DDA has raised awareness, it has not necessarily led to the incorporation of wayfinding aids in new or refurbished buildings. (Contains references.)…

A survey of Braille transcribers in 40 states found Braille production systems rely on volunteers and hence Braille transcription is not considered a bona fide career. The majority cited low funding and resources as obstacles to change. Issues of certification, training, availability, and definition are discussed, along with recommendations.…

A new psychological test battery was designed to provide a much-needed comprehensive tool for assessing the perceptual and cognitive abilities of visually handicapped children in using active touch. The test materials consist of raised-line, raised-dot, raised-surface shapes and displays, and familiar and novel 3-D objects. The research used 20…

This report discusses the results of a national study of 89 rehabilitation counselors that investigated the methods by which an individual could retain competitive employment after the onset of a significant vision loss. The purpose of the study was to identify and describe strategies that contribute to successful job retention and identify best…

This study investigated variables that might be associated with outcome differences in language development of 10 children (ages 10-20 months) with blindness or severe visual impairments, attending a developmental vision clinic in southern England. Subjects' early patterns of expressive language development were examined and related to observed…

Automated circulation systems in libraries for the blind are described in this report of research conducted by the Subcommittee on Computerised Booklending of the Round Table on Libraries for the Blind (RTLB) of the International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA). Responses to the RTLB questionnaire from 12 libraries in 9 countries are…

Literature on the sighted child suggests that blind children might be delayed in language acquisition and/or restricted in the semantic content of their utterances and in the communicative intentions they express. This study questions the use of guidelines appropriate for monitoring sighted children in the study of language development in blind…

A review of the literature on the spatial functioning of the blind, the results of a questionnaire of 75 sighted college students and their parents, and results of a study of 87 blind and seeing adults' performance on three spatial tasks are presented. The review suggested that adventitiously blind individuals perform better than congenitally…

Twelve different conversion plans were delineated and evaluated in the performance of this study effort. An indepth technical, financial, and cost/benefit analysis was included. One plan was determined to be distinctively more cost-effective than any of the other plans because it provided a technically feasible system that assured the maximum…