Insights from training a blind student in biological sciences

Abstract

Higher education institutions have a constitutional obligation to provide reasonable accommodation to students with disabilities. Although the teaching and learning of students with blindness and low vision in STEM disciplines are well documented abroad, to date, there are no published studies in South Africa on successful teaching and learning strategies for students with blindness and low vision in STEM fields, specifically in science disciplines. Therefore, in this paper, we report on how teaching, learning, and assessment were adapted to make science disciplines accessible to John, a blind student enrolled in a biological sciences degree at a research-intensive university in South Africa. Several factors contributed towards the successful completion of John’s bachelor’s degree. These factors include the availability of tutors who committed a large amount of time to help John understand content presented in lectures, tutorials, and practical sessions; a well-resourced and effective Disability Unit; lecturers who ensured that John was well accommodated in lectures, tutorials, and practical sessions; and, finally, John’s commitment and dedication towards learning.

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“…It is hard to imagine how these changes in attitude to teaching and demonstrating could have arisen without engaging with this cohort. 38 An example of these interactions aiding research was when considering air pollution, how it arises, what the health impacts will be and what the current research tells us. Students in the course remarked that they could smell some pollutants, especially those from nascent vehicle emissions, and of course they used sound as an indicator of or proxy for air pollution and used both senses to reduce their exposure.…”

“…Having worked with nonsighted students, these demonstrators state that their confidence in being able to support undergraduates in the laboratory has increased. It is hard to imagine how these changes in attitude to teaching and demonstrating could have arisen without engaging with this cohort …”