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Editorial Ashoke Chowdhury
Beside development of different softwares intended for The Visually Impaired, Webel Mediatronics Ltd. has concentrated upon development of Screen Reader. It is audio-based, so that sightless can operate and listen to what is written on the screen. Now this Screen Reader is under development and it has been given to Voice of World for testing. The editor had been to the place and verified the system how completely sightless person typing on the computer and visible words on the screen is immediately transferred to sound by which the sightless are able to read what is written on the screen. Another important endeavour undertaken by WML is OCR. OCR means optical character recognition. How the character is recognized is something wonderful and marvelous. Any page can be recognized by the sightless through audition. This system is under progress and it will create a revolution in the education of the visually impaired on completion of the development. The Department of Information Technology, Govt. of India has full confidence in the agility of WML in the development of different system for facilitating the education of the Visually challenged. So recently DIT has decided to entrust with the WML to develop high speed Brailler for Brailling the print materials with high speed. We salute to the endeavor undertaken by WML in bringing about revolutionary changes in the education and rehabilitation of the sightless.
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Stress Encountered by the Visually Challenged Ashoke Chowdhury
Stress and tension are synonymous terms. Stress is the effect produced by forces pulling against each other. It is wear and tear of the body by stressful agents which could be physical, psychological or sociocultural. Although stress has had name and more than 80% disorder are considered to be stress related yet it is not all that bad. It has a positive side well. Stresses are necessary for success. They are our self protective reaction when we are confronted by threats to our safety, happiness, wellbeing and self pride. They help us to achieve our goals and avoid unpleasant situation. It is however, a matter of concern when stress become frequent, excessive and prolonged. They cause different health problems, such as high blood pressure that can cause heart attack and stroke, high cholesterol which can lead to cardiovascular problems. Visually challenged persons being a human being encounter stresses in different environment. The fact of stress as perceptible in ordinary man is same as to the visually challenged. Stress to the visually challenged is to be considered in a special environment for consideration of his absence of vision, lack of mobility, lack of self security, lack of self confidence and lack of self image. For example we may cite--a newly blinded man has to appear before a interview board and has been waiting for his guide lonely in his house. The escort does not appear in time and in the event of his absence the sightless person suffers from a excessive anxiety leading to panic and depression till arrival of the escort. In the event of no arrival the sightless is tormented in his mind. The sense of dependence constantly gnaws his mental state of affairs and he develops a sense of helplessness because he cannot independently move without assistance. Loss of confidence with the onset of his blindness develops a sense of pessimism about life. He cannot confront anything and laments like Macbeth in Shakespeare, “Life is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury signifying nothing.” What a Terrible mental agony he undergoes every moment. He feels that he has no self security in life. He feels that his life is at stake. There is nobody to rescue him from this state of affairs. It is our social responsibility to embrace him and to relieve him of this present condition. To provide him with true light of things and reality is to be communicated to them in a friendly manner. Helen Keller before the advent of Anni Sullivan had undergone same sense of depression and languor as there was none to dissuade her from this mental condition. We assume the role of Anni Sullivan to each and every sightless and for restoring his mental balance and equilibrium. According to Dr. Hans Selye, an authority on the subject, for most of the disorder in mind there is common cause i.e. chemical imbalance in the body caused by three tiny glands one pituitary and two adrehals that produce from hormones mainly reaction to stress according to him.
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Low Vision Management A New Hope to the Visually Challenged Persons Dr. S.P. Chakraborti (MS, Ophthalmology Netaji Eye Hospital, Ramchandrapur Ashram Purulia, West Bengal)
What is low vision: As defined by WHO (World Health Organisation) the term low vision is used for persons who are having vision 6/18 or less in the best corrected eye or whose visual field is reduced to 10 degree while looking straight ahead. They may be suffering from various ocular diseases, which in-spite of best available treatment, have caused permanent incurable impairment in their capacity to see. These visually challenged groups of people are termed as low vision clients. Who are low vision clients: The following group of patients who are having incurable vision impairing conditions, constitute few of the vision category persons— (A) Albinism, (B) Degenerative Myopia, (C) Advanced Glaucoma, (D) Congenital anomalies, (E) Age Related Macular degeneration, (F) Retinitis Pigmentosa, (G) Retinal and Macular dystrophy and denerations, (H) Corneal Opacity, (I) Diabetic Retinopathy, (J) Nystagmus, (K) Optic Atrophy etc.
