Dual Media Learning: A Blessing or a Curse?

Dual Media Learning: A Blessing or a Curse?

Future Reflections Special Issue on Low Vision READING
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Dual Media Learning: A Blessing or a Curse?
by Tammy Parson
From the Editor: Parents and teachers of students with low vision often struggle to decide whether print or Braille will be the child's primary reading medium. In this article, Tammy Parson recounts how she and her husband fought to ensure that their daughter received adequate instruction in Braille.
There are days when I feel that having a child who is a dual media learner is a blessing and a curse at the same time. I am grateful for the vision my daughter has, but sometimes I scream in frustration over the challenges that low vision brings.
When I learned that our daughter, Victoria, has some sight, I was thrilled. She would be able to see some things, so I assumed that life would be easier for her than it is for people who are totally blind. I remember how excited we were the day she learned her colors. We were so happy that she could see them and tell the difference between them!
Before Victoria entered preschool, we started to teach her the print alphabet, using super large letters. We also began to teach her Braille. In our minds Braille was never a matter of choice. For us it was a given that Victoria would learn Braille so that she would be prepared when her vision declined. However, when she entered a prekindergarten program at the age of three, we found that the school district saw things differently. In their eyes, if you have vision you're to use it. Braille would only be taught as a just-in-case.
I stood my ground, and finally we were granted thirty minutes of Braille instruction twice a week. For the next two years Victoria received instruction in both print and Braille, although her Braille instruction was quite limited.
When Victoria entered kindergarten, her Braille instruction became an issue once again. Because she was doing well using large print, we were told that she no longer needed Braille services. She had to hold the paper against her nose to see it, and her head was bent over the table constantly in order to read and write, but that didn't seem to matter. We knew that the situation wasn't acceptable, but we had no real guidelines to back us up. In order to get Victoria the education she needed, we decided we had to find someone to teach her Braille.
That summer we went to Atlanta, Georgia, and attended our first convention of the National Federation of the Blind. The presentations we heard and the people we met confirmed our belief that Victoria needed Braille services. We went home and called an attorney. At that time, in 2007, special education attorneys were not easy to find, especially attorneys willing to fight a school district. Our search for a lawyer quickly became a dead-end street. We discussed the possibility of sending Victoria to a residential school for the blind, but we knew we could never send her to live away from home. Instead, we decided to move closer to the state school for the blind. We sold the dream home we had just built, my husband sold his family business, and we relocated our family to St. Augustine, Florida. Victoria began second grade at the Florida School for the Deaf and Blind (FSDB), and we were excited that she finally had access to Braille materials.
Victoria attended FSDB for three years. Yet again, what we thought was a blessing soon became a curse. She excelled in Braille and in her classroom subjects, but academically she was falling behind her peers who attended regular programs. It became clear to us that the school for the blind had very low expectations for its students. After everything we had given up, we were not going to let Victoria fall behind! We removed her from FSDB, and she began her fifth grade year in our local public school.
Victoria's first year back in public school was very hard, to say the least. She had to demonstrate that she was capable of doing her work and keeping up. We soon learned that she wasn't reading Braille fast enough to be considered at grade level. The school started pushing her to do more of her work using large print, which caused her to become fatigued and irritable. Victoria stood her ground and used her Brailler in class as much as possible.
Then, around Christmas, Victoria was told that she couldn't use her Brailler during a spelling test. The teacher claimed it was too noisy, and complained that she couldn't grade the test because she didn't know Braille. Until then it hadn't been a problem for Victoria to use her Brailler. The TVI had graded her papers at a later date. We had to hire an attorney and file a due process case against the school in order for Victoria to be allowed to use her equipment and to receive more instruction so she could increase her Braille reading speed.
We worked on Braille all summer between Victoria's fifth and sixth grade years. She studied at home and through the extended school year (ESY) services she received. When school started in the fall, she still was not on grade level in terms of her words per minute (wpm), but she was improving fast.
It was at this time that we requested a technology evaluation for Victoria, hoping to say goodbye to the CCTV the school had her lugging around from room to room. Her eye condition had progressed during the past year, and she could no longer distinguish colors. We requested that Braille become her primary mode of reading and writing.
Our request for an emphasis on Braille led to our biggest struggle yet. The teachers and administrators in this school district thought much like those in the district where Victoria attended kindergarten--if you have any usable vision, you must use it.
The school conducted a Learning Media Assessment, which showed that Victoria could read 52 wpm in Braille and 75 wpm in print, using a CCTV. Based on these findings, the school concluded that she should be a print reader, using a laptop and a portable CCTV in class. The problem was that Victoria had reached a plateau at 75 wpm using a CCTV more than three years ago. Due to her declining vision, she needed a larger and larger font, and her reading speed was never likely to increase. Her wpm score in Braille, on the other hand, continued to improve on a monthly basis. Yet again, with our attorney at our side and no real guidelines through IDEA and the Florida Department of Education (FLDOE), we were up against the wall.
School districts can use any Learning Media Assessment they choose when assessing a student. The assessment tool itself and the portions of it that are administered can have a great impact on how and in which medium a child is taught. In our case, the school district totally skipped the part that evaluated sustained reading. That part of the assessment would have shown how reading for an extended period would or would not affect Victoria's reading speed.
Just days before our IEP meeting was scheduled, the United States Department of Education released a critical memo. The memo stated that it is mandatory for schools to provide Braille instruction to low vision students unless the IEP team can show that the child will have no future need for Braille. After that memo, it was clear that Victoria would continue to receive Braille services. Furthermore, because we had filed a complaint with the FLDOE before the memo was issued, the school district received numerous reprimands. It was ordered to provide follow-up documentation of services Victoria would receive in the school year ahead.
By this time, although it seemed we had won the battle, we were emotionally and financially drained. Fortunately, Florida has a McKay Scholarship Program that helps students with IEPs attend private schools. We decided to remove Victoria from the public school once again and to send her to a private school, using a McKay Scholarship. She no longer receives Braille services from a TVI, but she has access to Braille materials.
Victoria continues to build her Braille speed. She has decreased her use of print materials, so she has less fatigue. She is rebuilding her confidence, and recently she placed second in her district's JV Braille Challenge. She was selected at her school to compete in an Academic Bowl, where she placed second as well.
The curse of dual media learning has turned into a blessing. It has made us stronger as a family and has allowed us to become better informed parents. It has even led me to become a special education advocate. I'm also a 2012 Partners in Policymaking graduate. Partners in Policymaking is a state-sponsored leadership and advocacy training program. It teaches individuals and families to be community leaders and to obtain the best available services for themselves and others. Through this program I became more involved with the legislative side of education. I continue to fight for our children. I hope that someday every blind and low vision child will receive a free and appropriate public education at the school of his/her choice.

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