Grant funding from the NH Department of Education to Allow for Training of Teachers of Students with Visual Impairments
Concord, NH – August 25, 2016: With a generous grant from the New Hampshire Department of Education a research pilot study will be implemented which will seek to provide a small team of Teachers of Students with Visual Impairments (TVI’s) with an introduction to Communities of Practice (CoPs), additional education in available assistive technologies and common ways to leverage technology to accelerate learning, as well as strategies to provide timely and cost effective accessible materials to students with vision impairment.
It is noted that students with visual impairments require accessible instructional materials and differentiated instruction to meet learning needs that are impacted by vision loss. TVI’s are often called upon to provide instruction, technical assistance, and materials across a complex array of technology platforms, formats and subject matter to children aged 3-21 with varying learning styles and needs. The research study will determine the efficacy of technology in the classroom for students with visual impairments and provide a comparison of cost benefits when moving students from a paper to digital workflow. “Our work is exploring new and innovative approaches at real time delivery of critically important learning materials to students and will engage teachers in a social network that will facilitate sharing of best practices around technology,” says David Morgan, President &CEO of NH Association for the Blind.
Headquartered at the McGreal Sight Center in Concord, the New Hampshire the Association for the Blind was founded in 1912, with the mission to advance the independence of persons who are blind and visually impaired. Over the last 105 years, the Association has grown to offer a complete range of specialized professional education and vision rehabilitation services that help babies, children, adults, and elders who have little to no vision to obtain access to a full range of services. The Association is the only private, nonprofit provider of statewide, comprehensive direct vision rehabilitation and educational services throughout the state of NH for persons of all ages who are blind or visually impaired.
For more information on the New Hampshire Association for the Blind’s programs and services, call 603-224-4039 or visit www.sightcenter.org.