TEACHING Exceptional Children

This article highlights the importance of partnerships between families and teachers of students with visual impairments and/or deafblindness by situating this collaborative effort squarely in the legal mandates to collaborate and the research support for effective practices. Six strategies, aligned with the high leverage practices for collaboration, are shared to provide concrete ways for facilitating this partnership. A continuing vignette of a fictional family, the Hamptons, illustrates relevant points in the educational journey for which the implementation of the provided strategies would be pertinent. The vignettes are also designed to demonstrate the possible benefits of employing these strategies on the family-school partnership and ultimately student success.

The world is highly occulocentric, in which vision in terms of access is placed above all other senses. Visual materials such as worksheets, maps, graphics, illustrations, videos, and written texts are the standard tools for learning, making access challenging for students with visual impairments (VI). Students with VI contend daily with a system that is not inherently designed for them. Teachers of students with visual impairments (TSVI) are specialized, credentialed, and highly qualified educators who provide avenues for the access needs of a student with VI. Beyond ensuring equitable access to academics, their next area of focus is the expanded core curriculum (ECC), which is a disability-specific curriculum consisting of nine essential skill areas supporting the holistic development of students with VI. However, supporting the development of all children relies on effective collaboration and open communication among educational teams to be truly impactful.

For individuals who are blind, have low vision or are deafblind, access to safe and efficient mobility is associated with career opportunities, community inclusion, and improved quality of life (Cmar, 2015). Implementing inclusive mobility support with students who are visually impaired or deafblind involves thoughtful assessment and instruction from an Orientation and Mobility Specialist as well as collaboration with all members of the educational team. In this article, we will explore collaboration as a High-Leverage Practice to engage students, professionals, peers, and family members with integrating motivating mobility strategies within everyday home, school, and community routines. We will also examine the ways that collaboration leads to more holistic and sustainable mobility for diverse students.

Students who are blind or visually impaired (BVI) require specialized literacy instruction that aligns with both braille reading development and evidence-based literacy practices. With the increasing adoption of Science of Reading policies, teachers of students with visual impairments (TSVIs) must navigate new literacy mandates while ensuring their students receive appropriate instruction. This article presents a research-based approach to integrating braille literacy assessment with structured, evidence-based reading instruction. Using a case study of a second-grade braille reader, the article illustrates how a TSVI, a reading specialist, and a general education teacher collaborated to develop and implement an Informal Braille Reading Inventory (IBRI). The IBRI provided meaningful data to guide instruction, improve literacy outcomes, and align braille instruction with general education reading expectations. Practical strategies for assessment, intervention, and interdisciplinary collaboration are discussed, offering a model for ensuring BVI students receive equitable literacy support.