Chapter 5: Integration

Contents

  1. About the Sub-cultural Analysis of the Integration Process
    Elena Denissova, Russia
  2. The attitude of students of the faculty of education and rehabilitation towards mainstream integration of visually impaired children
    Andrea Fajdetic, Croatia
  3. The role of the low vision centre in the integration of visually impaired children in Estonia
    Kelk Ene, Estonia
  4. "�with a little help from friends." Visually impaired pupils in a school for all
    Birgit Kruk and Inger Lindgren, Sweden
  5. Cultural development as a vehicle for social integration
    Javier L�pez del Rio, Spain
  6. From reality to picture. Art education for visually impaired pre-school children and school children
    Lena L�wenhielm, Sweden
  7. Playing and learning together: Educational activities for children with and without visual impairment - ideas for parents and teachers
    Boguslaw Marek, Poland
  8. Learning from experience: mobility and daily living skills in an English language classroom
    Boguslaw Marek, Poland
  9. Supporting students with disabilities, training future teachers
    Elena Mendelov�, Slovak Republic
  10. Effects of integration on children with visual impairment
    Mira Oberman-Babi�, Croatia

lecture
5.1

About the Sub-cultural Analysis of the Integration Process

full text of lecture 5.1

Elena Denissova, Russia

Address:
Science Workshop of "parents of VI" Foundation
Komsomolski prospect, 46-1-18, Moscow 119048, Russia
Tel: +7 095- 245-97-95

We know, that sometimes the integration process is not easy. There may appear some problems and misunderstandings in the communication between visually impaired and seeing people. To analyse, solve and predict these problems I suggest to use a term "sub-culture" as a basic one. Then a communication itself can be analysed as an interaction between the sub-cultures.
The term "sub-culture" comes from the notion of "culture" with the limitation, characterised by the prefix SUB-. This notion is neutral and does not bring any valuational sense. It only shows the intersection of cultural and psychological views. There are three main blocks in the sub-cultural analysis:

  1. Valuables-normatives
  2. Rituals-behavior
  3. Things-attributes

The main and the most important are the notions of valuables and norms, which are followed by Actions and Things (normal and natural for every from interacting sub-cultures).
In general this concept seems to be effective for the tasks of education and employment in integration context.


lecture
5.2

The attitude of students of the faculty of education and rehabilitation towards mainstream integration of visually impaired children

full text of lecture 5.2

Andrea Fajdetic, Croatia

Address:
Center "Vinko Bek"
Ku�lanova 59A, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
E-mail: afajdetic@yahoo.com

This paper is a part of a larger four years longitudinal study of attitudes of students towards visually impaired children. The sample consists of freshman students that are starting a program at the Faculty of education and rehabilitation and Rehabilitation is their major. There has not been any research on attitudes of students towards visually impaired children even though there are many authors stressing teacher as the very important factor in the education process. Our goal is to determine if the program (and when) influences attitudes of students towards children with visual impairment. Results of initial research will show attitudes of freshman students towards children with visual impairment at the beginning of the program. Also, results of the second research will show if there is any change.


poster
5.3

The role of the low vision centre in the integration of visually impaired children in Estonia


Kelk, Ene, Estonia

Address:
Low Vision Centre
Ravi 18, Tallinn 10138, Estonia
Fax: +372-620 7300
E-mail: ene@mailcity.com

The rehabilitation of visually impaired people in Estonia has relatively short history, as active rehabilitation work started only in year 1995.

According to the Education Act, the regular school system in Estonia is accessible to all children, including impaired children. This has been the basis for real break-through to the integration of impaired children into ordinary schools in the resent years.

This report is based on reaserch carried out by Low Vision Centre in Tallinn, Estonia. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the effects of assistance given by Low Vision Centre to the children into ordinary schools. As a result of this research, we have reached to the conclusions, showing which support is needed to visually impaired children attending ordinary schools, and their parents.

The research was conducted in a way that questionnaires were sent to the sample group of fifty visually impaired children, their parents and teachers. Similar research, including impaired children and their parents, was also conducted in 1996.

The Low Vision Centre is one of several places in Estonia where the visually impaired children integrated into ordinary schools may obtain assistance to solve the problems in connection with their low vision.

No further text available.


lecture
5.4

"�with a little help from friends." Visually impaired pupils in a school for all

full text of lecture 5.4

Birgit Kruk and Inger Lindgren, Sweden

Address:
The Swedish Agency for Special Needs Education
Erik Dahlbersgatan 11B, S-41126, G�teborg, Sweden
Fax: +46 31 133 528
E-mail: birgit.kruk@sih.se

In Sweden today the normal thing for a visually impaired pupil is to study in his/her local school. There is now only one special school, and it is intended for visually impaired pupils with additional disabilities, usually some degree of learning disabilities.
The Swedish government has given The National Swedish Agency for Special Needs Education (SIH) the instruction to produce educational material and to give pedagogical support to the schools run by local authorities in their work with disabled pupils. SIH has as its aim and goal to achieve full integration and inclusion for these pupils. This is the most important part of the work SIH performs.
However, visually impaired pupils are quite few -about 1000 in Sweden- so their needs to form a group identity and for their teachers and assistants to gain experience from colleagues are difficult to satisfy.
For some years we have been working with groups of visually impaired pupils and their teachers and assistants to make this possible. We have found this a good complement to the day-to-day activities at school.


lecture
5.5

Cultural development as a vehicle for social integration

full text of lecture 5.5

Javier L�pez del Rio, Spain

Address:
O.N.C.E.
Calle Prado 24, Madrid 28014, Spain
Fax: +34 91 429 31 18

Social education is a formal or informal process of intervention (acculturation) that human being make on their surroundings. There is no doubt that the cultural level of a country greatly influences the social and educational development of its students.

