Program Planning and the Expanded Core Curriculum Heather Munro Introduction to the ECC: What it is, what it entails, and why it is a crucial element of.

Program Planning and the Expanded Core

CurriculumHeather Munro

Introduction to the ECC: What it is, what it entails, and why it is a crucial element of education for students who are blind/visually impaired.

Visual Impairment

Some Facts Legal Blindness

20/200 (or worse)

Field restriction 20 degrees (or less)

What about “visually impaired” or “low vision” No generally accepted definition exists

Some consider loss greater than 20/70 to be the borderline of impairment

The Student Numbers

Total number of blind students in the U.S. 60,393

Literacy media

8.5% read braille

29.2% read print

9.2% auditory media

34.8 % are non-readers

18.3% are pre-readers

American Printing House for the Blind (APH) – 2014 Census

Total Population American Community Survey (2012) found

6,670,300 people with a visual disability in the U.S.

6,211,700 ages 16-75+

How many are employed? 1,240,200

809,900 full-time

Chicago Lighthouse for the Blind says over 10 million people in the U.S. are blind/visually impaired; 1.3 million are “legally blind”

Rehabilitation Goals People who are visually impaired or blind can

do most jobs. Resources - AFB CareerConnect, NFB

Examples -Senior VP of Marriott, Olympic runner, folks who scale Mt. Everest, politicians, Jeopardy! champion… you get the idea

People who are visually impaired or blind can earn advanced degrees

People who are visually impaired or blind can excel in all area of life

What does Success Look Like?

Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic

The Core Curriculum! Science

Social Studies

English/Language Arts

Mathematics

Health/Physical Education

Fine Arts

Economics/Business Education

History

But what if you’re blind or visually

impaired? Skills of managing adult life; living independently Personal hygiene

Food preparation and eating

Dressing, clothing selection and care

Money management

Time management

Cleaning and home maintenance

Community functioning/travel

Incidental Learning

Development Typically developing, sighted child.

Visually attending, watching

Asking questions

Practicing/imitating

Getting feedback

Child with vision loss Unaware of essential concepts and facts

At risk for isolation and over dependence on others

Lack of curiosity and motivation for movement/exploration

Need INTERVENTION!

This is where YOU come in… Areas of Unique Need (a.k.a. the Expanded Core

Curriculum for Students who are Blind/Visually Impaired) Assistive Technology

Compensatory Access

Career Education

Recreation and Leisure

Orientation and Mobility

Social Interaction

Self-Determination

Visual Efficiency*

Independent Living

Guidelines and Standards

Guideline/Standard #3: Evaluations in all areas of the expanded core

curriculum are used to determine individual student programs. For students with visual impairments, local districts must provide each student with evaluation and instruction in the expanded core curriculum. TEC 30.002(b)(4)(A)(B).

2014 Guidelines and Standards for Educating Students with Visual Impairments in Texas

What do we want? Q: What is it that blind people want from

society?

A: The opportunity to be equal, and the right to be different.

What do you suppose that means?

In the old days… Residential school placement

Epidemic of blindness

Education for All Handicapped Children Act (now IDEA) – 1975

Now (as of 2012 APH Annual Report) more than 90% of children who are blind/visually impaired attend public school

What’s different? How are students with visual impairment

unique? Learning media?

Materials needed?

Classroom teacher still teaches (and should be responsible for) all basic academic curriculum

BUT

Your interventions are needed

The Students Need… “In addition to the core curriculum areas included in general

education curriculum, students with visual impairments need to be assessed and receive instruction in very specific skills that have been demonstrated to be potential problem areas for persons with a visual disability.”

Wisconsin National Agenda

Specialized instruction in order to compensate for decreased opportunities to learn incidentally through observing others

Trained professionals who understand the impact of visual impairments on learning

ECC covers the unique, specialized needs of students with vision loss—subjects within it have to be taught by a teacher trained and certified in working with students who are visually impaired.

Areas include: Needs that result from the visual impairment that

enable the student “to be involved in and make progress in the general curriculum, and

Other educational needs that result from the child’s disability” as required by IDEA (34 CFR 300.320 (a)(2)(A)(B)).

The ECC should be used as a framework for assessing students, planning individual goals and providing instruction.

The ECC is an addition to the core curriculum, NOT a replacement!

Expanded Core Curriculum

Sometimes referred to as “Disability-Specific Skills”

or “Vision-Related Skills”

Students with visual impairments are held to the same mandates as sighted peers in core curriculum areas, but to have equal opportunity and access to the same curricula, they must receive adaptations

ECC it is now the law of the land!

With the passage of Senate Bill 39 in 2013 (Texas 83rd Legislative Session), evaluation in all areas of the ECC is required for students with visual impairments.

Remember the National Agenda? National Advisory Council of the National Agenda

declared… Blind/Visually Impaired students are entitled to

receive the same education as they would get if they were sighted

Vision loss results in limited opportunities for children and youth to acquire information and knowledge casually and incidentally from their environment

Inability or limited ability to learn visually in an incidental manner means that blind/visually impaired learners will need to acquire these educational experiences through instruction

(continued) Blind and visually impaired students,

therefore, have two sets of essential educational experiences

Regular curriculum offered to all students, and

Learning experiences required because of vision loss

Both sets of educational experiences are vital because of vision loss

The National Agenda Advisory Council

The actual Agenda goalsGoal 1 – Students and their families will be referred to an appropriate

education program within 30 days of identification of a suspected visual impairment. Goal 2 – Policies and procedures will be implemented to ensure the right of all parents to full participation and equal partnership in the education process.Goal 3 – Universities with a minimum of one full-time faculty member in the area of visual impairments will prepare a sufficient number of teachers and O&M specialists.Goal 4 – Caseloads will be determined based on the assessed needs of students. Goal 5 – Local education programs will ensure that all students have access to a full array of service delivery options.Goal 6 – All assessments and evaluations of students will be conducted by and /or in partnership with personnel having expertise in students with VI and their parents.Goal 7 – Access to developmental and educational services will include an assurance that instructional materials are available to students in the appropriate media and at the same time as their sighted peers.Goal 8 – All educational goals and instruction will address the academic and expanded core curricula based on the assessed needs of each student with visual impairments. Goal 9 – Transition services will address developmental and educational needs (birth through high school) to assist students and their families, in setting goals and implementing strategies through life commensurate with the student's aptitudes, interests, and abilities. Goal 10 – To improve student learning, service providers will engage in on-going local, state, and national professional development.

DO YOU THINK WE HAVE MET THESE GOALS?

Compensatory Skills These skills involve the adaptations

necessary for accessing the existing/general core curriculum

Can be experiences related to concept development, spatial skills, organizational skills, communication skills/modes

Texas Education Code assumes that all students who are functionally blind are taught braille unless Learning Media Assessment recommends a different learning media (TEC 30.002(f)).

For this area of the expanded core curriculum for blind and visually impaired students, a distinction must be made between compensatory skills and functional skills.

Functional skills refers to the skills that students with multiple disabilities learn that provide them with the opportunity to work, play, socialize, and take care of personal needs to the highest level possible.

Sensory Efficiency (Formerly known as Visual Efficiency)

Skills/instruction that helps students with vision loss optimize use of their senses

Learning to use senses efficiently to access and participate in activities (home, school, community)

Sensory Efficiency The text ECC Essentials (pp.19-20) breaks these areas down in terms that will be familiar and relatable for you…

Visual function – fixating, orienting, tracking, recognizing objects, using optical devices

Auditory function – localization, aural discrimination and presentation, sound pattern use

Tactile function – tactile discrimination, scanning, manipulation and dexterity

Gustatory function – discrimination of food types, recognition of various tastes

Olfactory function – localization of smells, discrimination of odors, recognition of pleasant and unpleasant odors

Assistive Technology An umbrella term – tools or services that enhance

communication, access, and learning

Anything other students don’t get (low tech or high tech)

Whatever assists the student in aspects of daily living

Skills to use computers and other electronic equipment to function independently (home, school, workplace)

Technology can be a great equalizer and enable students to overcome traditional barriers to independence and employement

Technology can be a great equalizer but only with training, access, portability, generalization

and usage

Technology enhances communication and learning, as well as expands the world of blind and visually impaired persons in many significant ways. Thus, technology is a tool to master, and is essential as a part of the expanded core curriculum.

For the braille user, it allows the student to provide feedback to teachers by first producing material in braille for personal use, and then in print for the teacher, classmates, and parents. It gives blind persons the capability of storing and retrieving information.

