vib8407.htm

How Useful is Braille?

Reports of Blind Adults

CATHERINE MACK

At the time this article was written, the author was an itinerant teacher of visually handicapped students, Poway Unified School District, San Diego, Calif. She is now a doctoral student at George Peabody College, Vanderbilt University, Nashville.

Department of Special Education, Box 328, George Peabody College, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37203.

Abstract: Thirty blind adults in California who had learned and used braille as their primary reading mode in public schools were questioned about their current use of braille. A telephone interview asked each participant various questions about how much and for what purposes he or she currently uses braille. Most blind adults reported using braille for personal notes and memoranda. They rely on readers and recordings for the majority of their reading and type most of their personal correspondence. These responses indicate a need to stress listening, typing, and technological skills at least as much as braille skills in our elementary and secondary school programs for blind students.

Blind students unable to see print have been taught to read and write braille-a complicated system of raised dots-since the 1800s (Hanninen, 1979). Until recently, there have been no practical alternatives to braille for these students. In the last few years, electronic devices have been developed which enable a blind person to read and write print instead of tactile symbols. For the first time, teachers may have to consider whether or not braille will be the most efficient means of reading and writing for their blind students.

Many people believe that the usefulness of braille is beyond dispute (Foulke, 1981). Braille preserves some of the operations of print which are lost in auditory presentations; information is displayed spatially allowing perusal of headings, skipped lines, etc. Certain kinds of information (for example, mathematical expressions or numerical information in tabular form), are often clearer to a blind person when presented in braille. Retracing information in braille is less cumbersome than auditory retracing. Also, notes and schedules are conveniently kept in braille (Foulke, 1981).

Although some information may be best presented in braille, there are significant disadvantages to the braille system. Studies of braille reading clearly show "the greater complexity of the braille reading process as compared to print and suggest its greater difficulty" (Nolan & Kederis, 1969, p. 47). Lowenfeld, Abel, and Hatlen (1969) studied the braille system and developed a list of the special problems encountered in the reading of braille. Their list includes: the multipurpose use of the same embossed character forms which represent ambiguities beyond those found in the print system, the similar characters in the braille system that almost encourage reversals, certain mechanics of reading (finding the top of a page, the page numbers, the beginning of a line, etc.) which pose special problems for blind children, and the use of contractions which makes spelling difficult for braille readers.

In addition to these concerns, braille books are large and bulky, making portability and storage a problem. In braille, a text of one print page may require nine pages. Skimming and scanning are difficult in braille (Efron & Gibson, 1981). One of the most serious problems with braille is the slow rate at which it is read (two to three times slower than print). Certain kinds of reading, like long, college-level assignments, simply could not be completed if one had to depend on braille.

We now have some viable alternatives to braille: computers with voice outputs, talking calculators, speech synthesizers, speech compsors, Optacons, tapes, etc. (Ashcroft & Young, 1981; Prather & Reinsch, 1982). Such devices could conceivably replace braille as the most conunon mode of access to print for blind people.

Microcomputers are becoming increasingly more available. Their value in education for both sighted and blind students is being demonstrated. A microcomputer is more than just convenient for blind persons since it enables them to do things which they could not otherwise do independently. Also, the use of a microcomputer in education not only relieves some dependence on a resource teacher and transcriber, it teaches skills which will prove invaluable in college and work settings. Currently, braille access to a computer terminal costs between $3,000 and $15,000. A speech synthesizer which provides voice access to the information in a regular computer costs as little as $150.

The relatively low cost of speech access to computers and the increasing recognition of listening as possibly the most viable learning mode for educational programming with visually handicapped students (Wood, 1981) suggests that braille may be taught and depended on less in the future. Considering the slow speed, the complexity, and the mere bulk of the braille system, such a transition might seem logical. However, many educators maintain that teachers of visually handicapped students would not be properly serving their students if they failed to teach their students to read braille effectively (E. Foulke, personal communication, March 14, 1983.)

