Blind Students Travel Abroad

Blind Students Travel Abroad

Blind Students Travel Abroad

Editor's Note: Can blind students here and in other countries

participate in exchange programs or travel abroad? They can,

and they do. I picked up the following little article about a

blind student abroad from Pat Jones, president of our parents

division in Tennessee. It's from the Spring, 1995, issue of a

publication called Odyssey. I think you'll find it

interesting.

Ivonne Mosquera, Alumna,

Summer Abroad, France, 1994

Ivonne Mosquera, a 17-year-old New York City resident, is

a senior at Trinity School. As well as being academically

gifted, she is active in theater, ballet, and piano. At a

recent World Learning Board of Trustees meeting, Ivonne shared

with president Judy Hendren Mello her reflections of her

summer abroad.

"My French family and I learned a lot from each other

about stereotypes we have. The fact that I was blind amazed

them, yet I taught my entire host family to write Braille. Two

nights before I left, when we were playing cards, a friend

blindfolded herself with a bandanna and attempted to read the

cards with her fingers. Here we were, speaking French and

playing cards in Braille. I won, but only by two points."

From the Editor: Karen Mayry is the very energetic president

of the South Dakota NFB. Karen, blind from diabetic

retinopathy, was a teacher for many years. The activities of

the NFB of South Dakota reflect Karen's commitment to

improving educational opportunities for blind children. Under

her leadership the NFB of South Dakota offers Braille tutoring

classes, advocates for blind children in IEP meetings,

conducts seminars for parents, and much more. Bringing blind

foreign exchange students into her home, however, is not an

NFB program. It's just something she and her husband, Marsh,

do because that's the kind of people they are. Here is what

Karen said about her experience with two different blind

students from Japan:

"Nanako Yamada lived with Marsh and me last summer for three

weeks while she was involved with a program called Japanese

American Jamboree Adventure (JAJA). She is a neat young lady

with excellent skills despite her choice to be mainstreamed in

her local school. Japanese students who do not attend the

government sponsored school for blind students are not

eligible for any assistance from the government. Thus, she was

taught both Braille and cane travel by volunteers. Very

interesting, eh? I thought you might enjoy her article and

letter.

"Another Japanese student, Akiko Noguci, spent several

weeks with us about four years ago while she participated in

the JAJA program. She returned to the U.S. following high

school and was a student at Blind, Inc. [the NFB training

center for the blind in Minnesota] for nearly a year where she

learned both language and blindness skills. Currently, she is

attending the University of Minnesota and attends National NFB

Conventions. She said that she uses her LONG cane when she

goes home to Japan, and she thought Nanako's reasons for

cutting off her cane were funny. But I remember conversations

I had with Akiko prior to her attending Blind, Inc. She was

not so sure that a long cane was the best to use either. Now,

of course, she views it differently."

From the Editor: That's what Karen had to say. Here is the

letter and article she received from Nanako:

Dear Karen and Marshall:

Thank you very much for a cute seal. I sleep with it

every night.

"Our school held English speech contest in February. Ami

and I participated in it. Eight students entered the contest.

Ami talked about the earthquake; I talked about my cane you

gave me. American English teacher praised my speech and my

English pronunciation. I will send you a manuscript of my

speech with this letter.

Now we have spring vacation for three weeks. We prepare

for new class. Japanese schools start in April. When the class

begins in April, I will be busy. I will tell about new class

my next letter.

Nanako Yamada

MY CANE

by Nanako Yamada

I'm going to talk about this cane. This is my cane, you

know. Last summer I stayed in South Dakota in America for

three weeks. My host family are husband and wife. And my host

mother cannot see. She is blind, so she gave me an American

cane. It is different from Japanese cane I used. The American

cane is made from glass fibre, so it is very light and

elastic. The Japanese cane is made from a kind of metal, it is

heavy and easy to break. So I think the American cane is more

useful than the Japanese one.

Actually when my host family gave it to me, it was about

twenty centimeters longer than this. Because South Dakota does

not have many people, I can swing it on a large scale. So the

long cane was comfortable in America. But when I brought it

back to Japan, it was not useful, because the roads are narrow

and too crowded in Japan. If I walked with the long cane, many

people would trip on it. So I cut it off to a comfortable size

and it became useful here.

When I walk alone I use my sense of hearing, the soles of

my feet, and this cane. I use my capacities one hundred

percent. I can feel the situations of roads with the soles of

my feet and the head of my cane. And I get information by

hearing. For example, when I cross the street I judge the

timing from the noises of the cars. That's not easy.

There are many obstructions when I walk alone. There is a

branch road in front of Toyonaka S.D.F. Because the stream of

cars is irregular I can't understand the signal. Recently,

some people help me when I walk with my cane. They tell me the

signal and show me the way. I'm glad for their kindness.

Sometimes, people assist me silently. That action surprises

me. Don't you think that if someone touches you suddenly

without speaking you would be very surprised?

If you see a person walking with a cane, please talk to

him or her at first. But sometimes he or she might say "No,

thank you." Don't be shy and sullen. And talk to other people

who need your help.