One approach to opening the door to learning is by reading. It is a popular pastime among many.
Through the printed page, readers journey to locations they may have visited or may never visit.
Reading encourages interaction with persons we have seen, met, or may never meet.
What is viewed through the eyes determines a big portion of reading for the sighted.
However, the unpredictability of living in a world rife with unforeseen occurrences may plunge us into a world of total darkness.
Education officials in the field of visual impairment are deeply ingrained in the proverb, “Disability is a club anyone can join at any time.” Despite such an error, reading will continue to demand its proper respect.
Abdi Fatah is legally blind. With the aid of his cane and guide, he frequently navigates to the library at the Kenya Institute for the Blind (KIB) in Nairobi West to read, albeit with his fingers.
His voracious desire to read drives him to do this.
He has a glimmer of hope thanks to Braille, a form of touch-based reading. He continues enjoying reading words on the stiff pages of embossed books.
“I was born blind,” he states to introduce his narrative. He is from a remote location in northeastern Kenya, near the border with Somalia.
Before enrolling at KIB, he had yet to complete any official education in school. He was only familiar with the Quran as taught at madrasas. He’s now mastered the art of reading Braille.
Fatah discovered a nearby school for visually challenged pupils while living with his uncle in South C from a relative. This school’ was KIB.
Fatah needed help understanding Swahili and English.
He was given mobility orientation upon his arrival at KIB.
We were taught to grasp and use a white cane while walking.
Then, he says, “I was taught basic English and Swahili.” “I was taught to read and write Braille by this institution. In 2007, I originally came here for training. It lasted one entire year. Unlike millions of other learners, Fatah’s formal education kicked off in Braille.
In 2008, he enrolled in Thika Primary School for the Blind before moving on to Thika High School for the Blind.
He sat for his Kenya Certificate of Primary and Secondary School Education examinations in Braille.
Initially, “I felt it was impossible, but as time passed, I grew accustomed to it, and now I like it,” he explains. He qualified for college.
He is reading one of two volumes of a book titled “An enemy of the people” when he is observed at his desk in the KIB library. He says, “I just chose them at random.”
He says, “I come here every day.” While attending primary and secondary schools, he frequently borrowed books from this library. He has been able to escape the grip of illiteracy thanks to the provision.
The Education Resources Department is where the Braille press is located at this government organization under the direction of the Ministry of Education. Here, Braille books are produced.
According to Lydia Karanja, Deputy Principal of KIB, “This may include educational curriculum books for schools, such as those for the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC), as well as other curriculum materials for other levels, such as secondary schools and higher institutions.”
Fatah does not take for granted the effort that goes into the ceaseless production of Braille materials for his benefit.
Regular print is frequently utilized in school materials for the blind.
To accommodate the needs of the visually challenged, the text must be transformed into an embossed font.
KIB has attempted to stay up with the evolving technical scene by installing effective, cutting-edge, and brand-new Braille machines.
The Head of the press division at KIB, Celine Mutisya, says, “If we receive the books in soft, the task will be easier. But if they are printed, we must scan them to create digital versions.”
KIB trains transcribers who provide support services to learners in schools and colleges. The specialized software, the Duxbury Braille Translator, is used to convert digital documents to Braille. Depending on the size of the book and its content, the procedure may take a few days or even up to a month.
Once a book has been scanned, it is taken to teachers for adaptation.
This involves making content accessible to learners with visual impairments.
If a book has a diagram to be converted into Braille, “We may not have it as it is. Mutisya says, “We change the diagram and make it tactile.” “Readers would touch, feel, and comprehend the meaning.”
After transcribing, a copy is generated and proofread. Teachers by profession, the proofreaders. They can read with their fingertips.
An instructor who is blind interacts with someone who is sighted at the proofreading office. While the touch reader has the Braille copy, the sighted person has the print copy. The pair reads word for word to ensure that what’s in the print copy is the same as what’s in the Braille book.
In contrast to Susan Kazilika, who is sighted, Morris Maganju is a blind touch-reading proofreader at KIB. With the tips of his fingers, Maganju studies the raised dots, pronouncing each word and punctuation. Kazilika follows with keen eyes, eager to confirm. Maganju says, “Exclamation point!” at the end of one phrase.
There is a discrepancy. Kazilika declares, “This one is the end.” On the Braille page, the mistake is marked with a pen and marked for rectification.
Once the proofreaders certify that the book is accurate and the adaptation is appropriate for learners with visual impairment, mass manufacturing commences.
Electronic documents are transmitted to an embosser.
This is the device that generates the Braille tactile dots.
The final copy is in Braille on paper. Someone double-checks where to place tactile diagrams in the book if there are any.
Mutisya says, “We do not insert the original copy.” “We insert a thermoformed reproduction. Thermoforming is comparable to photocopying.”
After insertion, these items are bound. Next is quality control. Mutisya says, “We must verify that the Braille book is identical to the one we received initially.”
Innumerable copies of these publications have been scanned by Fatah using the tips of his fingers. Schools and postsecondary institutions delivering special needs education across the country depend on Braille. As a result, diversity in education is being promoted, and learning opportunities for the visually impaired are provided.
This aligns with Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4, which seeks to “ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and encourage opportunities for lifelong learning for everyone.”
To illustrate the significance of KIB, Karanja used the example of a blind science teacher. The instructor’s thoughts would become blank. “KIB functions as a rehabilitation center for newly blinded individuals in the country,” she says.
“We have learners who lose sight when they are in primary or secondary schools or even at the university,” says Karanja. “We rehabilitate them by providing them with braille reading abilities in English, Swahili, and mathematics.”
They are then forwarded to the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) for posting, either back to their original station or elsewhere.
KIB ensures that new clients receive counselling and guidance.
This enables individuals to accept their new circumstances rather than collapse into denial after the terrible experience of losing sight.
Additionally, KIB provides psychosocial help. “Once a year, we visit the families of the blind. Karanja says, “We discuss with them the necessity of providing aid to the victims. “We convince them that following rehabilitation, the individual will be self-sufficient, and their anxiety will be short-lived.”
Students who commute to KIB. As with Fatah, some may hail from remote regions of the country. KIB neighbourhood hostels may need to be more pricey.
“We are constructing our hostel,” Karanja explains, indicating the new structure. This dormitory is a game-changer for this institution and will be operational in 2023. More learners will be rehabilitated, which will benefit the nation.”
“When we perform outreach initiatives, we come across folks who lost sight yet are imprisoned in houses,” Karanja says.
Fatah finds the inclination toward stigmatization disturbing. He is also troubled by the fact that some parents are pessimistic, believing their children’s blindness portends a dark future due to their illness.
“I advise such parents to release their children and enroll them in appropriate schools. He says, “This will empower them to do practically anything for themselves.” His message to the visually challenged is, “Work diligently to achieve your goals.”
For the Blind, Braille is the standard written language. It has shed some light on Fatah, who would otherwise be imprisoned in darkness.
Optimistically, he says, “I just finished a course for special education for youth.” “I’d like to work as one of Kenya’s Special Needs teachers.”