NATIONAL AGENDA

By: Carmen Willings
teachingvisuallyimpaired.com
​Updated November 10, 2015

According to the American Foundation for the Blind, "The National Agenda represents a broad consensus of how educational programs must change to meet the needs of students with visual impairments." The goal is to prepare students with visual impairments to meet the challenges of the 21st century. The National Agenda is broken into 10 goal statements that apply to infants, toddlers, children and youth who are visually impaired, including those with multiple disabilities. The following are ways, outlined in the National Agenda, that Teachers of Students with Visual Impairments can implement the agenda at a local level.

Goal 1: Timely Referral

Students and their families will be referred to an appropriate education program within 30 days of identification of a suspected visual impairment. Teachers of Students with Visual Impairments (TVI) and Orientation and Mobility (O&M) Specialists will provide appropriate quality services.

• Disseminate materials regarding visual impairments and referral procedures, including resources for state and local contacts to schools.
• Provide early childhood education intervention coordinators with procedures for making a referral.
• Provide health care providers and related service providers with public education materials regarding identification and referral of children with visual impairments, including those with multiple disabilities.

Goal 2: Parent Participation

Policies and procedures will be implemented to ensure the right of all parents to full participation and equal partnership in the education process.

• Develop local mentoring programs that link experienced parents with families of newly diagnosed children who have visual impairments, including those with multiple disabilities.
• Create and disseminate an array of educational resources for parents (e.g., educational options, National Outcome Standards, explanation of IEP)
• Develop partnerships among students, parents, educators, and administrators that ensure communication, mutual respect, and the provision of services

Goal 3: Personnel Preparation

Universities with a minimum of one full-time faculty member in the area of visual impairment will prepare a sufficient number of TVI's and O&M specialists for students with visual impairments to meet personnel needs throughout the country.

• Develop accurate counts of the number of students with visual impairments, including those with multiple disabilities, served in each state.
• Assist universities in preparing future TVI's and O&M specialists by offering to mentor students attending university vision programs.

Goal 4: Caseload Determination

Caseloads will be determined based on the assessed needs of students.

• Develop a system for child-centered caseload analysis & population analysis
• Develop job descriptions for TVI's and O&M specialists in various service delivery models
• Provide data on various service delivery models that will assist LEA's in developing and implementing appropriate program options.

Goal 5: Array of Services

Local education programs will ensure that all students have access to a full array of service delivery options.

• Promote advocacy for a full array of placement options.
• Provide administrators with an information package including a description of each placement options
• Provide in-service training for individuals involved in making program and placement decisions regarding students with visual impairments, including those with multiple disabilities.

Goal 6: Assessment

All assessments and evaluations of students will be conducted by or in partnership with personnel having expertise in the education of students with visual impairments and their parents.

• Develop guidelines for selection and administration of assessment instruments and interpretation of their results.
• Compile resources, articles, books, and tools addressing assessment issues.
• Identify exemplary assessment models and components and disseminate information describing them.
• Conduct workshops using the curricula of conferences of the appropriate professionals and related service providers.

Goal 7: Access to Instructional Materials

Access to developmental and educational services will include an assurance that textbooks and instructional materials are available to students in the appropriate media and at the same time as their sighted peers.

• Decrease the reliance on scanning and direct entry in the production of textbooks in favor of the use of publishers' electronic files.
• Receive information and materials by attending training or professional development to learn current trends and strategies in identifying and/or modifying educational materials to meet needs of students with visual impairments, including those with multiple disabilities.
• Ensure that computer hardware and software procured for instructional use are accessible to students with visual impairments.

Goal 8: Expanded Core Curriculum

All educational goals and instruction will address the academic and expanded core curricula based on the assessed needs of each student with visual impairments.

• Explain and present areas of the expanded core curriculum to target audiences including students, parents, local education agencies, and others.
• Write curricular content for expanded core curriculum areas.
• Ensure goals and objectives are based on assessment data related to the ECC.
• Collaborate with universities and adult service agencies to ensure that programs serving students with visual impairments, including those with multiple disabilities, are appropriately preparing them for their futures.

Goal 9: Transition Planning

Transition services will address developmental and educational needs (birth through high school to assist students and their families in setting goals and implementing strategies through the life continuum commensurate with the students' aptitudes, interests, and abilities.

• Identify materials available to facilitate the transition process for children and youth.
• Teach career education content throughout the children's early years and their academic careers.
• Encourage the active participation of young people with visual impairments and their families in the planning and implementation of local transition services.

Goal 10: Professional Development

To improve students' learning, service providers will engage in ongoing local, state, and national professional development.

• Encourage teachers to engage in reflective practices that include a yearly review of their teaching activities and the development of a professional development plan with goals and activities.
• Encourage a variety of designs in staff development activities that go beyond a one-day workshop and promote mob-embedded learning, such as professional learning groups, mentorships, action research, journaling, and observing others.
• Encourage training activities that include parents and teachers teaching and learning together in subjects such as braille and use of low vision devices.
• Align and integrate the staff development goals for service providers of students with visual impairments with local, state, and regional staff development goals.