Education is much more than just teaching. It also has to do with a set of learning and life experiences as well as the relationships between individuals.
Only the conditions of access to these variables differ for the blind and visually impaired.

The cultural policy of a socially oriented organisation is determined by taking into account the needs of the social groups it caters for. The ONCE's cultural policy is geared towards:

  1. Making society aware of the need for doing away with barriers (both physical and psychological) that hinder the integration of the handicapped.
  2. Training the blind in ethical, moral and civic values.

The mass media can be of help in achieving these goals. Likewise, the institutions of the state should facilitate the access of these groups to normal educational facilities, museums, libraries, etc.

Texts and museums should be adapted and models created to allow blind students to make visits, excursions and carry out any other activity aimed at facilitating their socialisation. Camps and retreats to foster integration are likewise of particular importance.


lecture
5.6

From reality to picture. Art education for visually impaired pre-school children and school children

full text of lecture 5.6

Lena L�wenhielm, Sweden

Address:
TRC Tomtebodaskolan resource center
Box 1313, 17125 Solna, Sweden
Fax: +46 8 4 700 707
E-mail: lena.lowenhielm@.se

Working with two-dimensional pictures has become increasingly important as our pupils are integrated in ordinary schools and are expected to acquaint themselves with illustrative material in the textbooks.
During the period when TRC was a school and I taught pupils on a continuous basis, I worked out basic training, which still works, based on primary shapes and other elementary concepts. Consequently, the pupils gained a shape memory-a kind of ABC- and it became easier to describe an object's shape and construction.
We work with both the to and three dimensional picture of the shapes. The cube is a basic shape and since the cub represents at the same time the shape of the room, we can work with spatial concepts which are, of course, a precondition for being able to interpret two-dimensional illustrations.
With different "from reality to picture" exercises as a basis, it is possible to gradually begin to work with model maps in many different tactile materials and real maps.
In my opinion, the most important thing is to give the pupils tools to communicate with the help of pictures, even if they were born without any sight.


poster
5.7

Playing and learning together: Educational activities for children with and without visual impairment - ideas for parents and teachers


Boguslaw Marek, Poland

Address:
Dept. of ELT Typhlomethodology, Catholic University of Lublin
Al. Raclawickie 14, 20-950 Lublin, Poland
Fax: +48 81 533 2572
E-mail: boguslaw.marek@kul.lublin.pl

Simple ideas and low-tech educational tools are presented which allow visually impaired children and their fully sighted friends or siblings play and learn together. Crossword puzzles in Braille and large print, 'listen and touch' books with tactile pictures and sound effects, talking maps of adventure trails and talking playing cards are only some of the items to be displayed. Although most of the materials were designed to facilitate the English as a foreign language programme for visually impaired children, many of the ideas have a much wider application and can be used as effective teaching and learning tools in other subjects (e.g. art, geography, geometry), as well as for entertainment (games, quizzes).

No further text available.


poster
5.8

Learning from experience: mobility and daily living skills in an English language classroom

full text of poster 5.8

Boguslaw Marek, Poland

Address:
Dept. of ELT Typhlomethodology, Catholic University of Lublin
Al. Raclawickie 14, 20-950 Lublin, Poland
Fax: +48 81 533 2572
E-mail: boguslaw.marek@kul.lublin.pl

Although the importance of teaching foreign languages to visually impaired learners is beginning to be recognised in Eastern and Central Europe, there is still a great shortage of materials suitable for learners requiring non-visual methods. This is one of the reasons why mainstream school teachers are reluctant to admit visually impaired children in their classrooms. Those who do, are usually left to themselves with the problem of how to include a visually impaired child in language learning activities.

The paper offers some practical solutions to the problem of shortage of materials for teaching English as a foreign language to blind and partially sighted children, by showing how teachers can design lessons which will engage the whole class. On the assumption that experience is a key to learning, and that children learn better what they enjoy and find interesting, the paper shows how a syllabus based on activities focusing on mobility and daily living skills can not only engage both sighted and non-sighted children, but will benefit visually impaired learners by facilitating their independence. Examples of mobility based language activities designed for a group of blind and partially sighted children learning will be presented, and illustrated by a short video.


lecture
5.9

Supporting students with disabilities, training future teachers

full text of lecture 5.9

Elena Mendelov�, Slovak Republic

Address:
Support Centre for Visually Impaired Students
Faculty of Mathematics, Physics and Informatics CU
Mlynska dolina, 84248 Bratislava, Slovak Republic
Fax: +421 7 65424 862
E-mail: mendelova@fmph.uniba.sk

Presenter is working in a Support Centre for Visually Impaired Students at Comenius University in Bratislava since 1993. She will shortly outline the basic philosophy of centre's activities for visually impaired students. Analysis of experiences in Slovak educational environment and study conditions for disabled students in higher education will be presented. The main emphasis will be laid upon:

A co-operation model among the Support Centre, departments of special education, department of social work, department of psychology and department of computer sciences both in providing support for disabled students and in practical training for future teachers, will be presented.


lecture
5.10

Effects of integration on children with visual impairment


Mira Oberman-Babi�, Croatia

Address:
Faculty of Education and Rehabilitation
Ku�lanova 59A, Zagreb 10000, Croatia
Fax: +385 1 229 950
E-mail: tina@antun.erf.hr

This paper presents the results of research that is part of the project "Effects of integration on children with visual impairment". Research is done by the Faculty of Education and Rehabilitation (University of Zagreb, Croatia) and it has been approved by Ministry of science, technology and informatics.
Results which show attitudes towards integration of children with visual impairment (attitudes of children without visual impairment, teacher in mainstream school and parents of children with and without visual impairment.) Socio-metrical position of children with visual impairment in mainstream school will also be analysed.

No full text available in English


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