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Introduction:The use of tactile graphics promotes the full inclusion of students with visual impairments in primary and secondary school classrooms. However, without real-life experiences and specialized training, students may not have the conceptual knowledge needed to successfully participate in academic instruction and standardized assessments. This research explored the tactile graphics used in the early grades, as well as the experiences and needs of teachers of students with visual impairments. Methods:During spring 2022, an online survey was open to teachers of students with visual impairments in the United States. Results:Sixty-eight teachers of students with visual impairments completed the survey. They identified graphical items that students are introduced to, at different grade level bands, with 35 of 45 items being introduced by the end of third grade. Discussion:Students should be taught how to systematically explore a variety of tactile graphics and learn about the different ways in which information can be presented. Teachers requested additional training and materials to promote student success. Implications for Practitioners:Tactile graphics literacy skills should be taught, beginning at an early age, so that students who read braille can access and engage with core curriculum content.

For early elementary students with vision loss, these seemingly simple questions can pose great difficulty, especially when conceptual development is being established. Because students with vision loss are unable to [...]

How do students with visual impairments measure liquids? Can a student with cerebral palsy participate in hands-on science activities? What challenges might a hearing-impaired student have in my science class? [...]

Introduction:In the early spring of 2020, governments were beginning to react to the news of a global pandemic being caused by COVID-19. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of COVID-19 on early intervention services for young children with visual impairments and their families. Methods:Parents of children with visual impairments aged birth to 3 years were asked a series of questions contained in a larger Access and Engagementsurvey that investigated the experiences of families of children and young adults with visual impairments aged birth to 21 years and professionals that provided educational services. Results:Three overall themes emerged from the data: (1) many changes occurred in the home, (2) early intervention services changed, and (3) planning for the transition to preschool was affected. Discussion:Overall, the changes in education due to the pandemic and initial shutdown resulted in much parental stress. Parents reported that they were stressed and sometimes overwhelmed by the sudden and dramatic changes in their daily lives and how best to help their children in continuing to learn and develop their skills while simultaneously working from home, being caregivers to the other children in the family, and serving as educators and sometimes informal therapists to their children. Many services moved to an online format and were provided remotely. Implications for Practitioners:Service providers should continue to provide services to families and children who have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting shutdown while continuing to provide ways to support the social and emotional well-being of their families. Service providers and families should monitor their children's development and learning both now and in the future.

Introduction: To support independent travel skills and accessibility for people with visual impairments (i.e., those who are blind or have low vision), this research acknowledges bus driver perceptions of visual impairment and investigates how bus drivers interact with visually impaired travelers who ride public transportation.Methods: This study utilized the Social Responsibility about Blindness Scale and a researcher-created instrument to explore how bus drivers interact with visually impaired travelers.Results: Fifty-five drivers participated in this study, with 94.55% of these drivers reporting that they have had experiences interacting with visually impaired passengers. The top concern drivers reported was ensuring these passengers located the correct stop (26.56%). Using Likert-type scale ratings to assess driver knowledge and role in assisting passengers with vision loss, overall mean average of driver knowledge was 3.33 (SD= 1.09, V= 1.23), indicating, as a whole, driver knowledge was in the range of “unsure/don’t know.”Discussion: Although many campus area bus drivers have experience interacting with passengers who are visually impaired, the attitude of drivers toward visual impairment is varied, and their knowledge of visual impairments is limited.Implications for practitioners: Based on results, drivers recognize that accommodations may be needed for passengers with vision loss, and they have an interest in learning how to assist passengers who are visually impaired who ride campus transportation. Based on this outcome, in-service training for drivers to address interactions and accommodations for passengers with vision loss may be warranted within public transportation operations.

ABSTRACTEighteen middle and high school students with visual impairments participated in a weeklong field-based geology summer camp. This paper reports the curriculum, strategies, and what the students learned about Earth science by climbing in and out of caves, collecting fossils, exploring a bog, and interacting with experts in the field. Students were encouraged to be active learners outside of their normal comfort zone to develop understandings about geology through reading the landscape. Initially, few of the students held scientifically accurate Earth science concepts, but by the end of the week most had developed a medley of scientific and unique inaccurate understandings that have never been documented before. A week of intensive first-hand experiences was sufficient for the students to acquire some scientific knowledge, but not enough to eliminate inaccurate understandings. The duality of their science understandings suggests that additional informal experiences paired with formal classroom instruction will be necessary to clarify concepts. Some previously undocumented misconceptions were exhibited by the students, such as water pressure influencing plate tectonics and lifecycles of animals impacting Earth systems.

Introduction The purpose of the study presented here was to understand and describe the misconceptions of students with visual impairments about sound and instructional techniques that may help them to develop a scientific understanding.Methods Semistructured interview-centered pre- and posttests were used to identify the students’ conceptual understanding. Responses were analyzed using a constant comparative analysis. This process allowed for qualitative data to be collected, analyzed, and coded as an ongoing process to look for gaps, omissions, and inconsistencies in the data and to describe and explore a phenomenon and has been used in prior studies on students’ scientific knowledge.Results The study found that the students had conceptual misconceptions of sound prior to instruction and that their understanding changed on completion of the inquiry-based curriculum. Prior to instruction, none of the students had a complete, scientifically accurate understanding of sound. However, after the study, all the students had some scientific understanding of sound, and two students had a complete scientific understanding of sound.Discussion The results indicate that using an inquiry-based curriculum is beneficial for students with visual impairments in helping to increase their conceptual understanding.Implications for practitioners The U.S. Congress has mandated that a curriculum be taught using research-based methodologies and based on standards. The study yielded a methodology to teach sound, a mandated science topic within the standards, that appears to be effective for students with visual impairments.

The purpose of this study was to understand and describe the misconceptions of students with visual impairments about seasonal change. Students who participated in traditional instruction exhibited alternative conceptions before and after instruction, whereas those who participated in inquiry-based instruction had alternative conceptions before instruction and scientific understandings after instruction.