Guidelines for Determining Caseload Size for Teachers of Students with Vision Impairments
Carolyn Mentiplay -
Coordinator, Visiting Teachers-Vision Impairment, Eastern Metropolitan Region 

In Australia, young people with who are partially sighted or blind form the smallest group of people with a low incidence disability.

• Extremely heterogeneous group:

- ages 4 – 18
- grade prep to year 12
- degree and kind of vision loss
- full range of cognitive ability
- additional disabilities
- degree of independence and motivation

• VTVI duties range:

- direct teaching of expanded core curriculum

-communication eg braille

• auditory learning
• adaptive technology
• optical aids
• VCE exam techniques

- assessment of vision function

- program planning

- consultation with parents and school

- ordering and distributing adapted/reformatted materials

- applying for and implementing submissions for funding

- liaison with other professionals within DE&T and outside agencies such as RVIB, Low Vision Clinic, Royal Guide Dogs

- travelling safely from school to school while meeting a timetable schedule

• Points to Consider when the Coordinator Assigns Caseloads:

1. Type and quantity of service is initially based upon:

• the information from EVAC(Educational Vision Assessment Clinic) including the Ophthalmological report AND
• the Education Officers functional vision assessment report conducted in the student’s school environment AND
• the recommendations on program planning from the Program Support Group

2. No more than TWO academic brailling students assigned to a VTVI

3. Consideration given to travel times – distance in country areas, traffic in city areas

4. Consideration given to types of programming offered in student’s school ( e.g. Special Schools)

5. Combination of direct and consultative services in each caseload

6. Where possible, the same VTVI should serve all students in one school or one family.

NB With part time teachers and large numbers of students in some special schools the former is not always possible and needs to be shared between several VTVIs

7. Geographic locations are to be a consideration although students with vision impairment frequently appear in sporadic and changeable distribution

8. Where possible, the specific skills and talents of the VTVI should be considered

9. Students will have different levels and types of service at different times in their school progression. Different types and levels of service will change with the student’s changing needs e.g. transition times, VCE, permanent drops in functional vision

FORMULAS: FOR CALCULATING VISITING TEACHER- VISION IMPAIRMENT WORKLOADS

DIRECT TEACHING - the actual hours spent with a student per week, averaged over a four week period

• Weekly visits: 1.00/week, 2.00/week, 3.00/week, 4.00/week, 5.00/week
• Fortnightly visit: 0.5/week
• Monthly visit: 0.25/week
• Termly visit: 0.10/week over a 10 week term

CONSULTATION TIME (COMPLEMENTING TEACHING TIME)

• 2 or more times a week visits - 45 minutes/week
• 1 visit/week – 30 minutes/week
• fortnightly and monthly visits – 15 minutes/week
• NB At secondary levels, the VTVI needs to contact many more teachers and other school personnel

CONSULTATION ONLY

• termly visits – 5 minutes/week

BRAILLE TRANSCRIPTION AND TRANSLATION

• 2 – 5 hours per week depending upon the needs and level of student’s Braille usage

PREPARATION TIME

• 1/2 hour per student per week

TRAVEL TIME

• average kms per week over a four week period, divided by EITHER 40kph in city OR 60kph in country areas

SUMMARY

Number Of Hours Of Direct Service + Consultation Time + Braille Transcription And Translation + Preparation Time + Network & Other Professional Meetings + Travel Time = The Number Of Hours A Visiting Teacher Works excluding briefings or Professional Development undertaken or given

Adapted from:

APSEA Guidelines for Determining Caseload Size for Teachers of students with visual impairments
by P. Anne MacCuspie, Ph.D.

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