Newspaper Page Text
Page 2
The Oglethorpe Echo
Thursday, July 6, 2023
BRAILLE, From Page 1
OLIVIA SHAPIRO/THE OGLETHORPE ECHO
Debbie Winsett, who transcribes and translates textbooks for the vi
sually impaired, received her Braille Transcriber certification in 2010.
The NFB reported there was an
overwhelming shortage of Braille
teachers, with 6,700 teachers serv
ing approximately 93,600 students.
This means many students who
are visually impaired or blind are
not receiving the instruction they
need to learn Braille, and they are
missing out on the benefits that
come with being able to read and
write independently.
The Individuals with Disabil
ities Education Act, known as
IDEA, has allowed for significant
progress in meeting national goals
for developing and implementing
effective programs and services
for early intervention, special edu
cation and related services.
Before this act was put into
place, students were often denied
access to education.
“In 1970, U.S. schools educated
only one in five children with dis
abilities, and many states had laws
excluding certain students, includ
ing children who were deaf, blind,
emotionally disturbed or had an
intellectual disability,” according
to the IDEA website.
In the 2020-2021 school year,
7.5 million children around the
country with disabilities were met
with special education and other
services designated to meet their
specific needs.
“Long time ago, students who
were visually impaired, no mat
ter where they lived, got put on a
bus every Sunday afternoon, buses
would come and pick them up. Ev
ery state has one location. Ours is
in Macon, Georgia,” Winsett said.
“Well, then the law passed years ago
saying if you live in a county and
you don't want your kid to be hauled
off like that, then the school in your
area has to provide for you.”
Creating Braille
Winsett, who was born in Sa
vannah, started her career as a
paraprofessional in the Oglethorpe
County School System in 2001.
She began working with her
first blind student when that per
son was in sixth grade, which in
spired Winsett to learn Braille. Af
ter writing and rewriting books to
learn the process, she then went
through the two-year course to be
come certified.
Winsett received her Braille
Transcriber certification from the
Library of Congress in 2010. She
didn’t know, however, that she
would be transcribing learning ma
terials for students all across the
country due to the lack of certified
Braille transcribers.
The year following her first
student’s graduation, she started
working with her second student
in Oglethorpe from ninth to 12th
grades. When graduating, Winsett
walked across the stage with her
student.
Winsett has worked in
Oglethorpe and Hall counties, and
has worked remotely in Monroe
and Canton, Georgia, a school dis
trict in Virginia and in the Glen
dale district in California. She now
works remotely for the Riverside
district in California.
“Even though I do not know a
lot of these students, to me, they're
almost like they're mine, and I
want them to have everything that
the sighted student has,” Winsett
said.
During her time as a Braille
transcriber, she has transcribed
about 27 different subjects,
stretching from Spanish I and II to
statistics.
As someone who doesn’t speak
Spanish fluently, Winsett said the
process of transcribing Spanish is
different than other subjects and
takes hours to complete.
“I have to transcribe it in what's
called grade one. Grade one is ev
ery letter,” she said. “Then I have to
go back, and I have to do all of the
accent marks. And I probably proof
read that stuff probably five times.”
Winsett said transcribing for the
different grade levels requires a
different approach.
When transcribing early grades,
the transcription requires every let
ter to be written, but once the stu
dent starts to learn contractions with
in their schoolwork, she’s able to in
clude those in the transcribed work.
“They do these contractions
when they get to that age (11),”
Winsett said. “The true ABCs and
spelling words, the way that we
do it, is for the beginners. In first
grade, we start teaching the con
tractions; I mean, we don't waste
time with that.”
The Braille
transcriber shortage
Many people who are blind now
use text-to-speech technology,
which can read books, emails and
other documents aloud.
This technology is often fast
er and more convenient than read
ing Braille. Additionally, the ed
ucation system has shifted away
from teaching Braille, and many
blind students are now taught to
rely solely on technology.
