Extending the Bridge:
Helping Tutors, Teachers, and Other Service Providers
and Their Organizations to Better Serve Blind and Visually-Impaired Adults
Learning English as a Second Language (ESL),
Focusing on Literacy Acquisition
A six-session series of information sharing and discussion
Session Two:
Literacy for Adults who are Visually Impaired or Blind
with an Emphasis on English as a Second Language
This series was presented in May and June of 2003. It was funded primarily by a grant from the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB). In 2002, the presenters, Sylvie Kashdan, Robby Barnes and Cecilia Erin Walsh, attended a three-day training presented by the American Foundation For The Blind National Literacy Center, entitled Bridging the Gap: Best Practices for Instructing Adults Who Are Visually Impaired and Have Low Literacy Skills. Following this training we were invited to submit a proposal for sharing what we had learned. Hence, this series, Extending the Bridge. Other funding sources were St. James ESL Program, Kaizen Program for New English Learners with Visual Limitations, and Washington State Office of Adult Literacy. We also received help from volunteers with research and organizational tasks.
Outline
Introductions and opening questions
How eye conditions affect learning and literacy
Modifications in environment
Importance of literacy for visually impaired and blind people, with emphasis on those learning English as a Second Language
How literacy affects learning opportunities and quality of life
Open discussion
Handouts
for Session Two
Print
for people with visual limitations
Kaizen
Program
for
New English Learners with Visual Limitations
810-A Hiawatha Place S., Seattle, WA 98144, U.S.A.
phone: (206) 784-5619
email:
kaizen_esl@literacynet.org