Table of Contents
CHAPTER
1
Introduction
1.0 Introduction
Low vision is one of the two main
categories of visual impairment which refers to a problem of eyes that may
receive blur images due to the loss of eye-vision. Losing one of the most
important senses may bring someone to the hardness in order to learn
effectively in a way to gain knowledge just like the other normal human beings
in this world. Another one main category of visual impairment is blindness. Visual
impairments are also classified to congenital and adventitious which congenital
is blind from the day of the birth while conditions of this disease that might
disturb the learning process of the children. Albinism, amblyopia, cataract, cortical
visual impairment, retinal detachment, glaucoma and few others are the types of
eye conditions that may bring difficulties to be focused in class. It distracts
the learning process of the children. Children with these visual impairments,
they are not able to observe objects and interactions. Sometimes they have
fewer natural learning experiences.
Parents
are ought to prepare the perfect schedule to the daily routine of their
children to sustain the sustainability. Different to the parents who are given
with the children whom suffer diseases or special children like autism, spastic
etc. This kind of situation, the parents need to struggle more looking and
finding ways to guide their children.
Nothing
beats experience. Parents with these children experience the hard way raised up
their children. They need hands from the society to help their children with
teaching approaches that will help these kinds of kids to be taught as to gain
knowledge constant equally to the normal kids. That is why our country had been
alerted to build schools for these children. There are few schools located in
Malaysia specialized for them.
In this research, the
study emphasize about implementing the visual arts approaches in all
appropriate subjects to ease the low vision students’ learning process. The low
vision students, they can absolutely see but a little different to the normal
people. Normal human beings’ eye chart is 20/20 and it is 20/200 to the low
vision people which their vision quality can only reach 20 feet when normal
people visions reach 200 feet of vision. Due to this problem, these students
need to be particularly monitored to make sure they achieve successfulness in
the future. Visual arts as the attempt to be injected in subjects as the
approach in teaching methods for these students. Knowing the fact that low
vision students could not focus in their learning periods due to the eye vision
distraction, this study suggests the visual arts teaching styles. Good images,
attraction colours, suitable approaches may lead them to the better quality of
mind processes. When eyes can capture the visual, the mind would probably
memorise faster than reading texts that may bring them to boredom and fly out
the track.
1.1
Background of Study
There are two causes of the visual
impairment which are congenital and adventitious. These are classified from the
visual impairment. Congenital is at birth disease. It may cause of the prematurity,
genetic diseases, prenatal and perinatal infections, maternal substance abuse
etc. Adventitious refers to the loss of vision as a result of illness or accident.
This is different to the congenital because they lived a normal life back then
before hit by the infections or something while the congenital blindness came
from the womb of the mother with the disease. Compared to the congenital
blindness, the adventitious blindness may retain sufficient visual memory to be
benefited from the visual descriptions while congenital blindness might feel
hardness or difficulties acquiring concepts. So even though they were stated as
the visual impairment student, but they obviously need a different ways of
teaching method.
1.2 Statement of Research Problem
In this study, the purpose is to find
easier way to the learning process of the low vision students which
specifically from the visual impairment students. It is a new attempt by
implementing visual arts in the appropriate subjects that may lead them to the
successfulness and to make them understand by seeking their attention through
the beautiful things of arts.
Low
vision students apparently need to struggle perhaps double or triple than the
normal people to focus on subjects learned due to the problem of vision that
may distract their mind from capturing the subjects direct immediately to the
brain. The learning process becomes harder for these students. What would it be
when you force the mind to work when you could not even capture your vision
other than stressful or pressure? There might have smarter people if to be
compared to the normal people but the limitation are there as the wall. So this
study is about the break the wall. In other words, is to find new methods to
ease the learning process.
1.3
Research Objectives
The research objectives for this study
are:
i)
To
identify the visual arts teaching styles and learning schedule to the low
vision students.
ii)
To
investigate the importance of visual arts approach into the subjects of low
vision students.
iii)
To
determine the effectiveness of visual arts teaching styles to the low vision
students.
1.4
Research Questions
The research questions for this study
are:
i)
What
are the methods or the pedagogy through the teaching style of visual arts to
the low vision students?
ii)
Why
is it important to attempt the injection of visual arts into the low vision
subjects in their school?
iii)
How
the approach of implementing visual arts in the low vision teaching styles
could help the students to learn more effectively?
1.5
Research Hypotheses
The low vision students are achieved
after the attempt of visual arts approach is applied.
1.6
Definition of the Terms
Visual impairment
Also
known as low vision or even called as vision impairment. In other words, it is a
vision loss of a person. It is yet has no medication or even a refractive
correction could not be made. It can be from an infection of a disease or might
have been ruined by accident or perhaps from the day birth of a child.
Teaching methods
To go with the standard of
these visual impairments students, the study is about to find new methods or
pedagogy on the schedule of the visual impairments schools. This is because
their teaching styles cannot be taken for granted as they need more attention
or new styles of studies to gaining the learning process as to ensure they can
catch up on the subjects taken. The new style of teaching method is to
implement the visual arts consist of visualize more on every appropriate
subjects, putting more colours as the vibes to jump start the learning periods,
enhance the learning process, giving time to enjoy with arts thing to be more
relaxation as to seek their attention to focus in the class, etc.
1.7
Limitation of Study
This study is basically emphasizing or
specifically to the visual impairment students, that is obviously for the
schools of visual impairment in Malaysia. This study is not to be coordinated
to primary and secondary school nor to the universities and colleges.
The visual impairment
children are not really well known to the society. The existence of the schools
in our country is also a question to the people. Therefore, this study is quite
limited to make comparisons or to share new things or even to attempt a new
style of teaching technique.
1.8
Significance of study
This study is literally a new attempt
of teaching styles in terms of finding easier way to walk the children to a
better path. Therefore, this may lead and monitor the students in a better way
while capturing their attention, make them interest in learning the subjects in
school. This approach perhaps could help with the learning process more
effectively.
1.9
Conclusion
This chapter has covered the
background of study, the statement of the research problem, the research
objectives, the research questions, the significance of the research, the
research hypothesis, definitions of study and limitation of study. The
literature review of the topic related to this study will be presented in the
next chapter.
CHAPTER
2
Literature
Review
2.0 Introduction
This chapter will review on the past
researches that have been conducted on visual impairment students. For the
previous research, the study was about to enhance to learning process of the
visual impairment students. It was about how the teacher should be ready to
teach these students. ‘Whatever the
degree of impairment, students who are visually impaired should be expected to
participate fully in classroom activities. Although they may confront
limitations, with proper planning and adaptive equipment their participation
can be maximized. Students should not be exempt from test taking or expected to
master less or perform at a lower scholastic level because of a visual
impairment. Here are some tips from the University of Rochester Disability
Resource website that may give teachers some good ideas when they have a
student with vision impairment in their class.’ (Dawn Kuna). Almost the
similar purpose, finding new methods or enhancing the learning processes, this
study is about implementing the visual arts approach to the appropriate
subjects of visual impairment students. Visual impairment students basically
need to be taught in their way of learning process. So the teachers basically
need to understand the situation so that they will not make the student feel
bored with the teaching styles. They need to figure out exactly what these
students ability to catch up the subjects.
2.1 Visual Impairments
The previous research had been done by
Dawn Kuna about teaching the visual impairments students. It was about more
attention on the particular environments of the classrooms. The issue
emphasized on the good condition for visual impairments to be studied.
According to the study, in America there are approximately 10 million people
that are visually impaired. Out of these 10 million, approximately 93,600
people are students. About two-thirds of children with vision impairments also
have one or more other disabilities. Children with severe vision impairments
are more likely to have additional disabilities. When a child is born with a
visual impairment it is called congenital blindness. This may be inherited or
may be from an infection passed on from mother to child. It is very rare that
people lose their sight during their teen years. When they do, it is usually
some sort of accident that results in some sort of head trauma. The classroom accommodations
for people with visual impairment students were once being researched by the
program of ‘Deaf-Blind Program’ from Sanford School of Medicine, The University
of South Dakota. The accommodations consist of the lighting, environmental,
materials and technique. The lighting emphasized on the use of the lighting
because according to the study, good lighting is not always the bright
lighting, plus not always the more lighting. Factors to consider when making
decisions about lighting are amount, location, ability to control, glare
reduction. Different eye diseases require different levels of light. By positioning
the student according to their visual condition and lighting needs, they will
not get a glare. For examples, Desk should not face the window, teacher should
not stand in front of a window, cover glass doors on cabinets and metal
surfaces, remove glass from pictures, pull shades or window covering, use
lampshades to control glare, provide coloured filters/acetates over light
bulbs, minimize glare from shinny surfaces, such as glossy paper, table tops,
desk, floors, etc. by covering surfaces with dark, non-glossy cloth or
construction paper. Based on environmental approaches, they need to allow for
flexible seating to accommodate for the lighting needs (time of day, sunny vs.
cloudy day, amount of light coming in the window), being able to see (includes
access to the chalkboard/white board), clean chalkboards/whiteboards
frequently, provide extra storage and/or working space to accommodate supplies,
also when without other students present, allow the student with a visual
impairment to explore the room in order to become familiar with the layout.
Other than that, the materials also came to the very important needs to be
considered consist of providing the reading stand/slant board to relieve neck
and back fatigue, provide typoscope / straight edge ruler to isolate lines or
sections in texts or on paper to maintain the student’s place in the text, allow
and provide for a combination of devices and materials such as large print,
regular print, magnifiers, monocular/binocular telescopes, closed captioned television
and reading with print close to eyes. In the other hand, the technique is
literally to be focused on consist of knowing the functional visual needs of
each student, alternate the student’s day between near tasks and less demanding
tasks, verbalize all writing on the board as well as other information (the
student may miss seeing a smile of encouragement), minimize coping, make all
writing on the board large and clear and place in the line of vision of the
student, provide rest periods, minimize clutter on pictures and materials, provide
list of assignments in advance, provide copies of overheads in advance, be
aware of benefits of colour and contrast in materials, use concrete rather than
abstract objects as much as possible, allow students to tacitly handle
materials being shown or demonstrated and allow extra time to complete
assignments, be aware that vision can fluctuate from minute to minute, hour to
hour and day to day based upon a variety of factors, including environmental conditions,
lighting, visual condition or disease, fatigue, amount of contrast and medications.
2.2
Implementing Visual Arts
The
learning processes of students are very different to each one of the students.
Equal to the visual impairment students, they have different styles of learning
process where they have different problems to each one of them. Finding the
appropriate approach of teaching methods, this study is about implement the
visual arts into the appropriate subjects of the visual impairment students.
2.3
Teaching Method
By implementing visual arts into the visual impairments
education, the teaching methods or pedagogy has to be very particularly
researched depending on how these students will be able to understand whether
they will need a perfect time management, or approaches with vary styles of
teaching methods. It must be tally to the teaching processes of the students as
they are different to the other normal students. in this teaching method, while
injecting visual arts into the subjects of visual impairment education, they
may be need colourful things to attract the eyes which they have the lower
vision might be very low compared to the normal people.
2.4
Characteristic of Visual Impairment
Students with visual impairments may
have difficulty orienting to people because they cannot see them. In addition,
these students may experience difficulties with manipulation of objects.
Students with visual impairments generally
have the same academic ability their normal peers have. The educational
performance of students with visual impairments is often delayed in comparison
to their peers, with reading and language the primary areas that present
difficulties
2.5
Low Vision
The Persons with
Disabilities Act, 1995 also recognizes low vision as a category of disability
and defines it as follows:
“Person with low vision”
means a person with impairment of visual functioning even after treatment or
standard refractive 1correction but who
uses or is potentially capable of using vision for the planning or execution
ofa task with appropriate assistive
device”.
This definition is incomplete as it
inadvertently omits quantification of the acuity as well as the field of vision
as is done in the case of the WHO definition. It is desirable to modify this definition
and the following quantification should be added:
“Low vision are those who
suffer visual acuity between 20/200 to 70/200 (Snellen) or 6/18 to 6/60 in the
better eye after the best possible correction or a Field of Vision between 20
to 30 degrees”.
Chapter
3
3.0 Introduction
This
chapter explains the research design for this study, the method of data
collection, the population as well as the sample of this study and the data
analysis of the data. The data that has been analyzed will then be presented in
the next chapter.
3.1 Research Design
This
study will be carried out using interview session and quasi-experimental. To
further my research I sued pre-test and post-test control-group design. A postpositive
approach will be used as the term refers to the understanding that when studying
human behaviours or actions, researchers cannot be entirely positive of the
results. This type of philosophy is deterministic in the idea that a cause can affect
an outcome. The quasi-experimental method for investigating the research will
be chosen.
The
purpose of this quasi-experimental study is to produce objective on which to
base whether further study concerning visual art experience and its effect on creativity
should be pursued. Unstructured interview will be used as the approach of
getting the result.
3.2
Population and Sample
3.2.1 Visual Impairment students
Research will be pre-tested on the
visual impairment students themselves. The purpose of this is about to get the
result among student to get the feedback straight immediately.
