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Parapros & Braille Transcribers

By: Carmen Willings
teachingvisuallyimpaired.com
Updated April 9, 2020

The role of the paraprofessional is determined through the IEP process and is based on the individual needs of the student. The paraprofessional may be with the student for the entire day, or during particular activities throughout the day. It is important for the paraprofessional to work closely with the team to share what is happening with the student throughout the day.

The challenge is providing the appropriate support for the students to be successful without becoming a barrier between students and their peers as well as providing too much assistance in completing tasks that could lead to a learned dependency. The paraprofessional should not do things for the student that the student is capable of doing themselves.

The paraprofessional may be with the student for the entire day, or during particular activities throughout the day. It is important for the paraprofessional to work closely with the team to share what is happening with the student throughout the day. The challenge is providing the appropriate support for the students to be successful without becoming a barrier between students and their peers as well as providing too much assistance in completing tasks that could lead to a learned dependency. The paraprofessional should not do things for the student that the student is capable of doing themselves.

The responsibilities of the paraprofessional need to be identified to avoid confusion between the role of the Teacher of Students with Visual Impairments (TVI), the paraprofessional, and the classroom teacher. The responsibilities of the paraprofessional can include meeting the physical needs of the student, assisting with material preparation, and interacting with the student and peers to facilitate positive social exchanges and to assist with independence. That being said, the paraprofessional should not hover over the student who is blind or visually impaired.

Although there will be times that the student will need direct support, the goal is to find a balance between providing too much support and having unreasonable expectations of the student.

Adapt Materials: The paraprofessional can enlarge visual materials for students with low vision, prepare tactile materials and tape record information. If the student uses braille, it is ideal for the paraprofessional to learn braille and consider taking formal coursework/training to become a braille transcriber.
Access Support: The paraprofessional may read the information (as needed and appropriate) when that information is not available in an accessible format, narrate a video, translate print to braille and braille to print, assist in ordering materials, and keep an inventory of materials.
Provide Direct Support: The paraprofessional may assist with guided practice and review previous lessons, and assist with new activities or routines until they are mastered.

The paraprofessional should be available to meet regularly with the Teacher of Students with Visual Impairments and other team members to ensure that appropriate services are being delivered. The TVI is typically responsible for training and supervising the paraprofessional in unique job skills. Appropriate training is essential to ensure that appropriate services are provided to students. The training can include pre-service training, on-the-job training, and observation and feedback. Frequent observation and collaboration are important to ensure that students are achieving independence and that the paraprofessional is not inadvertently encouraging dependence or isolating the student from his or her peers.

Braille Transcribers (braillists)

TVI's typically do not have time to produce all the braille required for a student who reads and writes in braille as his or her primary mode of communication. The role of the braillist is to transcribe educational materials from print to braille. Transcribing print into braille requires the skills and knowledge of the braille code. To ensure material is transcribed according to the standards established by the Braille Authority of North America (BANA), certifications are available through the Library of Congress, National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped. Certifications are available in literary braille, Nemeth Braille, music braille, and proofreading for literary and Nemeth.

The role of the braille transcriber is to:

Determine the most accurate way to present information from printed text into a version and transcribe it.
Proofread and perform quality control checks.
Be fluent in the UEB braille code as well as Nemeth and possibly music and foreign language.
Be knowledgeable in the use of braille translation software, and know how to import and process publishers' electronic files.