Running Head: THE EFFECTS OF BRAILLE IN VISUALLY IMPAIRED STUDENTS 1

The Effects of Braille in Visually Impaired Students

Hannah Silva

Franciscan University of Steubenville

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Introduction

How do you read a book if you are blind? How can you drive, read signs, read menus, or

even go shopping when you cannot see? These are all common questions that are asked in

reference to those who are visually impaired. It obviously has big effects in the world as an adult,

but the adjustment is even more drastic as a student. Students with visual impairment face a

number of challenges when in the classroom; problems that especially pertain to literacy. When

asked about reading in a classroom with visually impaired students, the typical response to

instruction is Braille, but how do students actually respond to traditional Braille boards in the

classroom? Herzberg, Rosenblum, and Robbins (2017) report that while traditional Braille

methods are effective, students with visual impairment show more confidence and motivation

while using new methods of literacy development. This subject is growing increasingly more

popular in schools today as the demand for new and improved learning strategies are being

incorporated into general education classrooms. More knowledge on teaching literacy to students

who are visually impaired needs to keep pace with the rest of the world while discovering new

ways to teach students.

Purpose

One of the most popular topics in schools today is special education and inclusion.

Students with visual disabilities are often in a jeopardized situation when it comes to literacy

because of the restraint in being able to visually decipher the words on a page. My main

objective for this research is to discover the different strategies for these students so that they

may have as many options as typically developing children. I will also be exploring what effects

these strategies have. Braille is always the immediate reaction when everyone hears the word
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“blind”, but what are some other strategies to achieve literacy in visually impaired students?

What are the effects of these different practices?

One of my main goals in this project is interviewing teachers that have students with

visual impairments in their classrooms and learning what methods they use for literacy

instruction. Ideally, I would like to speak with multiple teachers equipped with experience in

teaching different levels of visual impairment in their classrooms. I will ask for some examples

of how they include literacy development in a way in which all of their students can

collaboratively participate. I will use case studies and interview participants to discover the

answer to my research question. All of this will be accomplished through a survey on Braille

instruction within classrooms that they have encountered. These teachers will fill this survey out

online where it will be submitted and then reviewed.

Through my research, I believe that I will be able to show that having a toolbox of

different strategies for visually impaired students is beneficial and has positive effects. Breaking

outside of Braille to build literacy has to have positive effects in this ever changing world of

technology, new methods, and approaches. I expect positive effects, new strategies, and mind

opening experiences in the world of literacy for visually impaired students.

Review of Literature

Students with visual impairments are often equated with braille, and this method of

teaching is typically the immediate source to turn to for educators and parents. This is the topic

covered by Herzberg, Rosenblum, and Robins (2017) through a large study that surveyed 84

teachers of students with visual impairment. This study was conducted to discover the number of

students that had teachers who provided literacy instruction to students who used both Braille
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and print, and how introducing one or the other affected the students’ development in literacy.

This study also covered the different effects in literacy through print instruction versus braille

instruction. The participants in this study consisted of the students of eighty-four teachers in both

the United States and Canada, with each teacher having at least one student with visual

impairment in their classrooms. The methodology used in this research was a survey, through

which a teacher would pick a specific student and answer the questions from the survey with

them in mind. Some of the questions asked were about the students’ demographic background,

tools for assessing literacy, student confidence, and motivation in using print and braille. The

author concluded that although not all of the teachers answered all of the survey questions,

eighty-two of the students were introduced to braille in under a year. The second most common

response pertained to the need to establish a foundation of literacy in braille. As far as braille

print literacy is concerned, it was found that eleven students were performing above grade level,

while thirty performed at grade level, and a shocking thirty-six students were performing under

their grade level. Although many different types of braille tools were provided, a majority of the

students were not confident in their abilities to use braille. However, the study showed a positive

correlation between confidence and motivation for students reading print as opposed to braille.

The study showed that, ultimately, new methods of introducing literacy to students increased

confidence and motivation in themselves.

An aspect of this article that I particularly appreciated was the diversity of teachers that

were surveyed. Instructors from not only the United States, but also Canada were participants in

this study which provides a broader view of these students’ needs and backgrounds. It offered a

broader perspective and considered different education systems outside of the United States.

