Sobre a Deficiência Visual

Effective Strategies for Developing Independence in Movement and Travel of Blind Students

Claudia Vasilica Borca

O cantor cego bretão Yann Ar Minouz. Bilhete postal. Início do séc. XX

Abstract | This study started from the premise that mobility and orientation techniques significantly increase the flexibility and independence of blind children. This research involving that the volume of practical behavior movements in subjects with blindness due to increases in their practice of playing activities. The target group of research is represented by a total of 20 subjects with severe visual impairment (blindness), aged between 6 and 10 years, girls and boys. The overall conclusion of the study is that students have mastered much better location of auditory, olfactory, respect indicated, memory, positional concepts, tactile stimulation of participating in playful activities.

1. Introduction

Independence movements of people with blindness entails certain practical behavioral skills of movement, can be found in the areas of personal autonomy, orientation in space of small, medium and large. A clear conceptual distinction is necessary to delineate the area studied. Orientation is the ability to understand what is around the space and space awareness relationships between objects and people around. Mobility is the ability to travel through the neighborhood, and the term "movement" is used here to describe the motor ability that someone needs to get somewhere, the jog, to walk or run (B. Best, 1995). Blindness is a person's ability to not charge under any form of light, this includes the inability to move in an unknown environment and unable to perceive, from the distance of 1 meter, the number of fingers moving. Perception shapes and colors can also be altered (R. Cziker, 2001). Hearing is a sense that it provides valuable information to guide the child. Ability to hear and determine the location of the warning sound is essential for the child in the surroundings where they are. In blindness, sound becomes an important factor in maintaining the direction of motion and maintain a continuous line. This skill is a gradual evolution. During preschool, children learn to position sound sources in different positions in relation to their bodies. They learn to move traveling in direction opposite to or along the sound sources. These early skills help the child to maintain the direction and orientation when moving in different everyday contexts. (B. Best, 1995).


2. Daily opportunities for learning skills necessary mobility and orientation

It is recommended that the child early to lay the foundations of O & M skills by engaging in daily activities, children learn, so more about environmental and sensory information. It is very important to learn the sounds, the child to be talking about how sound objects (hard, slow, thin, thick). Should be taught sound-producing sources. If possible, children should be allowed to reach sound sources. Recognizing sources of sound will be used in future for other activities such as crossing a street, where it is essential to know positioning machine is in motion. It is important that all family members are aware that it is essential to talk daily about the sound. The child should be helped to learn by doing and other sensations as well as learning the sounds. Parents need to talk about how they feel certain things (hard, soft, smooth, bumpy, wet, dry), as shown (closed, open, what color), and as smell (strong, sweet and dangerous). When the child is in new places or receives new toys, parents need to describe how it looks, sounds, feels or smells. Parents must submit the child walking surfaces and their texture (carpet, flooring, tiles, grass, mud or pavement) and set him to make connections between these areas and their location or activities that occur on that surface. It is important for parents to teach children the words that show spatial relationships which will help to understand the relationship with objects and persons around. You must be told where they are on the move or be moved from side to side (V. K. Ramsey, 2003).


3. Orientation and mobility techniques

3.1.Techniques to facilitate safe movement

Formal techniques also enables visually impaired children to move through the environment they live in a safe and independent. Be effective, one or more mobility techniques will significantly enhance the flexibility and independence of the child (B. Best, 1995). The introduction of these techniques, regardless of age of the child, will be made by an accredited O & M instructor. What matters is the child's age, his skills, his ability to motivation and current and future travel media to introduce the techniques and apply them. Working together, father and trainer of A & M can choose the most appropriate techniques to help children to develop a safe and efficient movement in the house but also in the community.

3.1.1. Guidance techniques

Using age-appropriate child guidance techniques, parent and child can learn to travel comfortably in both known and unknown areas. At first the child learns these techniques, the parent will be guided and will report describes obstacles and elements approaching. As the child gains experience, he will become more closely and become more active in learning the body movements (turning, stopping and starting) and environmental information (changing the ground level, sounds and textures). Then A & M instructor will work on these techniques together with parent and child, father showing him how to monitor and correct techniques. It is important that all family members learn to direct and guide the child in the same manner. Later the child will become the kind of teacher and I will teach other children and friends how to be good guides. (H. Mason, 1997). These techniques remind guide: basic techniques of guidance, techniques for narrow areas, techniques for stairs, curbs, doors.

3.1.2. Protection techniques

Using techniques similar protection to age, the child can learn to detect objects at the waist and above while moving independently through the environment. First, the child should say and recall are cases where to use such techniques. They are used when the child is moving to locate an object and to protect other objects such as door open cabinets, chairs, tables. (Gringhuis, D, 2002). Among these techniques, remember: The hand and upper arm, hand and arm Lower.