Objective of low vision management: Low vision management focuses on the rehabilitation of the residual vision of the person. By various non-optical, optical and training methodology, low vision management tries to utilize the left over vision of the visually impaired person to make his or her day to they life easier and comfortable. This is simply saying, making better use of whatever vision the patient is left with. This demands lot of understanding on the part of the patient and the guardians as well as lot of counseling on the part of the medical professional to make them understand and expect realistically of the outcome of low vision management. The crux of the matter is that, though the visual acuity is not going to improve, it is the quality of life of the clients, which will be embittered in the long run. Stages in management of low vision: It is an integrated community approach, which can efficiently manage these conditions. The family members, the teachers of children, health workers, health care professionals all come together and the term approach deals with it in the following manner-- Stage I--Detection of visual disability (Family, teachers, health workers). Stage II--Identification by visual screening by teacher, CBR (Community based Rehabilitation) worker or health worker. Stage III--A. Clinical Assessment of the condition by Ophthalmologist (Examination, Diagnosis, treatment, refraction, prescription, provision of Optical low vision aids etc.) B. Educational (special education personnel) educational needs, reading material, regular/special schools, provision of non-optical low vision aid. C. Functional (special services personnel) visual orientation/mobility, visual communication, use of vision in activities of daily life. Stage IV--Training in maximum use of vision and how to use low vision aids by parent, Teachers, CBR workers. Stage V--Monitoring of change in the clients visual ability by parents, clinical, educational and CBR personnel.
Devices used in our low vision management clinic: A. Non-optical Devices-- 1. Typoscope, 2. Sitting habits, 3. Writing Guide, 4. Reading/Writing stands, 5. Large print books, 6. Sunglasses/hats, 7. Bold line exercise books, 8. Black felt pens, 9. Changed Reading techniques, 10. Colour, 11. Contrast, 12. Lighting, 13. Size, 14. Distance. B. Optical low vision Devices-- 1. Magnifying Glasses, 2. Hand magnifiers, 3. Stand magnifiers, 4. Telescopes.
How to recognize possibility of impaired vision in every child? 1. By the appearance of eyes: A. No eyes at all B. Very small eyes C. Closed or partially closed eyes D. Eyes which look milky E. Eyes which constantly move F. Eyes which seem scarred or damaged G. Frequent eye infection or sticky eyes H. Constant frowning I. Presence of Squints or oblique eyes J. Unusual eye movements K. Constant Blinking. 2. By Behavior: A. Frequent touching of eyes e.g. poking, rubbing etc. B. Avoids bright light C. Avoids close work D. Obvious problems in focusing, for example distance to close objects, large to small objects E. Short attention span F. Poor self care skills G. Poor communication skills.
3. By responses to other people: A. Does not seem to recognize people-unless spoken to B. Does not make eye contact C. Peers at people D. Jumpy when approached without being warned E. Lack of regard for other people, environment etc. F. Sees people wearing bright colours better.
4. By response to objects: A. Closely looks at objects B. Peers at objects C. Moves objects towards light D. Preference for bright objects E. Appears to see moving object better than stationery objects.
5. By movements: A. Crashes into objects-such as doors, furniture B. Is anxious or unwilling to walk alone C. Finds it difficult to judge distances D. Copes better in well till areas F. Gets lost when moving about. --------------
Emotional Abandonment Dr. Jahangir Mollah (BHMS [Hons Cal]) (Student of Post Graduate Diploma in Rehabilitation Psychology University of Calcutta MD [Hom Cal]) Session: 2005-06
What is Emotional Abandonment? The term ‘abandonment’ means the act of abandoning, or the state of being abandoned; total desertion; relinquishment. The term includes both the intention to abandon and the external act by which the intention is carried into effect. Suffering the loss of love is a true emotional crisis. Emotional abandonment can be as painful as grief over death, perhaps even more. Emotional abandonment can be just as devastating to a child as physical abandonment, in fact some psychiatrists think the effects of emotional abandonment go deeper and last longer than physical abuse.