3.2.2 Teachers in Visual Impairment
School
Unstructured interview will be used
for the teachers as to getting more information about the behaviour, reactions
from the view of the teachers; whom knew the students better.
3.3
Instrumentation
3.3.1 Pre-test and quasi experimental
Pre test and quasi experimental will
be the approaches of the study as students will be pre-tested to determine the
students eligibility. Also to the quasi experimental, it is something that this
study could not identify.
3.3.2 Observation Scheme
Visual impairment students will be
observed through their behaviours, reactions when this approach is done towards
them. This approach is going to need a particular view so that the researcher
could manage to observe perfectly.
3.3.3 Postpositive approach
This approach is about something
this study could not predict. So instead of thinking the positive result, this
approach tells about giving the postpositive so that the study will be more
carefully due to the unexpected results.
3.3.4 Unstructured Interview
Unstructured interview is one of the
instruments that will be used in this study. The interview is among the
teachers who are almost hundred percent understand the students behaviours and
actions. This interview however will be done with few questions, even though it
is not to be prepared with bunch of proper questions.
3.4 Data Collection
Before
the real data collection process for this study is carried out, a pilot study
will be conducted on a smaller population of the same intended samples such as
the teachers of the visual impairments students. The pilot study will help to
improve the questions for the real interview. Pre-test and quasi experimental
is to determine the students’ eligibilities. To get closer with these special
children, visual impairment students will be observed through the observation
scheme and absolutely used the postpositive approach which came as precautions.
Unstructured interview will be held among the teachers in the school of visual
impairment.
|
Pre-test and quasi experimental
|
|
Observation Scheme
|
|
Postpositive approach
|
|
Unstructured interview
|
Figure 3.4 : Data Collection Chart
3.5 Data Analysis
In
this section, researcher uses table of data analysis procedure in showing
further information about the method used in analyzing the data.
Table
of Data Analysis Procedure
|
|
Research
Question
|
Instruments
|
Data
Analysis
|
|
1
|
What
are the methods or the pedagogy through the teaching style of visual arts to
the low vision students?
|
Interview
|
Content Analysis
|
|
2
|
Why
is it important to attempt the injection of visual arts into the low vision
subjects in their school?
|
Interview
|
Content Analysis
|
|
3
|
How
the approach of implementing visual arts in the low vision teaching styles
could help the students to learn more effectively?
|
Experimental
|
Observation
|
Teachers
will be interviewed to get information about students achievement and
eligibility to be implemented to the visual arts studies into their subjects.
Experimental will be the attempt of the pre-test on the students themselves to
determine the methods on implementing visual arts in every subject to ease the
learning processes. The questions might be simple, perhaps will attract the students’
interests.
3.6 Conclusion
This
chapter has covered the research design, the data collection method,
instruments and data analysis. The next chapter will be discussing on the
findings of this study.
Bibliography
Samantha Hoffman, November 2002. Eligibility Criteria for Visual
Impairment, Evaluation Guide : Wisconsin Department of Public
Instruction Madison, Wisconsin.
Christine Arter, 1999. Children with Visual Impairment
in Mainstream Settings : David Fulton Publishers, New York
Virginia E. Bishop, 2004.Teaching Visually Impaired
Children: Charles c Thomas Ltd, Springfield.
Elisabeth Salzhauer
Axel, Nina Sobol Levent, 2002.
Art
Beyond Sight: A Resource Guide to Art, Creativity, and Visual Impairment :
New York.
Gordon Dutton, Martin
Bax, 2010. Visual
Impairment in Children due to Damage to the Brain : London.
Christine Roman-Lantzy, 2007. Cortical Visual Impairment: An
Approach to Assessment and Intervention : Unite States of America.
Appendix
Interview Parts (Teachers’ Section)
1. How hard is
the visual impairment students give their attention in classes?
2. What is
their attraction during class period? Are there any distractions while teaching
them?
3. Is it
relevant to implement colors / visual arts into their subjects to enhance the
teaching styles?
4. Are visual
impairment students being classified into categories or levels?
Pre –test (Students’ Section)
1.
Based on colors given through the numbers,
complete the calculation of these ;
a. Light blue +
purple = _______________
b. Green – blue
= ______________
c. Orange +
blue =_______________
2. Using the
items given (brush, watercolor, drawing paper), draw human anatomy based on
your interest of colors. Use your own imagination.
