This issue was edited by Deb Lewis and Marion Blazé, Statewide Vision Resource Centre. Yep! Deb’s back on deck!
The SVRC PD program for the remainder of 2006 appears below. For the complete list of activities for 2006 and downloadable programs for all of the listed activities for the rest of the year, go to: http://www.visiontech.svrc.vic.edu.au/pd2006.htm
All activities offered by the SVRC are open to class and subject teachers, integration teachers and aides, careers teachers, therapists, parents VTs, students etc. Please register: tel (03) 9841 0242, fax (03) 9841 0878 or email svrc@svrc.vic.edu.au
When: Monday 2nd October
Where: Vision Australia, 454 Glenferrie Rd Kooyong - The Plaza
Time: 9.00am to 3.15pm
Cost: $25 includes lunch
Topics include:
We really need to know numbers, so please call Marion on 9841 0807 or email to marionblaze@svrc.vic.edu.au and tell her if you’re coming, before the end of Term III.
When: Friday 24th November
Where: Statewide Vision Resource Centre 370-380 Springvale Rd Donvale
Time: 10.00am to 3.30pm
No need to register – just turn up on the day
As promised on our PD day – from Julie Edward (CEO VT)
These short cuts are not a comprehensive list so you can add more as you need them. Or as Julie has done, customize what you need for each student. Go to: http://www.visiontech.svrc.vic.edu.au/cheatsheets.htm
For those of you who haven’t caught the news, there is a team of four students and two chaperone VTs going to the US this year for Space Camp. Students Peter and Michael from Southern Region, Andrew from Northern Region and Luke from Loddon Campaspe Mallee Region and chaperones Lee Clarke and Helen Young will be leaving Oz on September 18 and returning October 2. We wish them a very happy and safe adventure.
Here’s a snippet from the Tuesday 15th August edition of Macedon Ranges Telegraph
Luke “is about to embark on a journey to the final frontier – or the next best thing. The year 11 Gisborne Secondary College student will soon board an aircraft bound for the United States Space and Rocket Centre in Hunstville, Alabama.
Luke will take part in the Space Camp for Interested Visually Impaired Students. The week-long camp will include activities and training similar to that undertaken by astronauts with various simulated space scenarios. Training with in space-age gadgetry and simulated weightlessness, manoeuvring and space walking will all be part of the camp.”
Report by Marion Blazé
A few of us were lucky enough to get a sneak preview of this fabulous facility on Thursday, August 24 when an excursion was held with a double purpose. Five students on VTS, one ex-VTS student and one sibling attended the centre with Jeni Blake (VT), Carol Buckland (Integration aide), Di Skillern and Marion Blazé both from SVRC.
The purposes of the visit were to give these students a great ‘space’ experience but also to investigate the adaptations which will be needed by the centre to better accommodate students with vision impairments. The centre is not taking bookings of school groups until next term (or perhaps even next year), but are running limited ‘pilot’ programs such as this one. Naomi Mathers, of VSSEC, certainly gave us all a great introduction to the ‘Mission to Mars’ and what might be offered in the future. We discovered, among other things, that wearing a space helmet can be quite another handicap for VI kids. They couldn’t hear because of the noise of the breathing apparatus and they could get things close to their eyes because of the visor!
This year’s driving camp will be held at the Charlton driver education centre on Thursday the 30th November to Friday the 1st of December. Only 9 places are available. Please register your interest ASAP so that organisation can be done before the exam period. Email is preferred:
Helen Caldow
PO Box 201
Nunawading 3131
Tel 0409 381 723
Fax (03) 9841 0878
Email caldow.helen.f@edumail.vic.gov.au
Mobile 0409 381 723
Here is what Keely had to say about her visit to the recent Circus OZ show which was sponsored by the Variety Club:
Circus OZ was nothing like I expected, it was more a mix of Broadway, acrobatics and comedy. I really enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone!
Source: http://www.quantech.com.au/newsletters/magic10.htm
Quantum Technology has announced the launch of version10 of enlargement/screen reading software, MAGic. Some of the new features include:
The MAGic 10 cd includes over 2.5 hours of Daisy training material, in addition to the MAGic User’s Guide and the extensive on-line help system. And if your mouse has a scroll wheel you can:
To download a MAGic 10 demo or to read more on “what is new” go to http://www.freedomscientific.com/fs_downloads/magic.asp
“Teaching Students with Sensory Impairments” is a free resource aimed at fully including students with sensory impairments within our education system. The handbooks have been written in two parts and are filled with practical strategies and educational resources to assist mainstream teachers, students, parents and therapists in both theoretical and practical aspects of successfully including students with sensory impairments in mainstream education classrooms.