When and How the Emotional abandonment takes place in the mind of blind children? Before discussing the emotional abandonment in blind children, let us have a bird’s eye view of the normal emotional bonding process. In the first month of life, an infant experiences himself or herself as one with the surrounding environment. The basic developmental task is for an infant to achieve a physiological balance and rhythm. This balance evolves out of numerous completions of the infant bonding cycle and prepares the way for bonding and attachment. From months 2 to 6, an infant’s experience shifts from feeling merged with his or her environment to feeling “one” with the parent. There now appear a number of signs of an infant’s developing attachment to his primary caretaker: smiling, making eye contact which expands from a few seconds to a few minutes during this period, a preoccupation with the parent’s face and making happy noises. By the sixth month, an attaching infant is showing the full range of emotions is responsive to parental wooing and initiates wooing exchanges. By 6 or 7 months, an infant has usually begun to experience stranger anxiety. Paradoxically, stranger anxiety testifies to the strength of an infant’s attachment to his or her parent. It is the attachment that defines everyone else as strangers. Without an attachment, there are no strangers; everyone is of equal emotional importance or unimportance. Behaviorally, this anxiety manifests as distress in the presence of strangers and a checking back in with the parent for reassurance. Over the next two to three months, stranger anxiety intensifies before fading into its successor: separation anxiety. Separation anxiety usually begins at 9 to 10 months, peaks between 12 and 15 months, and can last until somewhere between 24 and 36 months. Separation anxiety emerges from the infant’s growing awareness of separateness from his or her parent. It is yet further testimony to the strength of the infant’s attachment. Now on infants with visual impairments the situation has a different effect: In early interaction, bodily contact is central during the earliest weeks but then vision is the most important avenue in communication. A normally sighted infant expresses the joy she or he feels in communication. A visually impaired infant may not see enough to copy the smiles of the adult persons and therefore needs enforcement through tactile and auditory information. Since the visually impaired infant often has to concentrate on listening and does not have the usual eye contact, the infant is in danger of being thought to be uninterested in interaction. When the evidence mounts that a baby or toddler who recently joined the family is in fact impaired, the family undergoes a complex emotional process of internalizing its situation: among the stages experienced will be denial, anxiety, anger and hostility and even depression, until a ripening of the adaptive coping ability occurs. The bonding process that constitutes a kind of ‘emotional umbilical cord’ between the toddler and his parents is not always possible when the child is impaired, for a number of reasons: First, the impaired child, the one suffering from blindness often tends to be incomprehensibly uncommunicative toward his or her parents; no smiling, averse to touch or indifference to stimulation—all having a highly disruptive effect on the bonding process. Dysmorphic characteristics and impairment of the toddler’s external appearance affect the parent’s tendency to connect emotionally with his child. Further, there is the added burden of burnout from exhausting daily care and constant coping with community agents who are supposed to provide the family with various treatment options: burnout that leaves insufficient emotional availability for the task of weaving the delicate fabric of the parent-child relationship. When the colorful visual world vanishes permanently from the sight, the child becomes emotionally and psychologically unstable. This loss or deprivation of vision has a tremendous detrimental traumatic effect on the psyche of the child. This trauma may put a permanent signature of emotional disability on the psychic component of the child. The child’s existence as a ‘Child’ is at stake; rather he is identified by his beloved parents and other family members as a blind one. This type of emotional behavior as experienced by him leaves in a state of emotion where is no one to shower his life with a drop of love and there is no one to hear the crying murmur of his heart. He is left dry and hard in a desert of loneliness where the echo of his own cries is the only thing which he can hear. This grief can burrow deep within him where it undermines his self esteem, wreaking havoc on his life and even interfering with future relationship if left unchecked. Rejection and unrequited love can create a very deep and personal wound. It undermines his sense of self worth and destroys his security. This emotional abandonment may be expressed through intense feelings of panic, anxiety, hopelessness, isolation, self-blaming, anger, resentment, helplessness, unworthiness, and despair. --------------
Disability and The Vocational Training Programme Geeta Ghosh (Principal South Calcutta Teachers Training Institute and President of Drishtideep)
India was the first country in South Asia to become a signatory to the Proclamation on the Full Participation and Equality of People with Disabilities in the Asian and Pacific Region, at the inception of the Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled person, 1993-2002. The Proclamation makes special mention of the need to improve the living conditions of persons with disabilities in rural areas. In an endeavour to contribute to implementation of the Proclamation and Agenda for Action for the Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled persons.
The Promulgation of the “Persons with Disabilities (Equal opportunities, Protection of Right and Full participation)”. Act on 1st Jan. 1996 has reinforced the commitment to affirmation action.
When these are million of sightless people in the World and India tops the list among the countries having sightless people it would be worthwhile to make an endeavor to help these hopeless fellow stand on their own so that they do not feel that they are only the burdens of their parents and the society. Once looked upon as a curse sightless still accounts for a great percentage of all the handicaps especially in India.
In order to active the goal of full participation of persons with disabilities in all initiatives for rural development, it will be essential to mobilize the support of several groups at different levels. This document is therefore addressed not only to voluntary organizations working directly with disability, but also to organization and community groups working with the rural poor, and to people’s representatives and functionaries under Panchayat, media persons from the official media and educates and trainers of the grassroots level.