Some things I did not like about this article were the discrepancies in the surveys and the lack of
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verifying data reviewed by the researchers. I believe that the lack of response from some of the

teachers altered the results of the study. Also, the authors did not collect any work samples or

verify that data was accurate and applicable to the study. However, despite these deficiencies in

the article, this is still applicable to my research project because it reviews how much of a

difference increasing literacy through print rather than braille can have on a student with visual

impairment. The article is evidence that other strategies aside from braille can be helpful in

increasing students’ confidence and motivation in literacy through methods other than the

atypical braille concept. It portrays the positive effects that other methods for improving literacy

can have. For future research into this topic, I would alter the study by incorporating sample data

from the teachers to support evidence of efficacy in the students. This data would give more

support to the article and to the effects of methods besides braille in students.

Another study focuses on promoting literacy in children with visual impairment. Parents

may find it difficult to be able to relate to braille and promoting literacy through this traditional

method. Typically, braille methods are thought as the only way to promote literacy in students,

but there are many other methods that could be implemented today by parents. However, some

may ask how parents may implement these methods for literacy in their children with visual

impairment? Kamei- Hannan and Sacks (2012) answer this question through a study that was

conducted with parents of children who are blind. This study was created to discover what

parents’ views of using braille as a singular method to literacy was and what this literacy looks

like in the child’s home. The participants in this study included thirty-one parents of children

with visual impairment who were involved in the Alphabetic and Contracted Braille Study. The

methods that the authors used were telephone interviews implementing a thirty item
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questionnaire. The authors then gathered demographic information and separated the parents into

two groups divided by the students’ achievement levels. Through this study, the authors

concluded that the parents mostly read to their children and would sometimes provide them with

books in braille, but found reading aloud to be more effective. This read aloud method was

implemented by all of the parents in the study, and it was also found that this was the prime

method of supporting literacy at home due to the lack of braille books.

A worthy part of this article that I enjoyed was how well the parents were incorporated

into this study. Many studies are based off of the children involved, as they should be, but it is

always insightful to discover what the parents’ views are. The parents play such a large role in

literacy and are an integral part of any child’s journey through reading. I also found it very

interesting that the authors utilized parents that were both competent in braille and those who

were not. This aspect added a good amount of diversity into the study. However, on the other

hand, an aspect of the article that I did not enjoy was that the authors only interviewed the

primary caretaker of the child. This singular response may not relay all of the information about

the situation as it could and other members close to the student could be more active in

promoting the child’s literacy than the primary caregiver. The entire household is not represented

through just one person. Despite this slight flaw in the study, this article is relevant to my

research because it is observing braille literacy in every environment that the students are present

in. It shows the effect that methods outside of the typical teacher instruction can have on students

with visual impairment. To further improve this study, I would address the entire household that

the participants are from, not just the primary caregiver. Every member in the students’

household can have an effect on literacy, whether it be through reading aloud or more creative

methods such as inventing games for familiarity with books and language. I found that this
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article as a whole is a great contribution to my studies on literacy in students with visual

impairment and the effects that differentiated methods can have.

This article observes how incorporating special education into the classroom is becoming

an ever increasing topic of interest for educators everywhere, but many still have questions about

how to cater to literacy. Children with severe disabilities, such as blindness, have as much need

for literacy as typically developing children. However, what steps are being taken to ensure this

equality in literacy for children who are visually impaired? Saviano, Llyod, and Hattton (2017)

executed a study that examined whether or not the use of flashcards in Braille assisted with

learning vocabulary in students with visual impairments. The study was conducted to answer if

flashcards, paired with auditory instruction, were effective in teaching vocabulary and if students

who read Braille could spell words when flashcards were used. The participant in this study was

a young boy who had the reading ability of a second grader and was diagnosed with a visual

impairment. The authors implemented an experimental methodology which included

examination during participant testing, probe sessions, and recorded data. After conducting 2

months of probe sessions with the participant, the authors found that not only did the participant

identify all 18 target words, but also the spellings of 16 out of the 18 words. The authors deduced

that an auditory-only condition was preferable compared to a flashcard- only condition, but the

participant learned how to spell the words more effectively with the flashcard method.

Ultimately, the use of flashcards created proficiency in teaching steps to literacy for visually

impaired students.

