Introduction
Assessing the impact the problems of visual and hearing impairments, it can be stated that such problems have a considerable influence the quality of life. The influence can be related to such factors as the level of information perception, lack of background knowledge, and inconveniences resulted form the necessity for adaptation. Therefore, the impact of these impairments is considered to be crucially important for human development and academic achievements. People with visual or hearing impairments have been given the opportunity to cope with their problems, improve their vision or hearing, or, at least, find ways to study this world and expand their level of knowledge through technology. Innovative technologies utilized for blind/deaf people and supportive organizations, can provide help for those, who requires it the most. In that regard, much effort has been put into analyzing the work of community organizations, which serve people with blind or visual impairments. Visual and hearing impairments might have considerable impact on a person’s development and his/her academic achievements. Thus, educators consider this issue of a large importance, and accordingly addressing the needs of people with such problems and providing them with a chance to be major participants in our society.
Main body
Defining the impairments, Hoover and Bledsoe (2000) identified blindness, also known as visual impairment, as “anatomic and functional disturbances of the sense of vision of sufficient magnitude to cause total loss of light perception” (p. 377). Accordingly, visual impairment can be considered any possible deviation of the usual norms, e.g. central visual function problems, color perception and etc. On the other hand, hearing impairments are connected to any possible reduction within sounds’ sensitivity.
One of the most serious problems that people with visual or hearing impairments might face is the incorrect perception of information. This problem has a great impact on human development and academic achievements, one aspect of which can be evident through the inability to use contemporary learning aids such as personal computers and software. Nowadays, computer technologies became one of the most frequently used means of achieving success in business and education. These means can be considered inaccessible for people with visual impairments, where blind people have difficulties understanding the information displayed on the computer’s screen. Additionally, the use of mouse requires eye-hand coordination, and thus, blind people cannot make use of the opportunities provided by the computers to its full extent. Blind people, who want to achieve success during their academics, have to follow all the instructions, offered by their educators. However, accessing graphic or other type of visual information becomes an additional problem for blind people, which has a negative impact on their development. Accordingly, such factor put a particular responsibility on teachers, as they have to take care of the impaired students’ perception of information, and make sure that such information is accepted and analyzed properly.
Another chronic disability among people is hearing impairments, which might cause problems, related to incorrect transformation of information from ear to human brain. In general, problems that may negatively influence human development can be related to noisy background, inability to perceive the necessary information only in an auditory form, or very low sound output. In that regard, the person’s academic achievement may not be as expected, therefore educators have to present information in both forms: oral and written.
A community organization, serving people with blind or visual impairment, has been analyzed during my investigation. Most people comprehend that the population with visual or hearing impairments cannot enjoy and perceive this world in the same way as healthy people, and thus a number of helping services are created to support disabled people. Such organizations offer the necessary services for visual impaired people, which include communication services, in order to help disabled people read and write and mobility services, which help people learn the material from different perspectives. These services are essentially important for people suffering from visual or hearing impairments.
It was found that many people with visual or hearing impairments have unbelievable talents and are able to cope with tasks that might seem too complicated even for healthy people. Our society can greatly benefit, if people starts appreciating and respecting each other, regardless of the disabilities that they might have. Only in such case, the impact of visual and hearing impairments on person’s development and academic achievements will be not that noticeable and disappointing.
Legal definitions of visual and hearing impairments
- Legal blindness takes place if visual acuity (the ability to recognize the things) is about 20/200 and the visual field (the ability to observe the things in the periphery of another person’s vision when look ahead) is about 20 degrees (Heller & Kennedy, 1994).
- Hearing impartment is inability to process linguistic information by means of ears with/without the process of amplification.
Educational definitions of visual and hearing impairments
- Visual impairment is the loss of vision that may include numerous deficits within acuity and color perception.
- Hearing impartment, both stable or progressive, is the person’s inability to perceive and analyze oral information.
Reflection Journal upon Human Exceptionality: School, Community, and Family
Human Exceptionality: School, Community, and Family, ed. 9 is one more work by Michael Hardman, Clifford Drew, and Winston Egan. This new edition is devoted to the roles and duties of professionals in such spheres like education, psychology, and human services. The authors of this book underline the importance of collaboration of these spheres in order to improve human lives, strengthen families and work. With the help of clear definitions and causations, the reader gets a wonderful opportunity to re-fresh own knowledge about the main principles of pedagogy, learn new approaches for studying processes, and get to know why collaboration between the professionals from different spheres turn out to be so important.
The key points of this reading are understanding of exceptionality, origins of special education, ideas inclusive education, problems, disable adults may face with, and information of how visual and hearing impairment may influence human education and perception of this world.
This source of information is considered to be rather helpful to use its content in classrooms. The ideas of the authors that all people may face visual or hearing problems and other people should help these people anyway touch me too much. The description of real life examples, cases of Mary, Josh, and Billy help to comprehend that deaf or blind people have to be respected, and certain support should be provided to these people, because they may develop their potential and achieve good results.
Reference List
Heller, K. W. & Kennedy, C. (1994). Etiologies and Characteristics of Deaf-Blindness. Monmouth, OR: Teaching Research Institute.
Hoover, R. E. & Bledsoe, C. W. (2000). Blindness and Visual Impairments. In Handbook of Sever Disability: A Text for Rehabilitation Counselors, Other Vocational Practitioners, and Allied Health Professionals by Walter C. Stolov & Michael R. Clowers. Washington, DC: DIANE Publishing.