Interaction and Beginning to Understand

On the second day we arrived early at Mathru School, Yelahanka. On account of it being children's day the teachers were taking the children to a near by park so that they could play. They had planned a few activities like running races and the like.

The children had formed a continuous chain which was lead by a few of the faculty toward the park. All the children were barefoot. I was slightly stumped by this observation as I thought the ground and road must have been quite hot. On asking the teachers, they told me that they had asked the children to do this since they wanted to them to experience the textures to and from the park and making the students stay barefoot was an easy way to do the same. I decided that I would do the same at a later point and was quite surprised to find that the ground at the park was pretty cold, even under the harshest sun.

On going to the park the teachers took the children for a round on the inside of the park. Then they were taken to the playground where once they were acclimatised the teachers started the activities. The activities have been enumerated by Rashmi in her post, so I won't repeat them again. I would however like to enumerate certain observations that I made-

1. Some of the totally blind children had less inhibitions than the partially blind children. I saw that during the running races the children who were completely blind tended to run with more abandon than the children who were partially blind. (this was not true of all the children)

2. In the running races the children started out running in straight lines in the general direction of the sound and then they started running towards the person when they were about 20m.

3. During the in and out games, Shaurya added an element of turning either Left or Right based on what he shouted out. It was interesting to see that even though the children had turned left or right their spatial sense allowed them to still jump backwards and forwards while facing the front.

These activities were an unforeseen trove of information. We learned so much about the limitations of the visually impaired and understood other aspects of how they experience through their other senses. The children were also a delight to play with.

Getting Acquainted at Rakum School

Shri Rakum School, Indiranagar

Today we went to the Shri Rakum School that offers free boarding and education right from kindergarten to post graduation to students that are visually impaired or under privileged. Since the institution is completely free, donations in the form of clothes, newspapers, food supply etc. are much appreciated and play an important part in running the school.

We had the opportunity to speak to Mrs. Vasantha – the administrator and English teacher, who took us around the school and allowed us to sit in on classes and interact with some of the post graduate students. The first lesson we sat through was history with 3 visually impaired students- Bhavya, Vivekananda and Mahendra who are preparing for the IAS exams. I was in complete awe at the high speed at which the three were able to write in braille, comprehend and answer the questions their teacher was dictating. Their work ethic was remarkable and the entire class was carried out like how any student with sight would be taught.  The class was definitely not easy especially the speed at which the notes were being dictated. Mrs. Vasantha told us that the students are extremely intelligent and do not want to be treated any differently because of their disability. She was patient with them but also stern if they were distracted or making careless mistakes in their work. Indeed, I could tell that the presence of us their class room did make them a bit uneasy at first but by the second lesson, they seemed much more comfortable. They were extremely respectful, polite and friendly and were openly willing to show us how they use the braille grid and the stylus  (a needle –like pen) to create the patterned dots. They explained to us how they write in braille from right to left and then turn the page, so that the reverse side has the dots protruding which they read from left to right. If they make a mistake in their notes or have to make changes, they have a particular method of using symbols to make corrections.

We also observed the students in math class, where they were at the level of solving complex calculus problems. After sitting through the class it seemed as though math was a harder subject, yet they confidently told us that it’s actually very simple. For math they have a particular grid, which looks similar to the one they use for writing in braille. However here they use it to work out calculations by inserting plastic chips that have to be angled particularly to denote each number. The only difficulty is that they have to retain a lot of their calculations because the grid only holds a certain number of chips at once. It seemed very complicated to us, but they were able to solve the math sums with ease and mentally calculate within minutes.

Something Namrata and I found very fascinating was that the pages of their books were made from recycled newspaper. So the whole idea of re - writing on already printed-paper was intriguing. We couldn’t really see the braille markings in their book, unless we touched it ourselves as the print on the newspapers dominated the page. So just seeing the students reading their written notes out loud and spurting out fact about history and civics while their palms and fingers rhythmically moved across pages of newspaper advertisements was very captivating.

