March 30, 2011
Snow Hawk Dr.
El Paso, TX 79936
Phone: (915) 123-4567
someone@miners.utep.edu
9009 El Dorado Dr.
El Paso, TX 79925
Phone: (915) 253-3613
miselacw@yahoo.com
Dear Trustee,
There are many dilemmas facing the visually impaired people of El Paso, Texas. As one of those visually impaired individuals, I am very aware of these problems and also aware of some dire changes that need to be made and I am duty bound to bring them to light. Elementary and high schools need better programs for the visually impaired, more teacher understanding of the disability, and a place to go to access adaptive equipment.
Students with visual impairments need better assistance in schools. When I used to live in California, I attended a school that was very well equipped to handle visually impaired students as well as students with other disabilities. There, I was able to stay in sync with my peers because of a small team of dedicated teachers and assistants working out of a very small classroom. The majority of the teachers at the school were aware of this classroom and knew what do if they had a visually impaired student in their class. Tests could be enlarged or translated into brail and administered on the day of the test. Assignments could be sent to the classroom for the same services. If there was a problem, like difficult handwriting to read, the teachers would rewrite them for the student and the problem would be quickly fixed. I did not find such help in El Paso. It was a shock, like being drenched with an ice cold bucket of water, to find out that I would not be receiving such assistance at my school or that teachers would panic when I was placed in their classroom.
Some teachers had trouble understanding my disability. In one of my classes, I had a teacher that was so baffled that he requested I be transferred to another classroom rather than deal with me or even try to understand me. I had liked that teacher before that and I had thought he like me, but I was transferred the very next day without a choice. Unlike at my last school, there was little understanding of someone who looked normal, but wasn’t. There was an itinerate teacher that visited me a few times a month to asses my progress or to see if I needed anything and some very nice people that tried their best to help me adapt to my new school, but the lack of a safe environment to go to where there were others like me who could understand me affected me profoundly. I did adapt, however, in the end. I learned to make my own enlargements and teachers found me trustworthy enough to enlarge my own tests. The rest of my teachers were accepting and understanding once they learned that, with only a little help, I could do a lot.
I struggled to stay on track, though. I had to enlarge tests on the day they were being administered, denying me of valuable class time. I was given extra time on tests and assignments, but I always found myself a couple of steps behind my peers. I was no longer equal. That is why it is important for schools in El Paso to have a program for the visually impaired. Even if it is one school that serves a large area, where these students can go to find the help they need. A school with such a program could have the necessary technology on hand like screen readers and magnifiers, CCTV’s, and copy machines reserved especially for making enlargements. Adequate equipment can help a student attain independence. It might even very well be possible to use current funding available. Providing such programs might not depend on more money from taxes, but a better distribution of funds. Having visually impaired students in one place where equipment can be shared can prove to be more cost effective because the equipment would not have to be sent to multiple schools, which can already prove difficult and time consuming.
In conclusion, as a visually impaired student, I have used my unique perspective to shed light on the changes that need to be made in the education system of young students with disabilities. Better programs will help students keep up with their peers. Teachers that are more understanding can help provide a better learning environment and better equipment can allow a student to be more independent. A better school will lead to better lives for disabled students.
Best Regards
Steven Juarez
