LARGE PRINT An Essential Medium for the Literacy Toolbox of Mainstreamed Students with Visual Impairments

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LARGE PRINT An Essential Medium for the

Literacy Toolbox of Mainstreamed Students with

Visual Impairments

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The Printed Book

500 years old and still the best tool for the

job.

Books and the Printed Page

Convenient Portable Durable Familiar

The Printed Book in the Regular Education

Classroom Still the overwhelming favorite at educational establishments around

the world.

Is this still true in today’s Regular Ed. Classroom ?

Schoolbooks are now offered in the following media:

Tape CD / DVD Digital Formats (devices-

handheld/computers) The Printed Book

And more to the point what about the mainstreamed VI students?First let’s all agree on the definition of

“Mainstreamed” “Mainstreamed” pertains to students who

attend general educational classes at least part of the day, as opposed to students who attend residential schools or classes where state adopted textbooks are not used.

The Literacy Toolbox for the mainstreamed VI Student

Every VI student should have a full Toolbox

• Braille• CDs / tapes• Optical aids• Magnifiers• Large Print • Digital formats

Digital Formats –What’s all the hip? Good for textbooks?

How accessible are they?

Todd will talk about: (►Devices that read electronic text

files Hand held devises - E-Readers: Amazon’s Kindle – Apple’s iPad tablet- Computers)

Focus – The Student with Visual Impairment

Print medium must be accessible and compatible with classroom textbooks.

How many students with visual impairments use large print?

Did you know…..? APH 2007 Quota Report – State Dept. of Educations Grade K-12 13346 large print readers

4049 Braille readers 2494 auditory

What about other Countries ?

According to research done by the Royal National Institute for the Blind, over 60% of blind & visually impaired individuals consider themselves to be print readers.

The Large Print Book in The Literacy Toolbox

Large Print books are just one alternative medium that should be available to visually impaired students.

Large Print books are not meant to be used by all students, at all times, for all occasions, or for the same duration throughout the life of any VI individual.

.

Let’s face it….

Most of the alternatives that are available to VI students are

offered in place of printed books, not

because they are better than printed

books.

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Advantages Of Large Print Images In Print Images can be reproduced at higher resolution

in print than in other media, such as via electronic display, without creating more work for the eyes to perform.

Large Print offers the best option for resolution. No quivering of text as can happen in enlarging digital images.

Source: “Advantages of Large Print Images in Print” , Elaine Ketchel, a selection from PowerPoint Presentation: NIMAC: APH as an Accessible Media

Producer: A Status Report, Julia Myers, Nicole Gaines, APH, 2008

Advantages Of Large Print Images in Print Cont’d…... Students with visual acuity issues, the higher

resolution and superior reproduction in is an advantage, especially for charts and maps and graphical material

Large Print formats usually offer adequate space per page to fit the page, and to allow him/her to use peripheral/eccentric vision for reading.



Advantages Of Large Print Images in Print Cont’d…...

Large Print offers the best option in contrast of black in on opaque white to ivory paper.

Access to graphics is unlimited - and they are also available in color. Surveys indicate that color helps students better read graphs and charts.



Advantages Of Large Print Images in Print Cont’d…...

For some students with cognitive or physical disabilities, printed text and graphics is the best option.



When the VI student needs a large print

book….. When this medium is appropriate,

either alone or in conjunction with another one, it is essential that the highest quality large print is provided no matter the student’s age and educational level.

Equal Access – An Entitlement

for Mainstreamed VI students

VI Students in regular classrooms must have a large print book as much like the regular text as possible……

with all the same content with the same individual page format available at the same time

What does this really mean? This means that when the teacher

asks all the students to turn to page 6 and read the caption under the graph in the upper right hand corner, the VI student will be able to do just that.

How do we make this happen?

By choosing large print books for mainstreamed VI students that they

can use and will use!

This can be achieved if you consider the following Large Print Selection

Criteria:

Large Print Standards & Guidelines

These “Large Print Selection Criteria” are….

- -- Based upon the Large Print Standards developed by The LRS Large Print Advisory Committee

- Compatible with the APH Large Print Type Size Guidelines

- Incorporated into the California Department of Education’s Clearinghouse for Special Media and Translations (CSMT) Large Print Guidelines and Standards

- Supported by 40 years of national & international research and reports from the classroom

(see Bibliography & Acknowledgements)

Large Print Selection Criteria

# 1. Maintenance of integrity, content, pagination and format of every page in the original text.

# 2. Grade level and individual visual requirements for type size.

# 3. Format, binding and book size

Selection Criterion #1

Plus choices of black & white or full color printing Color of paper Bindings Type size

The mainstreamed VI student should have a book as much like the regular text as possible.