The purpose of the art hand and upper arm is to detect objects that may be encountered in the upper body. In young children, this technique may be called as a "clash of the top". To achieve the "clash of the top" child needs to bend his hand to form an angle of 120 degrees. You should keep your hand in front of body at shoulder level, parallel to the ground with the palm facing the opposite shoulder, palm forward with fingers relaxed body and kept close. If the child has problems in maintaining this position when the father can help him support.

Lower hand and arm techniques aim is to locate and protect existing objects at the waist. In young children, this technique may be called as "low impact". To achieve "low impact" child leaves his hand down a few centimeters below the middle. Fingers close to it and relaxed. For maximum protection, children use both collision and the top down.(M. Cay, 2006)

3.2. Techniques to facilitate orientation

Orientation skills include problem solving and perceptual skills that allow children to learn the position and relationship with some major objectives that are found in the same environment. To determine the orientation, the child must first of all a concept of himself, a picture of himself - needs to understand parts of the body, including what role does each part of the body, and how to trigger a other. We have to understand and environment that is and its relationship with the environment (relations person - object). Finally, the child must be able to understand how various aspects of the environment relate to each other - position relative to his bedroom toilet (relations between objects).

Since orientation skills are similar to those of mobility, the two are taught simultaneously. The formal guidance skills they teach children are dragging elements, systematic search and travel routes.


4. Research methodology

The study hypothesis was that specific premise according to which: Volume practical behavioral movements in subjects with blindness due to increases in their practice of entertaining activities.

Research objectives have been grouped into: O1- Implementation of new strategies for orientation and mobility students with blindness. O2 - Expanding the behavioral movements practical blind. Experimental approach was next: in the stage of pre-test and post-test was applied Behavioral Practice Inventory Movements on a total of 20 subjects with blindness. Intervention consisted of a set of entertaining activities. Target group research was represented by a total of 20 subjects with blindness aged between 6 and 11 years for female and male. The subjects are students of Theoretical High School "Iris" from Timisoara.


5. Verification of the hypothesis test

To verify this hypothesis: Volume practical behavioral movements in subjects with blindness due to increases in their practice of entertaining activities, we analyzed the results obtained in phase pretest and post-test group subjects on the volume of practical behavioral movements. Analyzing Table. 1, note that the pretest subjects achieved a minimum score of 10 points and a maximum score of 27 points. The post-test to obtain a minimum score of 26 and maximum score of 32. Thus, the average scores obtained by the group of subjects is 18.5000, 29.0000 respectively. We can summarize by stating that the 20 subjects of research obtained in a pretest score of 10 points minimum and maximum of 27 from the application of practical behavioral inventory movements. Situation in posttest is 26 (min.) and 32 (max.)

Table 1. Descriptive statistics appropriate verification of the experimental hypotheses

Analyzing Table. 2 observe that the correlation coefficient of .768 is significant at a threshold of .009, so there is a correlation between the two high strength. Volume practical behavioral movements in subjects with blindness due to increases in their practice of entertaining activities. These activities were entertaining as target: the location of auditory, olfactory location, compliance and saving indications.

Table 2. Correlation between the results obtained in the indicator volume of practical behavioural movements (VMCP) pre-test and post-test

6. Conclusions

Following statistical analysis and interpretation of experimental data it can be concluded by stating that it has been shown that students have mastered much better location of auditory, olfactory, respect indicated, saving, positional concepts, tactile stimulation of participating in playful activities. The results obtained are evidence that students are motivated by playful activities, being an effective method by which to achieve the objectives set, both within the educational activities and therapeutic activities with nature, recovered compensatory.


References

• Best, B (1995). Teaching Children with Visual Impairments, Philadelphia: Open University Press Milton Keynes.

• Cay, M. (2006) . Children with Visual Impairments, Philadelphia: Edited by Holbrook.

• Cziker, R. (2001). EducaĠia úi stimularea vizuală la copilul cu deficenĠă de vedere, Cluj-Napoca: Editura Presa Universitară. Emerson, S. W. (2006). Orientation and mobility content for children and youths, British Journal of Visual Imairments, vol. 100, issue 6, pag. 331-342.

• Gringhuis, D., Moonen, J. (2002). Children with Partial Sight, Bartimeus: Doorn.

• Mason, H. (1997). Visual Impairment – Acces to education for children and young people, London: David Fulton Publishers.

• Preda, V., Cziker, R. (2004). Explorarea tactil-kinestezică, Cluj-Napoca: Presa Universitară Clujeană.

• Ramsey, V. K. (2003). Effects of Mobility training of gait and balance, British Journal of Visual Imairments, vol. 97, issue 11, pag. 720-726

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Effective strategies for developing independence in movement and travel of blind students.
Borca, Claudia Vasilika (2010).
claudiaborca@yahoo.co.uk
West University of Timisoara, Education Sciences Department, Romania
Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences

https://sci-hub.ru/10.1016/j.sbspro.2010.03.684
 

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10.Abr.2023
Maria José Alegre