1. “Seeing things our way”
Universal design strategies for teaching
students who are visually impaired
Deb White
KSP 604
Spring 2008

2. Roadmap
• Causes and characteristics of visual
impairment (VI)
• Demonstration
• Assessing functional vision in school
• Universal design = good teachin’
• Maximizing abilities and minimizing
obstacles
• Legibility tour Thermoform map
• Video (10 minutes):
Equal Access: Science and Students
with Sensory Impairments
• Instructional strategies
• Examples

3. Vision is a complex system
• Eye globe
(iris, lens, retina)
• Surrounding structures
(facial skeleton, eyelid, tear system)
• Neurological system
(optic pathways, vision centers of the brain)
Image: National Eye Institute
Eyes + Brain + Light = VISION

4. Defining visual impairments
Legal blindness:
visual acuity of 20/200 with best correction in one eye or
visual field restriction to 20 degrees or less in the better eye
Total blindness:
inability to see anything, including light or objects
(Only 5-10% of people who are visually impaired are totally blind.)
Low vision:
visual acuity ranging from 20/70 to 20/200; continued
difficulty with vision, even with standard corrective lenses
What does this mean? [20/20 activity]

5. Defining visual impairments
The challenges…
• It is difficult to define abilities in terms of categories .
• The ability to see certain kinds of objects, pictures,
colors, text, light, etc. varies widely depending upon
conditions.
• The needs and preferences of each learner should be
addressed individually.
Functional definitions of vision attempt to
incorporate these variables in a practical way.

6. A functional definition of vision…
…goes beyond categorizing the amount of vision a person has by
seeking to understand the ways in which the person uses vision
under various conditions and for different tasks (e.g., academic,
self-help, and mobility).
According to IDEA:
“Visual impairment including blindness means an impairment in
vision that, even with correction, adversely affects a child’s
educational performance. The term includes both partial sight and
blindness.”
(Sec. 300.7 [b][1][13])

7. Causes of visual impairment
Three types:
1. Refractive errors
- Inability of the eye to focus light rays onto the retina correctly
- Often correctable (glasses, contacts, etc.)
Examples:
Myopia (near sightedness)
Hyperopia (far sightedness)
Astigmatism

8. Causes of visual impairment
Three types:
1. Refractive errors
- Inability of the eye to focus light rays onto the retina correctly
- Often correctable (glasses, contacts, etc.)
2. Structural impairments
- Damage or impairment to one or more parts of the visual system
Examples:
Diabetic Retinopathy (irregular spots – blood - in visual field)
Retinitis Pigmentosa (tunnel vision)
Color Deficiency (color blindness)
Strabismus (crossed eyes / wandering eyes)
Amblyopia (lazy eye)
Cataracts

9. Causes of visual impairment
Three types:
1. Refractive errors
- Inability of the eye to focus light rays onto the retina correctly
- Often correctable (glasses, contacts, etc.)
2. Structural impairments
- Damage or impairment to one or more parts of the visual system
3. Cortical visual impairments
- Problem with neurological pathways, including reception and
interpretation of visual information
- Severe impairment to total blindness; sometimes improves over time
Can be caused by infections of the central nervous system,
epilepsy, head trauma

10. The result of visual impairment:
Limited visual acuity,
visual field, or both
What is it like to
experience this?

11. Assessing functional vision
After an ophthalmologist or optometrist identifies and documents the
impairment, a child can receive services in a school setting.
Special education teacher / vision impairment specialist will evaluate:
• Ability to see points both near and far
• Ability to sustain function throughout daily tasks
• Environmental factors (e.g., lighting, print size, seating preference)
• Appropriate learning media (dominant learning styles)
• Compensatory skills (e.g., listening, social skills, daily living skills) to be
taught in the context of the environments in which they will be used

13. Universal design of instruction
What is universal design?
“Rather than designing your instruction for the average
student, you design for potential students with a broad
range of abilities, disabilities, ages, reading levels,
learning styles, native languages, races, ethnicities, and
other characteristics.”
(Burgstahler, 2007)

14. Universal design of instruction
General guidelines:
• Curricular goals should be identical for visually impaired
and typical students.
• Seek to minimize changes in instructional procedures.
Alter only what is necessary.
Example: large print book,
or using an optical device to read standard print?

15. Universal design of instruction
General guidelines, cont’d:
• Plan enough time for the VI student to process, absorb, explore,
interact with their environments, and understand things.
• Be aware of (and use!) your resources as a teacher. Know how to
arrange for accommodations.
• Most students thrive on flexibility, challenges, and high
expectations – not pity.
• Address the visually impaired student as a whole person
(strengths/weaknesses, interests, needs, goals, humor) rather than
in terms of a standard deviation from the fictional “average
student.”

16. Universal design does not merely
“accommodate disabilities”
MAXIMIZE ABILITIES
• Capitalize on strengths.
• Identify and build assets.
MINIMIZE OBSTACLES
• Sensory (physical)
• Conceptual (information processing)
• Social, emotional

17. Maximizing abilities; minimizing obstacles
Three broad instructional areas where teachers can
facilitate success among students with visual impairment:
• Gaining Knowledge
• Demonstrating Knowledge
• Full Participation in (laboratory) Activities
Video (10 minutes):
Equal Access: Science and Students with Sensory Impairments
Produced by DO-IT (Disabilities, Opportunities, Internet-working, and Technology)
University of Washington

18. Strategies and ideas for teaching students with
visual impairments
Think about your own content area.
What are some ways to maximize abilities and minimize obstacles
when students are:
• Gaining Knowledge?
• Demonstrating Knowledge?
• Participating in Activities?

19. Strategies and ideas for teaching students with
visual impairments
A very brief compilation of advice:
• Allow the audio taping of lectures.
• Provide large-print copies of textual materials.
• Provide for the translation of textual materials into Braille and adaptive
electronic media.
• Assign a typical student to describe in detail visual representations such as
videos, slides, and overhead transparencies to the VI student.
• Supply tactile representations of diagrams and graphs.
• Allow extra time for reading and viewing.

20. Strategies and ideas for teaching students with
visual impairments
A very brief compilation of advice, cont’d:
• Use the student’s name with addressing him or her; use specific rather than
general references to items (e.g., over there, these, its).
• Introduce yourself when you are entering conversation and indicate when
you are leaving it.
• Provide numerous activities (e.g., lab science experiments).
• Allow students to manipulate relevant (scientific) objects, models, and other
materials when possible.
Optical aids: prescription lenses, magnifiers, monocular, telescopic lenses, projection
system (camera relays to student monitor), etc.
Non-optical aids: alternative keyboards, lamp, reading stand, bold line or tactile
paper, measurement tools, models and props, hats or visors, audio recorders, etc.

21. Final thoughts
Build a partnership with the student, parents, and
professional resource people to facilitate open exchange of
ideas and needs.
Ability is what you’re capable of doing.
Motivation determines what you do.
Attitude determines how well you do it.
- Lou Holtz

22. Thank you.