The first handbook is for students with vision impairment and the second for students with hearing impairment. Topics covered in both include:
This project is the result of an international collaborative effort among educators in the United States, Australia and New Zealand who work with students with vision or hearing impairments. The handbooks are now available here: http://www.trinity.edu/org/sensoryimpairments/
Source: LiveWire 4 Education, August 2006
The use of electronic note-takers in education is increasing rapidly, due to the need for blind and vision impaired students to compete on an equal footing. There is now a free CD available called the Teachers Guide to the PacMate. This is a comprehensive guide for teachers which examines the PAC Mate’s features, gives step-by-step instructions from set up through applications, and includes useful practice exercises.
Please give Quantum Technology a call on (02) 8844 9888 if you would like to receive a copy.
Source: Peter Goldie, IBS Audio Visual
The new Mimio Xi pen is now available and features:
Cost: $99 + $10 postage (+GST)
Tel (03) 9888 8987
Source: LiveWire 4 Education, August 2006
Draftsman is a portable drawing board, especially designed for blind users. Place a sheet of special drawing paper on the double-layer rubber board and using a pen or sharp object, drawings are raised and immediately become tactile. Use it at work, at school or in the home to:
Cost: a very reasonable $295 for the drawing kit and $25 for 100 plastic sheets
Contact Quantum Technology in Victoria (03) 9545 4104 or NSW (02) 8844 9888.
Source: ABF Update, July 2006
‘Clear Insight: The Economic Impact and Cost of Vision Loss in Australia’ from Access Economics found that vision impairment is a huge and overlooked problem in Australia. Total real financial costs (direct and indirect) of vision impairment were $5.0 billion in 2004.
Almost half a million people have impaired vision and over 50,000 of these are blind. The prevalence of vision loss trebles with each decade over the age of 40, increasing dramatically in the last decades of life. By 2024, the number of Australians with vision impairment or blindness is expected to increase to nearly 800,000.
Another study by Access Economics, ‘Centrally Focussed: The Impact of Age-Related Macular Degeneration’, reported that AMD is the leading cause of blindness in Australia, responsible for 48% of severe vision loss. More information: http://cera.unimelb.edu.au/publications/reports/access/access_amd.pdf.
‘Listen Hear! Report’ from Access Economics has identified that hearing loss is costing Australia $11.75 billion a year, or 1.4% of GDP. One in six Australians is affected by hearing loss and that figure is projected to rise to one in every four Australians by 2050. Hearing loss is also age-related, affecting three in every four people aged over 70 years. For more information go to http://www.vicdeaf.com.au and follow the Listen Hear! link.
This article was written by Jo Parry, Acting Principal at Ringwood Heights PS. It is included with this issue of The Bulletin because of our students’ high usage of electronic communication.
Last week I had a case of inappropriate email use reported to me. Whilst the event took place out of school hours, the ripple effect of what was a case of “cyber bullying” impacted on the happiness of our students’ relationships at school.
After chats with several students and parents over a couple of days, I thought it timely to share some information about “cyber bullying” with families, so that parents in turn can be more aware of some potential issues related to the use of the internet and in particular msn and email.
The following extracts are from and excellent Commonwealth Government sponsored website called “NetAlert”. The NetAlert website at http://www.netalert.net.au provides further information about NetAlert’s services. NetAlert was established by the Australian Government in late 1999 to provide independent advice and education on Internet safety and managing access to online content. It is a not-for-profit advisory organisation. The organisation is funded by the Australian Government to provide people – particularly young people and parents – with information about the issues, risks and dangers associated with using the Internet. It offers advice about how to minimise risks, avoid problems and use the Internet safely and responsibly.
Parents may find this a helpful reference site to visit as they negotiate some family rules through discussion about appropriate internet use.
This extract from the foreword by the Chairperson of NetAlert, Karyn Hart, makes some important comments:
“...Children are accessing the Internet and using Internet services such as chat rooms from an increasingly early age. For children, the Internet is an important research, communication and information tool. However, children and their parents need to be aware that there are potential risks and dangers inherent in Internet use.
A Parent’s Guide to Internet Safety considers what children are doing on the Internet according to their age, the dangers associated with using the Internet and the strategies parents can use to minimise risks...”
NetAlert’s safety checklist for parent reference from “A Parent’s Guide to Internet Safety” is included below:
This checklist provides a summary of the key things you should know to keep your family safe when using the Internet.