I found that this article was very enjoyable to read. I greatly appreciated the use of

simpler vocabulary that was easy to understand but precise in its content. The authors were also

particularly straightforward in all of their approaches in conducting research with the participant.
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The study may have taken two months to complete, but the amount of time proves that the

authors were thorough in their research. The graphs gave a great visual perspective into the

improvement of the participant’s progress. I personally wish that the authors had conducted

another study on participants that were at higher reading levels to compare results. This article is

relevant to my study because I am looking for the effects of different strategies to obtain literacy

in visually impaired students. This research article gave a prime example of an approach that

depicted how useful flashcards can be to students who are blind. For future research, I would

definitely return to the participant when he is older and at a higher reading level to test whether

or not age and grade made a difference in the outcome of learning. The study would obviously

have to be made more difficult, but it would be fascinating to see if there is a difference in the

results. This article is certainly a good addition to the studies that I am conducting for my

project.

This article focuses on the “new tools” of literacy instruction for all students, regardless

of accommodations. For most typically developing children, the basic tools for literacy are paper

and a pencil. However, students with visual disabilities use other tools that serve their purposes

in a different, yet effective, way. During this time, it seems that technology is being integrated

into everything, becoming a bridge between content areas, differentiated learning, and many

more possibilities. The authors of this particular article, Bickford and Falco (2012), address this

new trend in the education world and how it can be applied to special education. The authors’

purpose in this study was to determine whether there is a difference in students’ results in braille

efficacy when the instruction was offered with either a technological form of braille or traditional

braille. This study shows the authors alternating braille methods. The participants of this study

were nine students from public and residential schools and 4 teachers of students with visual
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impairments from two different states. This study had 6 females and 3 males, each group ranging

from ages 6-8 years old. The authors conducted this study through several different types of

curriculum-based measures such as measures of fluency in oral reading and word-writing

fluency. The authors also submitted video clips of their administration of the curriculum-based

measures. The authors found that there was very little difference in student learning between

traditional braille and the technological form of braille. The students performed at the same level

in each of the practices regardless of whichever method they were using. It was decided that the

technology could potentially motivate students into demonstrating higher outcomes, but it was

found that the average student gained the same amount of literacy instruction either way.

This article did an amazing job of really going into depth explaining the different

methods used. For example, I had no idea what curriculum-based measures were before this

article. I was preparing to look into it when I found an entire section dedicated to explaining

what constituted a curriculum-based practice. However, the results of the studies were rather

disappointing. I had expected to find more drastic results based on the article, but they were quite

the opposite. The study did not provide a clear answer, but the authors did not expound upon this

anymore. This article assisted me in my research because it showed that ultimately, as far as the

authors could tell, there was no difference in learning between the traditional braille method and

the technological version. There is no immediate difference between students that used one form

of learning braille over the other, although the authors did suggest that using technology could

draw students in. To improve this study, I would suggest another round of research should be

conducted. This article was published in 2012 and there have been vast improvements in

technology since that year. The new leaps and bounds that have taken place in technology,

especially for the special education classrooms, could definitely play a part in a new outcome for
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this study. This study definitely helped me gather information on the effects of different

approaches to literacy in visually impaired students.

Methodology

The methodology used in the research for this study consisted of an online survey that

was sent to teachers in several different states. The teachers are all licensed in special education

and had encountered students with visual impairment at one point in their career. They have all

had at least a year of experience in a classroom setting and have experience in diverse

classrooms. The states of North Carolina, Virginia and New York. One of the participants is a

principle of a school specially designated for the deaf and blind who represented all of the

educators in the school. The other 8 teachers are all in the public school system or have been in

the system previously during their career. This sample of teachers is a proper representation of

the public.

I selected these participants because of their varying levels of experience and ages. Some

of the participants are from an older generation and used to seeing the classical Braille system

whereas other participants are from this younger and more technology enriched age. The varying

ages of the participants would give more diverse answers due to exposure to different times and

places.

The survey itself was composed of ten questions with multiple choice answers. All of

these questions pertained to literacy and the function of Braille within the classroom. Some of

the questions addressed the effects that differentiated methods of literacy instruction for students

with visual impairment had.

Findings
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The findings from the research conducted in this study showed rather varying results.

Each question answered was rather surprising because the majority of the participants voted for

the same answer. The results from several of the findings were particularly striking to me, in that

they were consistently unanimous.

The very first question for the survey that the participants completed asked if Braille was

being used as the primary tool for literacy within the classroom. Out of all eight participants,

only one voted yes while all of the rest voted no. The statistics for using Braille in the modern

world today are not in favor of this traditional method. One out of eight schools used in this

study denied use of Braille boards.

Before conducting this specific study, I thought that Braille boards would still be widely

used in classrooms because it seems like a flawless system. However, as shown by the statistics,
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Braille boards are a rare commodity in current classrooms. There are so many new and improved

forms of technology that take literacy in students with visual impairment to an entirely new level.