Available figures and disability statistics should be interpreted with a degree of caution. Many families are reluctant to report disability, particularly in view of the prevailing negative attitudes to disabled persons in most communities.
In India, as in other developing countries, the major causes of disability are malnutrition, Communicable diseases, infection in early childhood and accidents at home and at work. Nutritional deficiencies, inadequate sanitation, insufficient or inaccessible health care services, accidents and injuries from poorly designed equipment and implements, and practices like consanguineous marriages, have all contributed to a high prevalence of disabilities. It has been estimated that an effective primary health programme can prevent about half of all disabilities. Early detection of impairment, combined with early and effective curative care can make a significant impact in minimizing or compensating for impairment and its consequences.
Unemployment is a burning question in our present society, millions of seeing people have been passing days idly even after their good educational carrier, as unemployment has retarded the smooth progress of the society.
It be the case of the seeing, what is the scenario of the hundreds of visually challenged people?
The picture is undoubtedly gloomy and unfortunate as no body accepts the visually impaired persons as regular employee. Should they be deprived of the abiding joy of life? Only the earning of revenue after proper education and training is the only way to put a smile upon their countenance. So vocational training is necessary for all able and disabled persons which helps them to cope up with their disability and fix them with skills for effective participation in the socioeconomic life of the community. This training may also save them from financial stringency and they may find abiding joy through this vocational Training Programme. --------------
INCLUSIVE EDUCATION--Not a new concept from the age-old prejudices of society Sudarshana Dasgupta (Student of Post Graduate Diploma in Rehabilitation Psychology)
What is your idea about “Inclusive Education” (IED)? Why is it important for implementation? Is it a completely new concept from the age-old prejudices of society? Ans:-- In the present day society there is a growing realization that rehabilitation of the disabled and handicapped persons is unthinkable without education. This cause for constant re-examination of practices in the field of education for handicapped or disabled persons. As a consequence many innovative measures are being suggested and introduced. One of such innovation is, what is often termed as ‘inclusive education’, i.e. educating the special children (handicapped or disabled) along with the normal children on the same platform.
This special programme of education for the handicapped disabled has been given different labels. Educating ‘handicapped’ and ‘non-handicapped, together is described as integration in the UK, ‘mainstreaming’ in the USA, and part of a movement of normalization in Canada and Scandinavian Countries.
The objective of this programme is, however, transcendental to give the handicapped an opportunity of ‘say-fulfillment’ and ‘uninhibited’ participation in everyday activities to facilitate their mainstreaming in society.
Towards a systematic understanding of integrated programmes, they can be grouped into there-- (a) Spatial Aspects: In a situation where special units or special classes are set up in general schools, or even where special school and general school are on the same campus both sighted and handicapped children can familiarize with each others behaviour. (b) Social Aspects: While attending a special class or unit handicapped children have the opportunity to join normal children in several activities. Since young children are more receptive social mixing will be very useful if started at an early age. (c) Functional Aspects: Having achieved success at spatial and social integration levels, these children can attend any regular class and participate effectively in other normal activities.
These day’s the word ‘integration’ or ‘inclusion’ is being very commonly used in different spheres. It is considered to be something which is ‘coherent’ and ‘not segregated’. Inclusion is also used to indicate a particular type of movement a procedure or simply to convey the presence of disabled puppies in a general/regular teaching environment. They get an opportunity to mix with one another freely, can be aware of problems and advantages of one-another’s life. They get the chance to share the joy and suffering of each other and can become very good friends. As a result, the 10 + 2 and above students are enlightened and set free from psychological pressure due to the well mixing up and mainstreamed with normal people, If this experience will be given in school level, it will be proved that inclusive education is a slip forward mainstreaming. It helps the handicapped persons to familiarize with the completion of day to day life as they unfold themselves in front of others and become prepared to participate in the future society as a citizen. Not only that it also opens the avenue for future rehabilitation and interrelation with the community. But sometimes, the normal peers do not cordially accept the handicapped peers. Only inclusive education can bring an attitudinal change of this society and relate awareness which is indeed a boon.
Inclusive education is not a very new concept in India. It early as 1966, the Kothari Commission accepted that “experimentation with the integrated programme is urgently required and every attempt should be made to bring in as many children into integrated programmes as possible.” The two advantages underlined by the Commission are the reduction of costs and promoting mutual understanding between handicapped and non-handicapped children. The National Policy on Education, as adopted in 1977 and Further endorsed in 1979, also envisaged the integrated programme as an appropriate solution to the problems of educating a large number of visually handicapped children in a comparatively short time. The scheme had been initiated by the Government of India in 1975. However, very few states have so far implemented the Integrated Education Programme. Even the few states that have introduced this programme are yet to persuade an adequate number of general schools to accept this scheme. The necessity of providing educational opportunities to handicapped or disabled children in rural areas has to be examined from various angles. Even if it is not economically viable to start a special school in every village or even in a district, the suitability of the programme for these children needs to be assessed.
