Nineteenth-century educators worried that blind children were particularly susceptible to moral apathy, religious decay, and atheism because they could not see the beauty of nature. These educators used instruction in biology, zoology, and natural history to teach blind children about the beauty of the natural world and the breadth of God's…

In earlier "humanitarian" accounts, Britain's voluntary blind institutions exemplified successful nineteenth-century philanthropy and later became effective partners of the state. From the 1970s, Victorian charity came increasingly under criticism and subsequent studies on disability condemn the exclusion and utilitarian training of a…

The article reviews historical challenges met by the blindness field including the epidemics of retrolental fibroplasia and Rubella. It discusses internal developments in the field including the trend from braille class to resource room, changed standards of teacher preparation, future functions of residential schools, and disability-specific…

This article offers a history of special California schools for children with blindness since the mid-1950s, from the perspective of a special educator. It points out that the two delivery systems of regular schools and special schools should not work in competition but in cooperation to develop the best education for meeting students' needs. (JDD)

This article considers the legacy of Samuel Gridley Howe and others such as Francis Campbell and Mary Caroline Greene who were committed to the education of individuals with blindness. The paper examines controversies over mainstreaming versus residential schooling and the need for emphasis on developing independence in individuals with blindness.…

For the past decade the Office of Education has periodically compiled statistics dealing with special schools and classes for exceptional children. During that time the importance of adjusting instructional procedures to meet the needs of individual boys and girls has been increasingly stressed in the general philosophy of education. Inherent in…

There are three types of schools for the deaf included in this bulletin: (1) Those controlled and supported by the State; (2) Those controlled and financed by private organizations; and (3) Those operated as a part of the city public-school systems. This bulletin provides information for the schools for the deaf from 1917 to 1918. Contents…