How much braille exposure, practice, and dependence is really necessary for visually handicapped students today? How much will they use braille in their lives? This study approached these questions by surveying the current braille usage of blind adults.

Method

Subjects. To obtain a sample of blind adults living in California who had learned braille in school, contact was made with individuals and agencies that serve blind adults. A comprehensive list or directory of blind adults living in California is not available; therefore, the population was located through recreational, social service, and educational agencies serving blind adults. Of the 20 individuals and agencies contacted, 17 responded. Some declined to participate because the population they serve were adventitiously blinded and consequently had not studied braille in school. Others responded with suggestions about how names might be obtained (through radio announcements or mass mailings) but did not supply any names. Eleven responded with names and phone numbers. From these, a list of 63 names and phone numbers was collected.

From the 63 names, 30 blind adults who qualified for the study were identified. Twenty-one were male and 9 were female. Of the 30, 28 had studied and used braille for at least five vears in a public school. All subjects had graduated from high school between the years 1958 and 1982. They represented several different occupations: student, teacher, social worker, word processor, telephone operator, small engine mechanic, attorney, darkroom technician, clerk, computer programmer, homemaker, vending stand operator, and foreign affairs analyst. Two were unemployed.

Instrument. The instrument designed for this study was a telephone interview. The interview questions were constructed to (1) obtain factual information about the subjects' age, occupation, and background with braille; (2) obtain specific information about how much and for what purposes the subjects use braille; and (3) elicit the subjects' opinions about the advantages and disadvantages of braille. The instrument was brief and specific as can be seen in Figure 1.

1. What grade in school were you introduced to braille?

2. In what grades did you use braille?

3. What year did you graduate from high school?

4. Generally would you say you currently use braille:

1 2 3 4 5

almost never rarely occasionally frequently almost always

5. What else do you use? How often?

1 2 3 4 5

6. What else? How often?

1 2 3 4 5

7. I'd like to ask you how you read and write some specific things: How do you write most letters? (personal correspondence)

don't braille other

How do you keep checkbook and financial records?

don't braille other

How do you keep phone numbers, addresses, recipes, directions?

don't braille other

How do you read books or magazines for pleasure?

don't braille other

How do you read work- or school-related information?

don't braille other

8. For you, what are the major advantages and/or disadvantages of braille?

9. Are there any other opinions you'd like to express about the use of braille?

10. What is your occupation?

Figure 1. Print copy of questionnaire used in telephone interview to determine blind adults' use of braille.

Procedure. The survey instrument was administered via a telephone interview with each of the 30 subjects. Although only five to eight minutes were required to respond to the interview questions, most interviews lasted between 10 and 15 minutes, since many subjects appeared interested in discussing the subject of braille. None of the 30 subjects contacted refused to participate.

Results

Of the 30 blind adults questioned about their use of braille, 97 percent indicated they use braille for recording phone numbers, addresses and similar memoranda. On the other hand, only 17 percent indicated they use braille to read books or magazines for pleasure. Responses to this survey were fairly consistent. As in the examples given above, either most of the adults use braille for a specific purpose or most do not. When asked how they write most letters (personal correspondence) only 3 percent indicated they use braille; 53 percent type letters, 17 percent use tapes, and 20 percent do not write letters in any form. When asked about keeping checkbook and financial records, 43 percent said they rely on braille, 23 percent do not keep such records, another 23 percent rely on others help to do this, 6 percent rely on their memory, and 3 percent keep these records on tape.

Fifty percent of the respondents use talking books and/or tapes to read books or magazines for pleasure. An additional 20 percent selected books on talking book or tape but prefer magazines in braille. Thirteen percent reported they do not read books or magazines for pleasure. When asked about their methods of reading work- or school-related information, 20 percent reported using braille, 17 percent use readers, another 17 percent use tapes, 6 percent use an Optacon, and 40 percent do not read such information.