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TVI’s Guide to Teaching the ECC: An Activities Based Curriculum for Teaching Students who are Blind or Visually Impaired
The TVI’s Guide to Teaching the ECC is a digital pdf available for download. It is designed specifically for fellow itinerant Teachers of Students with Visual Impairments (TVI’s), and consists of over 400 activities and topic areas of discussion for instructing students in the Expanded Core Curriculum. The activities are age-neutral and multi-sensory and therefore can meet the needs of the broad range of students served on an itinerant caseload serving. The activities can be individualized to the students various learning modalities and scaffold in order to challenge students but ensure success. Select those activities that align with the student’s learning objects based on the student’s unique visual needs and academic and developmental level. In addition to the core activity areas, each of the 32 Thematic Units incorporates additional unique ECC concepts and skills providing you with a years’ worth of activities. These units are cyclical and can be used repeatedly to help students build on prior knowledge and develop a deeper understanding of concepts. Each unit includes suggestions for activity adaptation associated with the unit. These include lists of objects, possible community-based experiences, environmental print, poems, children & young reader books, children's songs, pop culture songs, movies, and websites.


In addition to the book, the following two supplements are included:
·      TVI’s Guide to the ECC Concept Checklist
·      TVI’s Guide to the ECC Activities Checklist


For complete product details and additional images, visit the TVI's Guide product page.


TVI's Guide to the ECC Product details
·      Digital pdf download: 346 pages (11 pt font)
·      Publisher: Teaching Students with Visual Impairments
·      Author: Carmen Willings
·      Language: English


Visual Efficiency & Near Magnifier Fluency Worksheets: TVI's Guide to the ECC Grab and Go Supplements
The Near Magnifier Fluency Worksheets is a Grab and Go supplement to the TVI's Guide to Teaching the ECC. This workbook is a pdf download that can be printed on demand for use with students. It contains five different types of worksheets for developing visual motor skills and near magnifier fluency skills particularly with the use of a video magnifier. As a companion to the TVI’s Guide to the ECC, the worksheets correspond to each of the 32 ECC Thematic units. The worksheets, along with a list of environmental print for each thematic unit, are designed to help students refine their visual motor skills while reinforcing ECC concepts presented in the thematic units.  


For complete product details and additional images, visit the Visual Efficiency & Near Magnifier Product Page.


Visual Efficiency & Near Magnifier Fluency Worksheet Details:
·      Digital pdf download: 210 pages
·      Publisher: Teaching Students with Visual Impairments
·      Author: Carmen Willings
·      Language: English


Thematic Keyboarding & Braille Fluency and Maintenance Worksheets: A TVI’s Guide to Teaching the ECC Grab & go Supplement
The Thematic Keyboarding & Braille Fluency and Maintenance Grab and Go ECC worksheet packet is a print on demand workbook that contains worksheets in print and simulated braille to use for data collection. Present the student with a hard braille copy and use the worksheets to document accuracy and fluency in reading braille. As a companion to the TVI’s Guide to the ECC, the worksheets correspond to the ECC Thematic activities presented in the curriculum guide. These word lists and sentences will help the student refine their keyboarding or braille reading skills while bridging ECC concepts presented in the thematic units. Although the lists and passages can be produced using a manual braillewriter, you may also copy and paste the passages into any braille translation software for quick production on an embosser. They may also be entered into a typing program such as APH’s Talking Typer to build keyboarding fluency.


For complete product details and additional images, visit the Thematic Keyboarding & Braille Fluency & Maintenance Product Page


Thematic Keyboarding & Braille Fluency Worksheet Details:
·      Digital pdf download: 338-page print and simulated braille worksheets
·      Publisher: Teaching Students with Visual Impairments
·      Author: Carmen Willings
·      Language: English


Thematic Vocabulary Cards and Checklists: Grab & Go ECC Supplement
The Thematic Vocabulary Cards and Checklists Grab and Go ECC supplement is a 446 page pdf downloadable print on demand workbook that includes 2940 vocabulary card on 3 1/2" x 2" templates divided by each of the 32 Thematic Units along with a checklist of each unit words in print and simulated braille. As a companion to the TVI's Guide to the ECC, the vocabulary cards correspond to the ECC Thematic activities presented in the curriculum guide. 


Additional Use:
Teachers of Students with Visual Impairments can have a extremely varied caseloads. It is possible to go several years without having a student on your caseload who requires braille instruction. Like other skills, if you do not practice your braille regularly, it is easy to lose those skills. Use these checklists and cards to maintain your braille skills. Fold the checklist along the line dividing the print from the braille. Choose to either read the print and produce the word in braille using a braillewriter or read the simulated braille and decode it. Finally, these vocabulary cards and checklists may be used with family members or peers who are interested in learning and practicing the braille code.


For complete product details and additional images, visit the Thematic Vocabulary Cards & Checklists Product Page


Thematic Vocabulary Cards and Checklists Details:
·      Digital pdf download: 446-page print on demand resource
·      Publisher: Teaching Students with Visual Impairments
·      Author: Carmen Willings
·      Language: English


BONUS!
Lotto Cards
The LOTTO Cards Grab and Go Supplement includes 37 theme related unit cards along with activity suggestions that support activities within the TVI's Guide to Teaching the ECC.


On My Way File Folder Cards
Print and use these cards to represent locations the student may visit that are related to the current thematic unit. Use these with the On My Way File Folder Game outlined in the TVI's Guide to Teaching the ECC p. 27.

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