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Braille in the 21st century: Blending new technology with proven methods
We are at a crossroads. Technological innovations have allowed blind and visually impaired people to access printed material more than ever. With computer screen-reading software, like JAWS for Windows, talking smart phones, alarm clocks and scales, plus audio books and recorded newspapers and magazines, those who cannot see the printed word can easily—often at the touch of a button—listen to just about anything they want to “read.”
While many technological advancements have increased a blind person’s ability to communicate, Braille literacy is still an important part of a blind person’s development.
Braille literacy is linked with higher self-esteem, independence and professional and academic success. According to the Braille Institute of America, only 30 percent of blind adults gain full-time employment, but 90 percent of those who do so are Braille readers.
Though these statistics demonstrate the importance of knowing Braille, Braille literacy among blind Americans has significantly decreased. Only about 10 percent of legally blind youth are taught the tactile code in school. Many are encouraged to use what usable vision they have to continue to read print, even if it means they are reading at a much slower pace than their sighted peers.
True literacy has long been considered the ability to read, write and comprehend written language. For most people “written language” means print. For the blind, it means Braille.
Through Braille, the blind learn the tenets of language--sentence structure, punctuation, spelling, phrasing--and the landmarks that organize thought--headings, sections, and paragraphs.
In fact, it has been shown that cognitively and neurologically, learning and reading Braille triggers the same part of the brain as reading printed material.
As print literacy does for the sighted, learning Braille links to higher self-esteem for the blind and a lower frequency of reliance upon government aid, such as Social Security Disability Insurance, food stamps and other public assistance.
“Braille literacy provides full and detailed access to the written word, including spelling, punctuation and organizational structure. Children and adults with limited vision often struggle to read print when Braille can provide complete and efficient literacy,” said Karen Keninger, director of the Iowa Department for the Blind and a lifelong Braille reader. “Arguments surface for the different types of learning styles; some are audible learners, some are visual learners. But in the mainstream schools, you would not experience a sighted child learning the ABCs solely through listening.”
Braille, named after its creator, Louis Braille, uses a system of raised dots to form letters and words. These Braille dots are read with the fingertips and provide blind and visually impaired students a system of reading and writing independently.
Braille was introduced in the late 19th century in France and has since been used to make accessible nearly every written language in the world, as well as math and scientific notation.
The Iowa Department for the Blind has long been a strong supporter of Braille literacy. Its library maintains the largest collection of Braille materials in the nation. Its independent living teachers and vocational rehabilitation counselors teach their clients Braille if needed, and all students who pass through the Orientation Center learn at least basic Braille. This enables them to write notes, which they can read back at will, and label items. Some become proficient enough to read novels.
Braille literacy is a trending topic. A recent New York Times Magazine article weighed the reasons why people choose or do not choose to learn Braille. The National Federation of the Blind released a white paper in March 2009 depicting the declining Braille literacy among blind youth as a crisis.
This decline, many predict, will have long-term implications among the blind population, as professional success is linked to literacy for the blind as much as for the sighted. Studies have shown that in the general population more than 68 percent of proficient readers have jobs in management or in business, financial, professional or related job sectors.
As indicated earlier, the importance of Braille literacy for blind job seekers may be even more significant. One study of Braille and non-Braille readers indicated that where the average employment rate for the blind population is 30 percent, 44 percent of Braille readers were employed as opposed to only 23 percent of non-Braille readers. Furthermore, those Braille readers were far more likely to hold advanced degrees. None of the non-Braille readers held a doctorate.
In January, the Department with the Iowa Braille School sponsored the annual Iowa Braille Challenge, which brought 13 school-aged blind children from across Iowa to Des Moines to test their Braille skills in reading, writing and comprehension.
The Challenge, part of the national Braille Challenge put on by the Braille Institute of America, is an opportunity for the Department to celebrate Braille literacy and recognize the students, their families and educators who work hard to ensure that all children who need to learn Braille receive the tools they need to do so.
“The Braille Challenge gives us all an opportunity to celebrate Braille literacy and its importance in a blind person’s life,” said Tracey Morsek, director of the Iowa Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, a division of the Iowa Department for the Blind. “It is integral to our work as librarians that we draw attention to Braille and those who depend on it to live successful, productive lives.” 
January 23 to 30 was Braille Awareness Week, and the Department witnessed a mayoral proclamation in Des Moines acknowledging the week, which recognized Braille as “key to independence and success for the blind and visually impaired.”
Even with the push for awareness and increased literacy, there remains a lack of resources for educators in the public school system.
While Iowa schools are trying to meet the needs, there is still more to be done to make sure every blind child has the opportunity to learn Braille. Unfortunately, many parents and blind children alike perceive Braille to be a last resort instead of the complete and highly effective literacy tool it is.
“In order to combat the Braille literacy crisis, it is important first to recognize that Braille is a necessary tool in the long-term success of our blind children,” said Keninger. “We as a society must understand that we are doing a disservice to blind and visually impaired Iowans by attaching a stigma to Braille. We must encourage literacy in all our children—blind and sighted alike—to better our communities, our schools and our future as a society.”
Legislative open house serves up blind awareness at the Capitol
The Department hosted a breakfast open house at the State Capitol on March 18 to reach out to state legislators and provide them with information about the IDB, its services and its clients.
Legislators who attended the two-hour event were greeted by IDB staff and clients and learned about the number of blind Iowans registered with the Department in each county, plus how benefits from the Department’s services reach beyond blind and visually impaired and into the communities.
“They see how it affects real people, and I think they don’t get to see that very often,” said Sandy Tigges, director of the IDB Orientation Center.
