Accommodation needs for teachers who are blind and teach students with visual impairments

Abstract

This study was intended to explore and understand the experiences and perceptions of teachers who are blind concerning what accommodations they use or need to teach students who have visual impairments (VI) and to establish their opinions on what can be done to make their situations better. The study was necessitated by the fact that many studies have been conducted on accommodations for general education teachers who are blind, but specific literature on teachers who are blind and teach students with visual impairments is scant. In addition, information on the strategies that teachers who are blind that teach students with visual impairments can use is limited, hindering the supports that teacher preparation programs can provide to their teacher candidates who are blind and preparing to be teachers of students with visual impairments. A qualitative case study approach was used, and the participants were four teachers who are blind and teach students with visual impairments in public and residential programs in the United States of America. Data was collected through interviews, observations, and document analysis. Through the data obtained, this study has illuminated the strategies that teachers who are blind use to teach their students who have visual impairments, the importance of having teachers who are blind work in the programs for students with VI, the perceived challenges that the teachers experience, and the possible ways in which the situations can be improved.