The Central Role of the Teacher of Students with Visual Impairments

Posted by teacher on August 20, 2011

The teacher of students with visual impairments is the central figure on the educational team for your child with a visual impairment. This is the professional who has expertise in how visual impairment affect your child’s development and learning, as well as the strategies and tools that can help your child learn about the world, perform everyday activities, and participate in the general curriculum and other activities in school. Therefore, your child is likely to be working with the teacher of students with visual impairments on a day-to-day basis. He or she will probably serve as the coordinator of the educational team and as a resource for the other team members, including you. You may sometimes hear this teacher referred to as a “vision teacher” or by the abbreviation “TVI.”

The specific responsibilities of the teacher of students with visual impairments with your child may vary, depending on your child’s age and needs, the goals his educational team sets for him, the type of educational program your child participates in, and the policies of your particular school district. The role of the teacher of students with visual impairment may include some or all the following:

teaching the specific skills that your child needs to learn because of his visual impairment. Generally these are adapted ways of doing everyday activities and methods of participating in the school curriculum, such as reading and writing in braille, using a low vision device, or independent living skills. These skills are often known as the expanded core curriculum.
conducting various assessments of your child to determine his abilities and needs
working with you and other family members in various ways, such as helping you to learn skills you need to teach your child or suggesting ways to arrange your home or do household chores that will make it easier for your child to participate in family life
making referrals for additional services your child may need, such as for orientation and mobility (O&M) instruction or a clinical low vision evaluation from a low vision specialist
meeting with family members, your child’s regular education teacher, and other members of the educational team to discuss his progress and make suggestions for strategies to make his school work accessible and to include him to the greatest extent possible in all school, classroom, and extracurricular activities
preparing or obtaining learning materials, textbooks, and examinations in the appropriate accessible format for your child (such as braille, large print, audio, or electronic format)
analyzing the classroom and other environments for access and safety related to a student’s visual impairment or blindness, and advising other members of the team about how best to organize the classroom and materials
providing consultation and training for teachers, paraeducators, and other school personnel on effective strategies for teaching students with visual impairments
directing the paraeducator, if one has been assigned to your child or his class, in providing support to your child