ENHANCING READING COMPETENCE THROUGH THE BRAILLE SYSTEM FOR VISUALLY IMPAIRED PEOPLE: A PRELIMINARY STUDY

This paper addresses the issue of the development of the English language reading skills and subskills using the Braille System as the fundamental tool for visually impaired people. The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between the use of the Braille System and the reading skill competence. This research was applied to 21 pupils with different blindness conditions and from 10 to 32 years old who belong to the Special Education School “Julius Dophner” in the city of Ambato, Ecuador. This preliminary study was carried out using a quasi-experimental design, where pre-tests and post-tests were applied during a three-week period. Pupils took active part in the reading of the different primers at the beginning and after the treatment process. A t-test was used to examine the hypothesis. The results revealed that the improvement in the English language reading for specific information subskill through the Braille system was meaningful. Additional testing should be done to validate the scores obtained by visually impaired students with the use of this tool. Pupils showed a positive and very enthusiastic attitude about the learning process of the English language through this tool with which they are familiar.

Strategies of planning online scientific projects for blind and visually impaired students

The paper describes distance learning opportunities for blind and visually impaired students. The research aims at analyzing various tools and techniques that are necessary for their participation in online scientific projects and conferences. Methodology includes analysis of pedagogical studies, the survey carried out during International Conference for Students at Samara State Technical University, examination of educational activities performed for blind and visually impaired students all over the world, in particular the experience of American Foundation for the Blind. The findings show that distance learning programmes for blind and visually impaired people are becoming popular in many countries, but in Russia there are only a few of them. The authors prove the necessity of doing research in this sphere. It is recommended that more distance learning opportunities are created for such students at Russian universities. The analysis shows that it is even easier to plan the inclusion of blind and visually impaired students in the online scientific events that are not new and have already been held for wider public. The authors conclude that it is essential to adapt the existing system of distance learning using special tools and techniques, which are described in the article. These are accessible platforms, software used with assistive technologies, keyboard controls, audio description, smartphone apps, etc. Special emphasis is laid upon planning webinars for blind and low vision participants. This research can serve as a guide for making online scientific events accessible for all people.

Pedagogical Conditions Aimed to Involve the Blind and Visually Impaired Students into School Extracurricular Activities

The basic problem of the visually impaired students’ integration into different spheres of public life through educational practices is considered in this scientific article. The purpose of the work is designing of specially organized pedagogical conditions for disabled students’ involvement into extracurricular activities. Key issues of the maintain of the school extracurricular activities are identified, basic examples of school activities in the frame of Federal State Educational Standards are presented. Special pedagogical conditions are usually identified after having studied the students’ readiness for creative activity, their participation in the school events, after having penetrated into the students’ problems and preferences. The article involves results of the research held on a bias of Grot boarding school. 215 students of the 5th–12th grades participated. These special conditions should help to the involvement of the disabled students into educational process, the main goal of which is upbringing of a harmoniously developed and socially responsible person. A set of the best pedagogical conditions is proposed in the article. The development of mixed aged communities at school and providing pedagogical assistance in their productive work is analyzed. The content of the school community activities is often connected with the solution of the participants’ personally important problems. There’s sense in the students’ being involved into working out and discussing a plan of extracurricular activities, it’s vitally important to support and initiate their ideas. It’s necessary to make a spectrum of different methods of education work wider and to involve students to design them. Development of the teachers’ professional competence and building relationships with the students on a bias of human values are urgent for the successful solution of educators’ tasks. The article concludes that the proposed set of pedagogical conditions will contribute to the successful socialization of schoolchildren and the development of their life competencies.

BASAER Team: The First Arabic Robot Team for Building the Capacities of Visually Impaired Students to Build and Program Robots

the purpose of this study was to examine whether visually impaired students can build educational robots and program them if they receive adapted materials and instructions with guided instruction from well-trained educators in the fields of inclusive STEM Classrooms. Discussion of the technologies and our experimental approach is presented in this paper and validated through the continued successful effort with visually impaired students for two years of the program and specialists in the field of visual impairment and STEAM, we also validated our approach by performing experimental classes for students with different visual impairments and ages. The results indicated that the approach used by BASAER team was successful in enabling the blind and visually impaired students to build and program educational robotics and to participate effectively in national and international STEAM programs and competitions, with some limitations and Challenges encountered and explored during this research. The results from this study will be used to suggest a fully adapted system to support full inclusion for blind and visually impaired students in educational robots in STEAM context and to promote the adoption of this study and similar studies toward Inclusive STEM Classrooms.