To pay tribute to two educators who have brought about significant innovative changes to the education for the visually impaired: Dr. Natalie Barraga and Dr. Christine Roman-Lantzy
Chinese
version:
Key words: innovative changes
and development in the education for the visually impaired, origin and development
of low vision training, assessment and training for cerebral visual impairment
(CVI), Dr. Natalie Barraga, Dr. Christine Roman-Lantzy.
In
Hong Kong, when people who are working with CVI children mention about cerebral
visual impairment (CVI), would they think of the American educator Dr.
Christine Roman-Lantzy?
According
to Dr. Roman’s own explanation when she came to Hong Kong in the 2000s, she
used to be an itinerary Orientation and Mobility teacher working with visually
impaired students. Gradually, she started to notice that some students’
characteristics, behaviors, and performance were obviously different from other
visually impaired students.
She
then worked with Dr. Lantzy and made in-depth studies in the area related to
neuroscience. She started to realize that there were problems in the visual
functioning of children who suffered from brain damages, and these damages
might not only originate in the visual cortices. If there were damages to any
part of the visual pathway in the brain, visual impairment would also be
resulted. Therefore, in some countries, experts have suggested that it is more
appropriate to describe visual impairment that is caused by damages to the
visual pathway in the brain as cerebral visual impairment (CVI) rather than cortical
visual impairment (CVI) (Remark 4).
Dr.
Roman (Remark 3) made in-depth studies in this area and combined
neuroscience/medical science and education for the visually impaired.
Consequently, she developed a new set of assessment test for CVI that included
ten characteristics of CVI and she also graded CVI performances into 10
stages/levels.
In
the 2000s, she came to the only school for the visually impaired in Hong Kong,
Ebenezer School, to share her theories and experiences in the assessment and training
for CVI children. Since then, the professionals that she had trained up started
to develop and promote training for children with CVI in Hong Kong and even in
Mainland China, in order to provide identification and training to CVI
pre-schoolers and students in special schools.
During
the seminars that she conducted in Hong Kong, she mentioned that she had
already come across approximately 200 CVI cases in USA. Although, great
individual differences existed among CVI children, she had really accumulated
lots of front line experiences and more comprehensive knowledge in this area as
she had come across so many cases.
Her
innovative spirit had also made me recall another pioneer in low vision
training who had long been forgotten and probably not many people were familiar
with. She was Dr. Natalie Barraga, another very renowned American educator in
the education for the visually impaired. What had made me remember her? It’s
because she had really brought about a 180
degree innovative change to the education for the visually
impaired since the mid 20th century
in European and American countries, which then gradually spread worldwide to
other continents. (Remarks 1, 2, & 5)
In
the 19th century and until mid 20th century, people with visual
impairment were generally called blind people, including those with residual
vision (‘later called low vision’) and not totally blind. The blind studied and
lived in schools and homes for the blind. Ever since the French gentleman
Braille had invented Braille, the blind started to use Braille as the medium of
reading and writing. However, there was once a traditional ‘sight saving’
theory that ‘blind’ people who still have residual vision and not totally blind
should try to preserve or save their vision by covering their eyes, because if
their remaining vision were used more, this might result in the deterioration
of their eyesight. In other words, they should avoid using their residual
vision.
However,
later researches and training experiences have found that, in fact, the visual
ability or visual functioning of visually impaired children would mostly
improve if they use their vision more.
I
attended Dr. Barraga’s own presentation during the 5th International Conference on Low
Vision, Madrid, Spain, 1996. Originally, she was a teacher but later she became
a pioneer in developing a low vision assessment kit and a training program to
develop visual efficiency in visually impaired children. It all started because
of her daughter who was visually impaired. As she started to realize that her
daughter was not totally blind and still had residual vision for daily usage,
she then developed the training program for low vision children, believing that
this would help her daughter’s learning and life.
After
in-depth researches, she released the ‘Increased Visual Behavior in Low Vision
Children’ in 1964. Around this period of time, other scholars also designed
vision tests (e.g. the Stycar Vision Test designed by Sheridan M. in England,
1969). In 1970, Dr. Barraga released the ‘Utilization of Low Vision Kit’. In
1980, she released the new assessment kit and training program ‘Program to
Develop Efficiency in Visual Functioning.
In
1978, ICEVH organized a low vision course at the Ebenezer School and Home for
the Blind in Hong Kong. In 1985, the Hong Kong Society for the Blind also set
up a Low Vision Clinic under the guidance of Australian expert Dr. Alan
Johnston. This clinic has provided services and brought about service changes
to students/people who are low vision in Hong Kong.
The
approach of teaching the ‘blind’ to see is really an innovative and authentic
idea.
Dr.
Barraga had combined education and low vision, so that low vision children and
students could receive more appropriate training and educational approach, and
consequently make use of their residual vision. Because of her abilities in
observation, analyses, dedication and innovation, she had brought about visible
changes to the life of the visually impaired who are low vision and living in
different parts of the world.
These
two scholars shared the similarity that they had brought about new dimensions
from traditional knowledge and benefited the visually impaired students or
people with low vision.
As
I have been taught and inspired by these two educators in the education for the
visually impaired, I’d like to introduce their innovative ideas and pay tribute
to them by writing this article. By reading the examples of these two experts,
I hope readers would also be inspired, not feeling contented with traditional
theories, and bring about new improvements base on experience and sensitivity.
In
Chinese, there’s a saying that ‘People enjoyed the shade as predecessors had
planted trees. Education reforms are the result of the studies of many people
over a long period of time, and accumulated from bits and pieces.
Remarks:
1.
Dr. Natalie Barraga had left us in 2014:
2.
The following was one page of Dr. Barraga’s notes delivered on 11 July 1996
during the 5th International Conference on Low Vision, Madrid,
Spain. It listed the ‘Courses and Clinics for Service Providers’, i.e. her work
in the development of low vision education and services worldwide, including
‘Ebenezer School for the Blind – Hong Kong’ under the period ‘1969-1979’, and
‘1990—National Taiwan Normal University’…：
3.
Dr. Christine Roman’s introduction:
4.
According to traditional theories, the causes of some people’s visual
impairment are not because of ocular problems, but in the visual cortices in
the brain, so this situation is named cortical visual impairment or cortical blindness.
However,
the visual pathway in the brain starts from the optic chiasm behind the eyes
(which is the intersection of the optic nerves from both eyes) to the visual
cortices at the back of our brain. The visual pathway passes through many parts
of our brain and is linked with other parts of the brain, e.g. the area for
memory and motor.
So
if any part of the visual pathway is damaged, this would result in defects in
visual functioning. These defects are not confined to the occipital lobe and
visual cortices. So the term ‘cerebral visual impairment’ is used to describe
such cases, which is more appropriate than the term ‘cortical visual
impairment’.
5.
Hall of Fame, American Printing House for the Blind:
