Eyes on Our World: Can Technology, Aids and Devices Enhance the Life and learning of People with Vision Impairment?

Abstract

It is a twenty-first century belief with which we concur that the emerging global world requires learners to be problem solvers i.e., that it promotes and requires proactive and reactive learners. Passivity, rote learning, and dependence on imposition are insufficient adaptive procedures in the democratic context of essential empowerment. In such a context, learners must exercise their freedom; doing so requires deliberate and engaging flexibility with one's know-how about gaining further knowledge. Encouraging learners' proactivity, reactivity and the sense of balance that enables productive application of both perspectives is a major societal goal, served by the institution of education. It presents significant challenges for teachers, particularly those whose students have vision impairment and the attendant intensity and uniqueness in problems confronted by children, teens and adults with low vision or blindness. The authors present here some background and exemplification of their work in demonstrating that technology, aids and devices do enhance the life and learning of people with vision impairment.