Beyond the “Handicapped” Label: Narrating Options to Teach Foreign Languages to Blind and Visually Impaired Students

Main Article Content

Imperio Arenas González

Abstract

This article describes the research project carried out with a blind student, who studied French at a public university. The pedagogical experience over three years began in a classroom when a foreign language teacher and educator felt herself “handicapped,” as she had not been prepared for working with blind people. In order to put her student on the same level of other students in terms of study possibilities, the teacher entered the blind and visually impaired students’ world through Braille. She designed methodologies in order to encourage the autonomous learning of the foreign language as well as tried to motivate other blind or visually impaired people to acquire the same knowledge.

Article Details

How to Cite
Arenas González, I. (2012). Beyond the “Handicapped” Label: Narrating Options to Teach Foreign Languages to Blind and Visually Impaired Students. HOW, 19(1), 146–156. Retrieved from https://www.howjournalcolombia.org/index.php/how/article/view/42
Section
Reports on Pedagogical Experiences
Author Biography

Imperio Arenas González, Universidad Pedagógica y Tecnológica de Colombia, Tunja

María Imperio Arenas holds a B.A. in Foreign Languages (UIS), M.A. in Didactics of French as a foreign Language (U. Rosario). Teacher of English and French (La Presentación, UIS, UPN, UPTC), Spanish assistant in high school (Jamaica, France)
and university (France).

References

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