Debunking The Blind Handicap Stereotype
Brie Mays
Mrs. NeSmith
English 101
26 September 2013
Debunking the Blind Handicap Stereotype According to www.eyecareamerica.org “It is estimated that at least 7 million people go blind every year.” Most people consider blind people to be helpless and hopeless. The blind often possess special gifts, powers, talents, and the ability to be very smart. Blind people are often described as mentally challenged, but not all blind people are mentally challenged. The majority of blind people speaks and functions normally. Blind people experience most of the activities that we sighted people experience and blind people have a variety of activities that they can undergo that we may not (www.afb.org). Granted, blind people have a very unique way …show more content…
of learning. The way that blind people learn is quite un-similar to the way we sighted people learn.
According to www.nfb.org, "Expect the blind child to learn the same things as any other child, but realize that he or she may need to be taught differently. Raising a blind child is like raising any other child, they both a frightening challenge and a profound blessing. As the little child they learn many things such as speech, attitudes, body positions, manners, and how to feed themselves. Some teachers consider blind children to have poor manners because he or she cannot see what others do, but some blind children actually learn a lot faster than we sighted people do. Blind children often have great gaps in their understanding, such as being unsure about certain figures. “As the child approaches school age, the matter of social acceptability becomes important in regard of his or her ways of learning” (www.nfb.org). There is a special form of written language termed as “Braille.” This language is characters that are represented by patterns of dots that are felt with the fingertips. Braille is an extremely useful language for the visually impaired and it is used all over the …show more content…
world.
Most people would think that the blind are very unsocial or do not go out much, but in fact according to statistics the opposite is true. Many recreational sites accommodate the blind and they are able to enjoy many of the same activities that sighted people do. For example, space camp, mini golf, skiing, sailing, and many more exciting sports exist all around the world for the visually impaired children and adults. Statistics show that we have as many recreational sites as the blind does. In 2011, United States reported to have a total of 6,636,900 visually impaired both men and women (www.nfb.org).
I am going to introduce my visually impaired niece Myla LeBlanc whom is four years of age.
She knows who is home by the sound of the car and footsteps. By the sound of our keys, Myla knows who is around her if she has heard them jingle one time before. She feels on her mother for her dimples to make sure that it is her. Blind people are known to recognize and differentiate money bills by feeling them, which Myla is very good at this. She retains facts very easily and always has music to her ears to keep her stimulated which is mainly instrumental music. When she first enters an unfamiliar home, she begins stomping on the floors and feels around and that is how she will recognize the house the next time. Myla’s smell is very distinct and she can recognize whose house, car, or store she is in by the smell. Her speech is very immaculate with wide vocabulary and her IQ test level is 2nd grade, but she is only in
pre-k.
Stating that blind people have a very unique way of learning just proves that not all are mentally challenged as many people claim. There is a saying “don’t judge a book by its cover.” This applies to blind people as well. If one does not fully understand the effects that come with being blind, then one should not judge how he or she is able to learn. Blind people may be unique, but they are not much different than us sighted people. I enjoy experiencing this with my niece and it is a great opportunity to be able to watch how she functions without sight.
Works Cited
"American Foundation for the Blind - Home Page." American Foundation for the Blind - Home Page.
American Foundation for the Blind, 2013. Web. 08 Oct. 2013.
"Eyecare America." EyeCare America. The Foundation of the American Academy of Opthamology, 2007.
Web. 08 Oct. 2013.
NFB. N.p., 2013. Web. 09 Oct. 2013
Mrs. NeSmith
English 101
26 September 2013
Debunking the Blind Handicap Stereotype According to www.eyecareamerica.org “It is estimated that at least 7 million people go blind every year.” Most people consider blind people to be helpless and hopeless. The blind often possess special gifts, powers, talents, and the ability to be very smart. Blind people are often described as mentally challenged, but not all blind people are mentally challenged. The majority of blind people speaks and functions normally. Blind people experience most of the activities that we sighted people experience and blind people have a variety of activities that they can undergo that we may not (www.afb.org). Granted, blind people have a very unique way …show more content…
of learning. The way that blind people learn is quite un-similar to the way we sighted people learn.
According to www.nfb.org, "Expect the blind child to learn the same things as any other child, but realize that he or she may need to be taught differently. Raising a blind child is like raising any other child, they both a frightening challenge and a profound blessing. As the little child they learn many things such as speech, attitudes, body positions, manners, and how to feed themselves. Some teachers consider blind children to have poor manners because he or she cannot see what others do, but some blind children actually learn a lot faster than we sighted people do. Blind children often have great gaps in their understanding, such as being unsure about certain figures. “As the child approaches school age, the matter of social acceptability becomes important in regard of his or her ways of learning” (www.nfb.org). There is a special form of written language termed as “Braille.” This language is characters that are represented by patterns of dots that are felt with the fingertips. Braille is an extremely useful language for the visually impaired and it is used all over the …show more content…
world.
Most people would think that the blind are very unsocial or do not go out much, but in fact according to statistics the opposite is true. Many recreational sites accommodate the blind and they are able to enjoy many of the same activities that sighted people do. For example, space camp, mini golf, skiing, sailing, and many more exciting sports exist all around the world for the visually impaired children and adults. Statistics show that we have as many recreational sites as the blind does. In 2011, United States reported to have a total of 6,636,900 visually impaired both men and women (www.nfb.org).
I am going to introduce my visually impaired niece Myla LeBlanc whom is four years of age.
She knows who is home by the sound of the car and footsteps. By the sound of our keys, Myla knows who is around her if she has heard them jingle one time before. She feels on her mother for her dimples to make sure that it is her. Blind people are known to recognize and differentiate money bills by feeling them, which Myla is very good at this. She retains facts very easily and always has music to her ears to keep her stimulated which is mainly instrumental music. When she first enters an unfamiliar home, she begins stomping on the floors and feels around and that is how she will recognize the house the next time. Myla’s smell is very distinct and she can recognize whose house, car, or store she is in by the smell. Her speech is very immaculate with wide vocabulary and her IQ test level is 2nd grade, but she is only in
pre-k.
Stating that blind people have a very unique way of learning just proves that not all are mentally challenged as many people claim. There is a saying “don’t judge a book by its cover.” This applies to blind people as well. If one does not fully understand the effects that come with being blind, then one should not judge how he or she is able to learn. Blind people may be unique, but they are not much different than us sighted people. I enjoy experiencing this with my niece and it is a great opportunity to be able to watch how she functions without sight.
Works Cited
"American Foundation for the Blind - Home Page." American Foundation for the Blind - Home Page.
American Foundation for the Blind, 2013. Web. 08 Oct. 2013.
"Eyecare America." EyeCare America. The Foundation of the American Academy of Opthamology, 2007.
Web. 08 Oct. 2013.
NFB. N.p., 2013. Web. 09 Oct. 2013