School resources often default
to copy and pasting text into auto
matic online transcribers, but there
are limitations to these tools. For
instance, they often are unable to
distinguish when paragraphs begin
and end.
Jana Hertz, president of the Na
tional Braille Association, said
there is a severe shortage in Braille
transcribers, also known as TVIs
or TSVIs (teachers for students
with visual impairments).
Hertz said she had a college
student from the University of
California who studied law and
reached out to her due to being un
able to read the documents that an
uncertified employee put into a
Braille translation program.
“All of her law briefs were
strung into one document. She
couldn't tell where one ended and
one began,” Hertz said. “She con
tacted me and she said, ‘Jana, I
know I'm moved on (from school
where Hertz teaches and tran
scribes), but I need help.’”
The shortage of Braille transcrib
ers is also a problem. Transcribers
are responsible for converting print
ed materials into Braille, which is
essential for blind people to access a
wide range of information.
There are not enough transcribers
to meet the demand, which means
that blind people often have to wait
a long time to receive materials in
Braille. This can be especially frus
trating for students who need to ac
cess textbooks and other educational
materials in a timely manner.
Addressing shortages
Despite these challenges, there
are some efforts underway to ad
dress the shortage of Braille teach
ers and transcribers.
Winsett is a volunteer with Be
My Eyes, a mobile app that aims
to help visually impaired and blind
people identify objects and assist
with everyday tasks.
Sighted volunteers sign up and
receive one-way video, but two-
way audio calls are based on time
zone and language from blind or
visually impaired users looking for
assistance in tasks such as identi
fying the color of a shirt or navi
gating unfamiliar surroundings.
Braille organizations across the
nation are collaborating to offer
more appealing transcriber pro
grams.
The NBA offers certification
programs for both teachers and
transcribers, and there are also
programs that provide financial
support for people who want to
pursue these careers.
Kimberly Hutter, a technical as
sistance specialist in the Technical
Assistance for Excellence in Spe
cial Education department at Utah
State University, works with stake
holders on a pilot program rolling
out this month.
The program will follow a co
hort model which will include a
virtual classroom on Canvas where
participants will go through les
sons provided by the NFB with
two master level trainers.
Participants will go through the
course in a group setting, and most
importantly, will receive feedback
on their assignments in a timely
manner.
“You're doing it with a group
that we will hopefully see more
success with the amount of indi
viduals getting through the pro
gram to become certified literary
Braille transcribers,” Hutter said.
With efforts at the national lev
el, Hutter believes this program
will provide better accessibility to
Braille transcriber programs and
draw more interest in pursuing a
career in the field — including in
areas like Oglethorpe County.
“This will give individuals who
may be in a rural area, that do have
an internet connection, an opportu
nity to learn a new trade,” Hutter
said. “Finding ways to bring in in
dividuals who might not ever have
See BRAILLE, Page 3
Make more of every acre with the Kubota residential lineup. Featuring
professional-grade mowers, fast, durable Sidekick utility vehicles and versatile
tractors. Visit your Kubota dealer today for a demo*
• #1 rated tractor brand for durability
and owner experience in the U.S.**
• More reliability, durability and
versatility built-in
Together we do more!
■ Service and support from an
expansive, knowledgeable dealer
network
Palmer Equipment Company, Inc.
708 N Bypass West
Washington, GA 30673
706-678-3200
|www.palmerequipmentco.com|
‘Subject to availability. “Award based on 2021 Progressive Farmer Reader Insights Tractor Study. © Kubota Tractor Corporation, 2023. This
material is for descriptive purposes only. Kubota disclaims all representations and warranties, express or implied, or any liability from the use of
this material. For complete warranty, safety, incentive offer and product information, consult your local dealer or go to|KubotaUSA.corr|
Progressive
FARMER
READER INSIGHTS
Jeff Covell • 865-389-2656
treemanjc@yahoo.com