Providing Access to the Visual Environment: A Model of Low Vision Services for Children

Abstract

Providing Access to the Visual Environment (Project PAVE) is a statewide multidisciplinary project that provides low vision services to children aged 3–21 in Tennessee. This article describes the project's administrative, direct service, and research components and the philosophy on which it is based.

‘Access to learning’ and ‘learning to access’: Analysing the distinctive role of specialist teachers of children and young people with vision impairments in facilitating curriculum access through an ecological systems theory

“…supporting children in 'learning to access') has important longer term benefits for children and young people with vision impairments as they become independent adults (e.g. Corn et al 2003;Ravenscroft, 2013).…”

Study of an inclusive intervention programme in pictorial perception with blind and sighted students

“…The need for an art education programme specifically focused on the appreciation of pictorial works for visually impaired students was previously addressed by Koenig and Holbrook (2000), the PAVE project by Corn et al (2003), and the IDEA programme, applicable to students with any type of disability (LaVenture 2003). Verification of real learning regarding content and aesthetics by blind students and their sighted peers in a school setting coincides with the ideas of Lohmeier (2005), who argues that instructional programmes for students with visual impairments require an expanded curriculum both for intra-and extra-curricular areas.…”

“…Publications on instructional strategies to work with students with visual impairments have been published, such as that by Koenig and Holbrook (2000). We have also found curricular projects such as the multiprofessional PAVE (Providing Access to the Visual Environment) project, aimed at individuals between ages 3 and 21 (Corn et al 2003), or the wider-ranging IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) programme, which is applicable to all types of students with a disability (LaVenture 2003).…”

Low Vision Driving with Bioptics: An Overview

“…Young children and adolescents with low vision may be receiving instruction for developing their visual skills for learning in classrooms, for participating in leisure activities, and for beginning independent mobility and wayfinding tasks. They may be learning to respond to visual images quickly and to use handheld optical devices for distance viewing of chalkboards, theatrical productions, and sporting events (Corn et al, 2003). Through orientation and mobility (O&M) instruction, they will learn such skills as understanding how cars travel; how to read maps; and how roadway landmarks, such as road signs, pavement markings, and traffic lights, provide information to pedestrians and drivers for safer street crossings and safe passage through intersections.…”