Students with visual impairments often experience emotional problems and encounter difficulties in forming and maintaining social relationships. Research indicates that the social support provided to these students by staff members and their peers in educational institutions may have a positive impact on their academic learning and socioemotional development. The purpose of this integrative literature review was to synthesise the results from 17 academic articles published during 1998 and 2018, which examined the topic of social support for students with visual impairments in educational institutions. This review reveals that for students with visual impairments cooperation, empathetic behaviour, and practical assistance are the main components of social support. These students actively seek social support from staff members and peers, but they face many challenges, such as the lack of training and awareness. Support from staff members contributes to students’ academic learning and social inclusion, whereas peers’ social support enhances their self-esteem and social acceptance. The outlined positive effects of educational interventions on students’ social skills and social interaction support the need for implementing more interventions. The limitations of the studies reviewed and recommendations for future research are discussed.

The purpose of this small-scale study is to investigate the outcomes of a brief teacher education programme by exploring student teachers' views. The teacher education programme aimed to provide teachers with the opportunity to develop qualities and skills that facilitate communication and to enhance teachers' competence to apply social and emotional (SEL) programmes' intervention activities in the classroom. According to student teachers' estimations, the teacher education programme provided them with new knowledge and experiences in communication and counselling, which they felt they could use in teaching practice. Besides, teachers reported that the programme enabled them to develop their self-awareness and to adopt a non-directive attitude during the implementation of SEL programme's activities.