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Braille Literacy

A hundred years ago, literacy was a symbol of intelligence; illiteracy relegated many people to life as second-class citizens. Literacy involves the ability to access written information, to store and retrieve it, and to communicate with others. For a blind person who is blocked from printing, literacy includes the ability to use Braille. A great number of blind people are growing up illiterate and Braille is a good answer to this problem.

The main difference between print and Braille is simply that print is meant to be read with the eyes, while Braille is meant to be read with the fingertips. In both cases it is the brain that processes and reacts to the raw data sent to it by the fingers or the eyes.

In 1960, 50 percent of legally blind, school-age children were able to read Braille. Today there are over 55,000 legally blind school-age children in the United States and only about 12 percent are able to read Braille, according to federal statistics. If the child is blind, the child has only one chance in eight of learning to read and write. Ask yourself how many parents want their children, no matter how well they can or cannot see, to be illiterate, to be dependent on others for the rest of their lives? Braille, independence, confidence, success, and literacy are all tied together. Why are these children being denied the opportunities that come with a proper education?

Is Braille is on the way out with the coming of the digital age and the greater availability of audio material? Listening does not equal literacy. Literacy is the ability to read and to write and to do the two interactively. Children who learn exclusively by listening do not learn about proper spelling, punctuation, and syntax. As for technology, the irony is that technological advances have made Braille easier to produce and consequently more widely available than at any other time in the history of the code. The act of quietly holding a book in your hands and reading for the pleasure of reading is a gift. Independent reading is true independence of the mind. Braille is the only thing equivalent to print for the blind.

Far too few blind people have access to quality instruction in Braille. This is true despite the fact that research demonstrates a significant relationship between Braille and employment: among the estimated 85,000 blind adults in the United States, 90 percent of those who are Braille literate are employed. Among blind adults who do not know Braille, only about 30 per cent are employed.

What if you could not read and write? Where would you be today? People who enjoy reading and writing and do it regularly show themselves to be literate as well as motivated. Many adults with low vision teach themselves Braille and become proficient in it. A person's level of literacy has a direct impact on both physical and psychological well-being. It affects his/her ability to care for his/her family by enabling him/her to read directions on a cleaning product, follow a recipe, and even hold down a job. Just as noted above about children, for adults Braille, independence, confidence, success, and literacy are all tied together. Without Braille, you don't have a way to write down a phone number or an address. You are unable to participate in the world the way sighted people do.