The NCBI, the Irish blind charity, has published recommendations to the government in order to enhance the educational experience for visually impaired students.

Their report, entitled Equitable Education, illustrates experiences faced by students and their families and proposes solutions that would aid the growth of visually impaired young people into tertiary education.

Prefacing the report, NCBI expresses that a recent AHEAD report indicates that only 282 visually impaired students were registered with disability support services in colleges in 2020/2021, while only 24 percent of visually impaired people in Ireland have jobs or are employed.

Among their recommendations is the requirement to inaugurate a database on the availability, or delay, of available formats of school books and the identification of their delivery as a fundamental performance indicator for the Department of Education.

They also recommend a review of SUSI eligibility measures to comprise blind or visually impaired students who are studying part-time, as well as managing the obligations in assistive technology, the funding of mobility support nationwide, and the development of school transition plans.

Lorna Fitzpatrick of the NCBI stated that sight loss is a spectrum and can influence everyone differently, so visually impaired children and young people must have access to standard individualised assessments and timely interventions to guarantee they have the talents to be independent and active representatives in their own learning.

The report clearly demonstrates variations that exist in students’ experiences in accessing support and the extreme scarcity of quality data on the number of students with sight impairment in the education system or proof to indicate that current supports are encouraging these students to thrive.

Eithne Walsh of Féach, an association for parents of low-vision children, added this report draws a splendid starting point for enhancing support for blind or vision impaired students in education. The problems emphasized in the report have been rejecting students with low vision equality of access to education, which eventually impacts every aspect of their lives. None of the issues are unconquerable- practical solutions can be put in position, which will have a massive influence on their educational outcomes.

The National Council for the Blind of Ireland was established in 1931 and was the first voluntary body dealing with disability problems in Ireland.

Every year they offer services to more than 7,000 visually impaired people and serve as an advocacy group for approximately 55,000 blind or visually impaired people in Ireland today.

News Source: Business Plus