After spending the entire day observing the behaviour of the students at the school, I could see that the visually impaired students are extremely well behaved and respectful. They are always helpful to one another be it holding each others hand to navigate through the campus or adjusting their seating arrangement to accommodate us in their class room. The attitude with which they were eager to learn, share with us and their always-smiling nature really filled the school with happy, positive energy.  Something I noticed while sitting in on the classes, was that each student is different in the manner in which they touch and feel objects. Some are gentle when using their tools to write, while others are a bit more aggressive and use more force. Some could find their way across the campus with minimal help and just by feeling the walls and counting their steps, while others needed a guide. Though each student’s is very different from one another, they are all extremely perceptive and could even notice when one of our students was a bit apprehensive when the school’s dog approached her.

Although the school is small in structure, the faculty and administration are making the best use of the space they have. They don’t have the typical classrooms with 4 walls. Instead they have divided a long corridor stretch with metal partitions to segregate the space into classes  (1-12). Unlike the Mathru School, the walls in Rakum are bare, hence there is scope to maybe create some sort of artwork or installation on them for the students to interact with and enjoy themselves.

We were told by Mrs. Vasantha that they still haven’t managed to organize a class where the students can use their creativity. This might be a good opportunity for us to arrange activities on those lines such as painting crafts or even story telling.

My first experience

My first experience in a blind school was overwhelming. It was nothing like what I had imagined it to be. It seemed like an entirely different world. Although I knew they used the Braille system to read, it was interesting to find out how they took notes in Braille using a slate and stylus. I immediately felt like touching what they had written.

On entering one of the class rooms I was amazed by how they sensed us. It was heart warming to see them greet us with a smile without any prompting. They seemed pretty intense in their work as there was nothing to distract them visually.

I found the computer skills class very interesting. The computer was programmed in such a way that it would prompt the student the key typed on the keyboard through an audio note. We were lucky enough to get a welcome note from one of the students on the computer.

KiliKili an organisation which designs spaces for special needs, contributed towards these children by designing their school walls. Their interactive and tactile installations were very interesting. I left the school guessing how much more I would experience in the following days.

My second experience started with The Rakum School at Jakkur. It was unfortunate we could not meet the blind students as they were shifted to another branch in Indira Nagar. We had a brief session with one of the visually impaired faculty who gave us some insights about the Braille slate and stylus.

Then we moved to the Indira Nagar branch of Rakum School only to find it was a mixed group. It seemed like a mainstream school along with the visually impaired. Here we experienced how the visually impaired students were given an equal chance as the rest of them for higher studies. It was amazing to see how they were happily interacting with each other, like any other mainstream school class room.   

Childrens day at Mathru

Since it was childrens day kids were taken to play ground to play. Kids were holding each others hands while walking.We conducted various games related to touch and sound.

Games conducted:

 In and out:  Kids were made to stand in a circle. When a person calls in, kids had to jump inside the circle and when a person calls out,kids had to jump outside the circle.

Clap:  When three clap sounds were made kids had to jump inside the cicle. For single clap sound,kids had to jump standing in their place once.For other clap sounds kids had to repeat the sound.When a person tells move kids had to raise their hands.If a person tells some other words they have to remain in the same place.

Sound: Kids had to repeat the sounds made by a person.

Opposite: When a person tells left, kids had to raise their right hand.When a person tells right,kids had to raise their left hand. When a person tells up, kids had to keep their hands down and when a person tells down,kids had to raise their hands up.

Dog and the bone: one person will be making sound with bottle in the centre. Partially and totally blind were mixed and made into separate groups where partially blind was numbered from 1 to 5 and totally blind were numbered from 6 to 10.When a number is called, person assigned to that number from each team has to come and grab the bottle listening to bottle sound. One who grabs the bottle, that team gets a point.

Observations:

It was very hot but kids were walking bare footed to get the feel of ground and objects as they walk. They responded and enjoyed  more in sound and touch games.While playing dog and the bone, blind students could go towards the direction of the bottle to grab it by listening to the sound of the bottle made by a person.Kids were asked to participate in running race in which not all kids succeeded. Few felt inconvenient in running, few were inconvinient  to run in same direction as the rest and they were running in wrong directions.Completely blind kids always hold hands of other kids who is either partially blind or fully blind.I saw few blind kids who were sitting in a group and singing.