Now, in our country, the education of the handicapped has been running sporadically, although some guidelines to promote education to the handicapped have been framed by the National Organization and also inserted in the new policy of education published in 1986. Whatever be the matter, the educational aspects of the handicapped and disabled people has not yet been taken care of. In order to accommodate majority of handicapped in an educational set up, we have to think of Salamanca Declaration (1994) about inclusive education. The same concept of inclusive schools is now embodied under philosophy of the scheme of integrated education of the disabled children which is considered a major strategy for providing education to the vast number of disabled children.
It would be well to have a glimpse on the recommendation of the recently concluded World Conference on special needs education which was held in Salamanca, Spain from 7th to 10th June 1994. The members of 88 Governmental organizations and 25 International Authorities re-affirmed their commitment to “education for all” and proclaimed that every child has a fundamental right to receive education and therefore, he or she must be given the opportunity to achieve and maintain an acceptable level of learning. The educational system should be designed and educational programmes should be implemented to take into account the wide diversity of these characteristics and needs, which is termed ‘special education needs’ in the context of these framework. The term ‘Special Education Needs” refers to all those children and youth whose needs arise from learning problems due to disabilities.
There is an emerging consensus that children and youth with special educational needs would be included in the educational needs and arrangements made for the majority of children. This had led to the concept of inclusive school. The establishment of the inclusive school is a crucial step towards changing the discriminatory attitudes toward changing the discriminatory attitudes toward disabled, creating an inclusive society.
At present, this IED programme has been introduced in several general schools to include the disabled children with the normal population. The Department of Human Resource Development (Government of India) has advocated that this IED programme should be introduced in every nook and corner of the society for better learning interrelation and better future interrelation. --------------
HIGHLIGHT ON INFORMATIVE NEWS ABOUT THE SIGHTLESS
1. Recently School Service Commission has employed some sightless teachers in the regular school at the secondary level. This is undoubtedly, a very inspiring news for the sightless. Naturally, other sightless candidates are preparing themselves for SSC examination for open employment. Integration or mainstreaming is being actually done though this appointment.
2. Haridas Pal, a completely sightless person has been fighting for the post of a primary teachers for last two years. The president of the primary school, Hooghly, objected to his appointment. So the recruitment was held up for a long time. So he lodged a complaint at Calcutta High court and the honourable judge advised the primary board to make an interview and appoint him as a primary teacher. Now, formality has been undergone and approval of appointment is getting ready at the directorate.
3. Drishtideep, an NGO for the sightless, observed 125th birth anniversary of Dr. Helen Keller at its premises on 30th June, 2006. Mr. Swapan Mukherjee, renowned author of ‘Helen Keller’ in Bengali acted as a guest in chief to the occasion. Each and every audience got spellbound at his nice deliberation on Helen Keller.
4. Blind man envisions green future: www.hindusthan.net/article 513.html; Hindusthan Network January 4, 2006 Over the last 12 years, a blind man, Srinivas Jena of Bhagipur village in the coastal district of Cuttack has turned a 5 km. Stretch of barren land to lush greenery. Jena, who lost his eyesight when he was 5 years old, was inspired by a radio program on the importance of forests and an ecologically balanced environment. He started out by planting a few cashew nut trees. Now, there are mango, guava and other fruit bearing tress.
Jena nurtured all the tress even protecting them from marauding elephants with the help of his wife kuni, who married him to help in his mission.
“Each year we earn our livelihood selling fruits from these trees. Whatever we get, we are happy”, she says.
Jena’s farmer uncle proudly says that Jena is better than most people with eyesight.
5. Poetic License: Access India, January 16, 2006 Sound recording of wide range of English language poems read by their authors have been complied into an archive by a charity co-founded by UK poet laureate Andrew Motion. The poetry online archive contains recordings from as early as 1932.
The poetry archive is the world’s premier online collection of recording of poets reading their work. The children’s poetry archive section of the site is full of poems chosen specially for children. The archive is accessible online at www.poetryarchive.org.
6. Mobile software makes e-mails and word documents speak. Downloadable software that can read e-mails and word documents aloud from mobile devices has been launched by the Irish company Magnetic Jim.
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