Maintenance of integrity, content, pagination and format

of every page in the original text.

Selection Criterion #2

Just because a book is called large print does not mean that it is appropriate for every VI student in every situation.

Ideally each book should have type size that matches each individual student’s needs, but if that is not possible the following guidelines can be used:

Grade level and individual visual requirements for type

size.

Selection Criterion # 2 cont’d

Type Size Guidelines

Grades 1 – 6: Minimum 20 point type size.

For beginning readers and elementary

level students bigger is definitely better, whether they are using the large print book alone or in combination with other aids, i.e. optical, audio, or Braille.

Grade level and individual visual requirements for type size.



Grades 7-8: A minimum 18 point type size is the accepted standard.

20 point is even better, if the overall book size

can be kept to not more then 10” x 12”. 20 point type size is especially important for

math texts to allow for adequate enlargement of fractions and exponents.




Grades 9-12 & post-secondary:

Minimum 18 point type size is preferred. Note: Some upper grade textbooks can

only be enlarged to 16 point because of the extremely small point size and extra large page size of the original text.


Selection Criterion # 2 cont’d Large Print “Readability” features

Font style – Type Size – Spacing – Print Quality

Which is most important for “readability”?(in order of importance)

Spacing Type size Contrast

Font style

* Based upon a review of 40 years of discussions, reports and research. See Bibliography and Acknowledgements for details.

Selection Criterion # 3 cont’d Format, Binding, and Book Size

What are the options?

Formats: vertical – horizontal – flip chart Binding: All should lay open flat

– Hard cover– Soft cover– Spiral w/ hard or soft cover

Book size: recommended –> not larger than 10” x 12” – but should fit age, use, physical needs.

Selection Criterion # 3 cont’d Format, Binding, and Book Size

Always take these factors into consideration

when choosing a large print book:

What is the age and physical ability of the student?

What is the environmental setting (classroom or home) and type of lighting?

How will the book be used, either on a reading board or stand, desk, or table ?


Will the student require the assistance of an aide to hold and/or turn the pages?

Will the student have to carry the large print book(s) in a backpack?

Format, Binding, and Book Size


Is the student willing to use the book?

Studies suggest that over 50% of alternative media are rejected by VI students because of peer pressure.

So it is very important that large print books look as much as possible like the original.

Vertical (calendar) formats are one way for large print books to retain a small closed-book size.

Format, Binding, and Book Size

For your consideration……

As can be seen there are many formatting issues to consider once the decision is made that large print is the appropriate medium for a particular student.

And the “one size fits all” concept must always be challenged if we are to provide our visually impaired students with large print books they can use and will use.

Producing Large Print from NIMAS Files for print

readers

It is possible….. BUT is it suitable for mainstreamed

students’ textbooks ?

Will they have a LP book that is exactly like the original that the other

students are using ?

Producing Large Print textbooks

from current NIMAS Files

The format and pagination of the original is lost

The pictures are reduced in size Graphics and captions are lost Production more time consuming than

current processes

NIMAS DIGITAL FILE

CHAPTER 2 Getting Ready to Learn

Next

Page 44

SCIENCE on the JOB YOGA INSTRUCTORBreathing and Yoga

If you're reading this, you must be breathing. Are you thinking about how you arebreathing? Yoga instructors help their students learn deep, slow breathing. The practiceof yoga uses an understanding of the respiratory system as a tool for healthy exercise.

Abdominal Breathing

Yoga instructors tell students to slowly expand and release the diaphragm:

The diaphragm is a muscle below the lungs.

When the muscle contracts, air enters into the lungs.

When it relaxes, air is pushed out of the lungs.

Nostril Breathing

An important aspect of breathing is removing wastes from the body:

Yoga instructors teach students to inhale through the nostrils and exhale throughthe mouth.

The nostrils filter dust and other particles, keeping dirt out of the lungs.

The nostrils also warm the air as it enters the body.

Full Lung Breathing

Yoga instructors help students breathe in slowly so that first the abdomen expands, thenthe rib cage area, and finally the upper chest by the shoulders. When students exhale, theycollapse the diaphragm, then release the chest, and lastly relax

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LARGE PRINT An Essential Medium for the Literacy Toolbox of Mainstreamed Students with Visual Impairments