Objects such as Digital Talking Books show to be more popular and effective than attempting to

read in the classical method. It is also shown to be more effective in using technology in place of

the usual instructional strategies. Students also feel more empowered and confident wile using

these new methods of literacy instruction.

Another finding that was surprising to discover was how effective teachers found reading

aloud to be. Reading aloud is typically thought of as an “at-home activity”, but teachers reported

that this strategy is effective both and outside of the classroom. Only a small amount of teachers

selected class wide discussion as an effective method of literacy instruction showing the efficacy

and popularity of reading aloud to students.

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The data from these studies confirmed the positive effects from more recent practices of

literacy instruction in students with visual impairment. Branching out from the classical form of

Braille is necessary in this ever changing world of methods and strategies.

Recommendations

After gathering all the results from the study, my next step would be to discover what

types of alternative instruction for literacy are most popular. I would send out more surveys

detailing the most popular tools and technology for teaching literacy to students with visual

impairments. I would inquire about which method seems to work the best and has the best results
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for the students in terms of confidence, motivation, and academic achievement. I would also

attempt to receive responses from as many states as possible, to study the effects of the different

states’ technology and literacy instruction. This survey would be more detailed and contain short

answers for some of the questions. All of these further studies would work towards advancing

students with visual impairments a chance to be at the top of modern advancements. As one of

the participants in a case study by Wang and Al-Said (2014) commented, “As people with visual

impairments, we’re always at the bottom end of the stick when it comes to accommodations”.

The new studies in this area would change this statistic and give all students a fair chance at

literacy.

The implications of this study and the research that was gathered is paramount to where

education is taking students with visual impairment. Motivation to read and build literacy is one

of the most important factors to becoming fluent and if traditional methods of Braille are not

building that confidence, then changes need to occur. Teachers have the chance to make this

change and use the resources that are being offered through technology to build students up and

create positive effects in a new generation of literacy learners.

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References

Herzberg, T. S., Rosenblum, L. P., Robbins, M. E. (2017). Teachers’ experiences with literacy

instruction for dual- media students who use print and braille. Journal of Visual

Impairment & Blindness, 1 (2017), 49-59.

Kamei-Hannan, C., Sacks, S. Z. (2012). Parents’ perspectives on braille literacy: Results from

the ABC braille study. Journal of Visual Impairment & Blindness, (4) 2012, 212-23.

Saviano, M.E., Lloyd, B.P., Hatton, D.B. (2017). Efficacy of using vocabulary flashcards in

braille. Research Reports, 5(6), 277-84.

Bickford, J. O., Falco, R.A., (2012). Technology for early braille literacy: Comparison of

traditional braille instruction and instruction with an electronic note taker. CEU Article,

10(11), 679-93.

Wang, Y., Al-Said, S.K.Q. (2014). Defining literacy for individuals who are blind or with visual

impairments: A qualitative study of stakeholders. Journal of Ethnographic and

Qualitative Research, 8(1935), 99-112.

McKenzie, A. R. (2009). Emergent literacy supports for students who are deaf-blind or have

visual and multiple impairments: A multiple-case study. Journal of Visual Impairment &

Blindness, (5) 2006, 291-302.

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Appendix

Braille in Classrooms: Survey Questions

1. Is Braille used as the primary literacy tool in your classroom?

 Yes

 No

 Sometimes

2. Is the classical form of a Braille board still used in your classroom?

 Of course!

 No, Braille boards are dated

 Sometimes

3. Do you prefer using more popular methods of teaching literacy than the typical Braille

board?

 Yes

 No

4. Are technological methods of teaching literacy found to be more effective?

 Yes, I see a big improvement

 No, I prefer the old- fashioned ways best

 It is easier to teach literacy without Braille boards or technology

5. Do your students enjoy using Braille to read and write?

 Yes

 No

6. How do students with visual impairments respond to literacy instruction through Braille?

 They hate it!

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 Somewhere in between

 They love using Braille

7. Do you use Digital Talking Books in your classroom?

 Yes

 No

 Rarely

8. Do you use Refreshable Braille in your classroom?

 Yes

 No

 Rarely

9. Are different strategies besides Braille more helpful to use?

 Yes

 No

 I don’t use other strategies

10. What is the most effective strategy of literacy instruction that you have used in your

classroom?

 Reading aloud

 Reading books quietly to self

 Writing papers

 Class-Wide instruction
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