Before You Start
Getting set up correctly
Create family guidelines
When online
For more information visit http://www.Netalert.net.au or phone 1800 880 176
The following articles can be found in the August edition of JVIB:
When: Monday 11th September 2006
Where: Blackburn Neighbourhood Centre, Cnr Blackburn Road &
The Avenue, Blackburn South
Time: 8:00pm
Dr Mike Steer and Dr Gillian Gale
Renwick Centre
Royal Institute for Deaf & Blind Children and
The University of Newcastle
The mutual goal of educators and the family is to provide the child who has a vision impairment with an appropriate education. Just how this goal is interpreted by teachers and parents is open to debate. A student with an educationally significant vision impairment enrolled in a neighbourhood school or in a special unit, will have a support team. This team is convened to formulate an on-going Individualised Education Plan (IEP), and to advise the school principal on the appropriate educational program and the sorts of resources necessary to ensure learning. Parents should be equal partners in the process, since they, with teachers and specialists can generate powerful partnerships when it comes to helping the student do his or her best in the classroom, on the playground or at the playing field. It is important to remember that in most school systems, the student’s educational program is the direct responsibility of the classroom teacher and that the specialist Visiting Teacher, Vision Impairment is to support. The following are twelve tips for better parent involvement when working with the student’s classroom teacher:
1. Try to ensure that the term ‘parent’ includes all caregivers. Families are self-defined and may comprise any combination of co-habiting individuals, for example, mother, father, sister, brother, grandparents, other relatives, foster parents. Many students with vision impairments are cared for by someone other than a natural parent.
2. Try to arrange that parents play a central role in student assessment. Assessment is primarily a problem-solving process concerned with the systematic gathering of information about the student. The subsequent organisation and interpretation of this information provides the foundation for educational decision-making. No-one at the assessment meetings will know more about the child, or have more at stake than the parents.
3. Try to communicate with families in a variety of ways. Increasingly, websites, mailed or hand delivered newsletters, notes home, phone calls and emails are being regarded as useful ways of ensuring that messages from school reach home.
4. Don’t assume that having a child with a vision impairment automatically makes a parent somehow different from the parents of non-disabled children and therefore the primary source of many of the challenges facing the child at school.
5. Invite feedback and two-way communication. Create ways for parents and family members to respond to your communications – Always keep the classroom teacher informed when you invite the parents to initiate contact with you.
6. Identify and address communication problems. Are there barriers to your communication with the parents? For example, lack of email or internet. Limited English skills? Look for ways to get your message into the home and find ways for parents to respond.
7. Set some parameters on parental involvement. Not every parent can volunteer to become more involved with your student’s education. Some parents volunteer to help in the classroom, or at a book fair or a sports event. With the classroom teacher, try to identify as many ways as possible for parents to stay engaged in their child’s schooling even if they are not able to physically visit the school.
8. Think about using alternative meeting sites. If parents find coming to school difficult, or overly confronting, try scheduling your meetings at an alternative venue, for example, the local library or community centre. Always keep the classroom teacher in your information loop.
9. Share ideas for parent involvement. Many teachers report being unprepared when it comes to dealing with parents. Seek out your colleagues, share experiences and discover ways that others have successfully involved parents in their child’s schooling.
10. Focus on enhancing student performance. Some research has indicated that parent-child study time in such areas as reading and maths shows the student what is important and encourages him or her to study. With the classroom teacher, structure opportunities for in-school and at-home parent-child engagement in learning.
11. Involve parents at all stages of the student’s education. The younger the child, the easier it is to get parents involved. However, all students, even high school seniors can benefit from knowing that their parents are interested in and willing to be involved in their education. Ensure that the student on your case load gets plenty of parental involvement in his or her educational programs.
12. Don’t give up. Some parents are harder to get involved than are others. The reasons might vary, but keep on trying a variety of strategies and involve as many parents as possible in some way or other. Everyone benefits from positive connections between home and school.
These twelve tips result from the authors’ experience and from discussions of teacher support materials produced by Donovan R. Walling for Phi Delta Kappa International http://ww.pdkintl.org/
Finally, whatever else you do as a Visiting Teacher, try not to see yourself as the ‘saviour’ of parents and thus make them dependent on you. Encourage parents to explore and join APVI. It’s a good way for them to discover things for themselves rather than wait to have everything done for them.
Association of Parents of Vision Impaired Children:
Now a national body (inaugurated at the 2005 SPEVI Conference) this group of
parents aims at establishing groups in each state to provide a national voice
that lobbies for the needs of their children.
For further information please contact: Gayle Skinner (03) 9431 2678 (National President) or Michael and Ingrid Siles email: silesmi@bigpond.com
Thanks to Gill Hogan, Mike Steer and Stephen Wagner for contributing to this edition of The Bulletin. Thanks also to our fabulous proof-readers, technology trouble-shooters, stuffers and mailers.
Deb Lewis (who can be emailed at deblewis@svrc.vic.edu.au).