When asked to rate on a scale of 1 to 5 their current overall use of braille, 20 percent said they use braille rarely (response 2) while 30 percent said they use braille almost always (response 5). Twenty-three percent said they use braille occasionally (response 3). The mean response was 3.7, indicating that these blind adults as a group use braille occasionally and/or frequently.

When asked about the advantages and disadvantages of braille, 13 different advantages were mentioned. Thirty-three percent said an advantage of braille is its easy retraceability, 23 percent reported they could comprehend and remember information better if read in braille rather than listened to, and 17 percent said they liked the independence afforded by braille. Ten percent said an advantage of braille is that it is readily available, another 10 percent said it is necessary for math and scientific reading, and 10 percent reported they liked reading braille because they are able to read it with their own inflection instead of someone else's. Each of the following advantages were mentioned by 7 percent of the respondents: portability; greater ease than with tape in keeping and locating certain information like phone numbers; help with spelling; the opportunity to read rather than be read to and to read without paying a reader. Three percent said braille reading is faster than reading with an Optacon, and 3 percent appreciated the accuracy and detail available in braille.

Five disadvantages of braille were reported by the blind adults. Fifty percent said it is a slow way to read. Twenty-seven percent said braille takes up a great deal of space, and 27 percent reported that many things they want or need to read are not available in braille. Seven percent commented about the confusion caused by the similarity of various braille characters and 3 percent said braille is too destructible - the dots are easily flattened and made unreadable.

Discussion

Clearly braille is being used by blind adults. It is not, however, being used for everything. Based on the results of this study, blind adults are mainly using braille for notes to themselves: phone numbers, memoranda, and checkbook records. They rely more on readers and tapes than on braille for reading information for work or pleasure. They rely more on typing than on braille for writing letters.

This has significant implications for the education of our children who are unable to see print. Clearly they should be taught sufficient braille skills so they have the option as adults to use it for reading and writing. However, it should be recognized by educators that their blind students will probably not choose braille as their primary mode of reading and writing after they finish school. Therefore, in addition to teaching braille skills, other skills should be given equal, if not more, attention.

The ability to listen-to attend to, comprehend, and remember information received orally - should be given a high priority in a blind child's education. The ability to type as well as the ability to manage and direct readers are also critical skills for blind adults and should be taught and emphasized at least equally with braille at the elementary and secondary school levels.

Another important area is appreciation for and familiarity with microcomputers, talking calculators, speech compressors, and other helpful and practical forms of technology. As the availability of technological aids increases, training in their use should become a standard part of the curriculum for visually impaired children.

In summary, educators must look realistically at what options will be available to students as they reach adulthood and which of these options, in addition to braille, will most likely be selected by visually impaired adults. Such projections, rather than history or tradition, should guide our decisions about what is an appropriate education for this population.

References

Ashcroft, S. C., & Young, M. (1981). Microcomputers for visually impaired and multihandicapped persons. Journal of Special Education Technology, 4, 24-27.

Efron, J., & Gibson, J. (1981). Modification and development of proficiency tests for visually handicapped senior high school students. Journal of Visual Impairment & Blindness, 75, 286-291.

Foulke, E. (1981). Impact of science and technology on the early years. Journal of Visual Impairment & Blindness, 75, 101-108.

Hanninen, K. A. (1979). Teaching the visually handicapped (2nd ed.). Detroit: Blindness Publications.

Lowenfeld, B., Abel, G., & Hatlen, P (1969). Blind children learn to read. Springfield, IL: Charles C Thomas.

Nolan, C. Y, & Kederis, C. J. (1969). Perceptual factors in braille word recognition. American Foundation for the Blind Research Series, 20, 47-51.

Prather, S., & Reinsch, J. (1982). Making dialog accessible to the blind. Monolog, 2, 1-2.

Wood, T (1981). Patterns of listening and reading skills in visually handicapped students. Joumal of Visual Impairment & Blindness, 75, 215-218.