Rehabilitation Teaching for the Blind
Rehabilitation Teachers are professionals who teach blind or visually impaired people a broad array of alternative techniques to maintain independence, including braille, Orientation and Mobility, cooking skills, cleaning techniques, assistive technology and other skills of blindness. These teachers are highly cross-trained individual skilled in all areas of blindness techniques and are qualified for a variety of positions.
Louisiana Tech is the only Rehabilitation Teaching Program that specifically teaches the structured-discovery method to future instructors. Students learn first-hand the capabilities of the blind through extensive training under shades and by learning from blind people.
All our Rehab Teaching students go through blindness immersion at the Louisiana Center for the Blind (LCB) for a quarter. There, they participate in all Center classes—cane travel, braille, computers, home management and industrial arts—under blindfold alongside LCB students. After immersion, Rehab Teaching students take Orientation and Mobility 1 to gain a solid foundation in cane travel instruction and Braille 1 to demonstrate proficiency in the tactile code and assistive technology.
Our Rehab Teaching students gain a complete knowledge of contracted Unified English Braille and proper formatting using both the Perkins braille writer and slate and stylus. Students can choose to stay at Louisiana Tech for an extra semester to earn the designation of National Orientation and Mobility Certification (NOMC) and will possess the skills necessary to complete the National Certification in Unified English Braille (NCUEB).
Our graduates are well equipped to teach in a variety of settings, including public schools, for Vocational Rehabilitation Agencies, for Veterans Affairs agencies, in rehabilitation training centers for the blind and other locations. These individuals are highly cross trained, giving the flexibility to meet the demands of a diverse population of consumers who are blind or visually impaired.
Why get a Degree in Rehabilitation Teaching?
There is still a significant shortage of blindness professionals in the field today. Even fewer have mastered the non-visual skills and full braille code blind students need to be truly independent. Every day, we at the Institute learn of job opportunities for instructors in braille, cane travel, and home management, many of which come from training centers looking for people to hire in all these fields. Our graduates are ready and equipped to go to those centers and be able to fill almost any of those positions straight out of training.
No teaching background or blindness experience is necessary. It does not matter what your Bachelor’s degree is in. We have trained successful instructors with degrees in anything from the arts to psychology. We can teach you all the skills and techniques you need.
This degree path offers you the unique opportunity to become certified in multiple areas in the blindness field. With a little extra effort, you can be certified in all three areas: Rehabilitation Teaching, Orientation and Mobility and braille. We want to see more cross-trained individuals in the field, and invite you to join us in training the next generation of blindness professionals.
Courses
The five courses listed here are the blindness-specific courses required in the Louisiana Tech University Rehabilitation Teaching for the Blind graduate program. They are not the only courses required for the degree. Contact us for full information about the degree track.
- EPSY 580 Immersion in Blindness Practicum, 6 credit hours
- EDCI 436 Braille I, 3 credit hours
- EPSY 582 Introduction to Orientation and Mobility, 3 credit hours
- EPSY 587 Advanced Rehabilitation Systems and Issues, 3 credit hours
- EPSY 588 Internship in Rehabilitation Teaching, 3 credit hours