Rakum School for the Blind, Indiranagar

Rakum School for the Blind, Indiranagar

Sri Rakum School for The Blind was opened in June 1998, India. The School was founded for children who are born blind or visually impaired. Coming from families living below the poverty line, these children are shunned, denied a childhood and the opportunities to grow into normal adults. Children from distant villages and tribal regions come to Rakum where they are welcome with open arms.

Our first interaction at the Rakum School was with Mrs. Vasantha, who is second in command for the Indiranagar school after Sri Achraya Rakum himself. She teaches English to the students preparing for IAS and it was here where I met Mahendra, Vivek and Bhavya. All three have completed their Masters in English and Sociology.

The first session that we had was when they had an English class. This was the first time when I saw how visually impaired write; it was an A4 size mould that has two panels connected at one vertical end. They represent the braille mould, and a stylus which is a sharpened pin which is attached to a small handle which it can be held from. One hand used to feel the mould and the other holding the stylus to write.

My mind was drawn to the sheer speed with which all three could write and even keep up with the Mrs. Vasantha; she wasn’t making things easy for them. This strict disciplined schedule that is followed is made and abide by is for preparing them for the life they wait to face outside Rakum.

I kept thinking if our presence in that class was bothering them, but felt that do they feel comfortable in that void, do they not become anxious in the presence of someone else, especially someone whom they don’t know. This question for now remains unanswered.

Their method of writing reminded me of sewing machines and how they were embroidering their words on to the used newspaper which was converted into notebooks. It was astounding to learn that they write from right to left and read from left to write, what amazed me was effortlessly they could accomplish this. Their writing technique seemed effective but tedious; I was wondering if there could be some other method through which they could write. Due to lack of technology at the school any book that had to be converted to Braille was done manually through a Braille Typewriter; thus taking almost a month to translate short stories into Braille format.

After the class was over we headed out to see the rest of the school, where I met the blind teacher, who was talking about colour to students, the whole scenario was ironic, I felt pain growing in my heart and yet I was filled with a sense of admiration and respect towards him. It was amazing to see how one could not only overcome ones shortcoming but also help those who could benefit from his capacity to teach.

At the end of the day we witnessed one of the most interesting classes that are conducted at Rakum School, Mathematics. It never occurred to me that how the blind would negotiate themselves around complicated formulas and polynomial equations. To my surprise all the calculations were done in mere seconds in their minds, not only this they even answered the steps they went through to get to the answer.

What grabbed my attention the most was how the perception of sound and touch with the hands make a difference. The teacher was not only listening to the students reciting the spelling but was monitoring the class as well. The use of hands to read and also coordinate writing, helped the students document but refer to what they had written.

My two days at Rakum School have given me a lot of insight into how the visually impaired sense the world around them and how these insights can be incorporated in the creation of an art installation.

Kilikili

http://www.kilikili.org/

Interesting Links

http://blog.ted.com/2013/09/11/how-technology-is-changing-blindness/

http://www.ted.com/talks/neil_harbisson_i_listen_to_color.html

http://www.ted.com/talks/chimamanda_adichie_the_danger_of_a_single_story.html

http://www.ted.com/talks/suheir_hammad_poems_of_war_peace_women_power.html

http://www.ted.com/playlists/3/the_artist_is_in.html

http://www.ted.com/playlists/20/where_do_ideas_come_from.html

http://www.ted.com/playlists/11/the_creative_spark.html

Links for the Schools and Organizations for the Visually Impaired

http://www.rakum.org/rakum_school/
http://www.nabkarnataka.org/
http://www.mathrublindschool.org/

First Impressions

Interaction with the children was kept to a minimal. Most of the information that I gleaned was from observation or talking to the teachers. The first shock for me was when I saw the children writing, I understood how they would read braille through touch, but somehow it never struck me to wonder how they would write it.

The children used a a4 size tablet similar to the one shown above to write braille. The writing was done from right to left on the backside of the page so that the front would have the raised dots which could be read from left to right.

Classes at the Mathru school for blind were entirely for the blind children as there were no sighted children there in contrast to the Rakum school where sighted children and blind children were taught together. I would further like to understand whether this has any effect on their learning curve; whether it makes it easier or more difficult to learn alongside sighted children.