Orientation & Mobility

Skills to travel safely, efficiently, and independently (in any setting)

Requires systematic instruction in how to orient oneself and avoid obstacles (knowing where you are, where you want to go, and how to get there safely)

Begins early with body image and spatial concepts, purposeful and exploratory movement – true for MIVI as well

Later street crossings, bus travel, community experiences

Guide techniques, standard or adaptive canes, dog guides, landmarks and cues, soliciting assistance

O&M in ECC Essentials

(p.21) Body concepts – parts and functions

Environmental concepts –concepts related to home environment, to buildings, areas, schools, streets, intersections

Spatial concepts – self-to-object relationships, spatial terminology (L, R, next to), cardinal directions

Perceptual/Sensory skills – interpreting environmental sounds, applying meaning to tasks, determining nature of sensory information

continued… Mobility skills – noticing and negotiating

unexpected drop-offs, using systematic search techniques, knowing built elements

Orientation skills – routes and layouts

Interpersonal skills – requesting directions, arranging for rides, soliciting information

Decision-making skills – altering travel in response to weather, choosing between routes, making back up plans, etc.

As a part of the expanded core curriculum, orientation and mobility is a vital area of learning. Teachers who have been specifically prepared to teach orientation and mobility to blind and visually impaired learners are necessary in the delivery of this curriculum.

Students will need to learn about themselves and the environment in which they move - from basic body image to independent travel in rural areas and busy cities.

The existing core curriculum does not include provision for this instruction

Independent Living Tasks and functions people perform in daily

life to care for oneself independently or contribute to household – different for students who are blind/visually impaired

Activities of daily living would be a very big list!

This area of the expanded core curriculum is often referred to as "daily living skills." It consists of all the tasks and functions persons perform, in accordance with their abilities, in order to lead lives as independently as possible.

These curricular needs are varied, as they include skills in personal hygiene, food preparation, money management, time monitoring, organization, etc.

Some independent living skills are addressed in the existing core curriculum, but they often are introduced as splinter skills, appearing in learning material, disappearing, and then re-appearing.

Social Interaction How are social skills learned?

Visual impairment can limit social development and impede social interactions

Without appropriate social skills, students who are blind are at high risk for social isolation at school, community, and into adulthood

Awareness of body language, eye contact, gestures, facial expressions, personal space, shaking hands, turning toward speaker, or person to whom you’re talking, joining or leaving a group

Instruction in social interaction skills becomes a part of the expanded core

curriculum as a need so fundamental that it can often mean the difference between

social isolation and a satisfying and fulfilling life as an adult.

Social skills must be carefully, consciously, and sequentially taught to blind and

visually impaired students. Nothing in the existing core curriculum addresses this critical need in a satisfactory manner

Recreation & Leisure Skills to promote the enjoyment of leisure

activities; making choices about how to spend leisure time

Existing activities/sports/games may require adaptations in rules or equipment – need to maintain safety

Access and choices are limited because of limited exposure to rec/leisure activities (no incidental observations or awareness)

Students need to develop activities in recreation and leisure that they can enjoy throughout their adult lives.

The teaching of recreation and leisure skills to blind and visually impaired students must be planned and deliberately taught, and should focus on the development of life-long skills.

How do you choose your Rec Leisure activities? How have they changed?

Career Education Vision loss (again) impacts ability to observe

and develop interest in existing career choices

Need experiential learning approach, visits to job sites, interviews and job shadowing

Need to develop marketable job skills during school years

Unemployment and underemployment are leading problems facing adults with visual impairments in the U.S. This ECC area is vitally important – start early!

Employment StatsWhile we’re on the subject of career training skills…

The national rate of unemployment or underemployment of working-age adults who are blind is 70-75%!

What do 80% of all persons with visual impairment who are employed have in common? They read and write braille fluently

Only 10% of children who are blind learn braille in school

Competitive standard must be upheld in our training

Essential job skills vs. “blindness skills”

Types of Skills on the Job

Basic Career Skills

Critical Thinking Skills

Interpersonal Skills SOFT SKILLS

“People skills”

Social graces

Personal habits

Appearance – dress, grooming

Key Skill AreasAccording to Department of Labor – Disability Policy Resources

Communication

Enthusiasm and Attitude

Teamwork

Networking

Problem-Solving and Critical Thinking

Professionalism

ADA guarantees non-discrimination and equal treatment—not “special treatment.”

There is a need for general vocational education, as offered in the traditional core curriculum, as well as the need for career education offered specifically for blind and visually impaired students.

Career education in an expanded core curriculum will provide the visually impaired learner of all ages with the opportunity to learn first-hand the work done by the bank teller, the gardener, the social worker, the artist, etc. It will provide the student opportunities to explore strengths and interests in a systematic, well-planned manner.

Because unemployment and underemployment have been the leading problem facing adult visually impaired persons in the United States, this portion of the expanded core curriculum is vital to students, and should be part of the expanded curriculum for even the youngest of these individuals.

Self-Determination Develop realistic self-concept

Recognize (and believe in) abilities; know limitations

Learn to advocate effectively based on needs/goals

Develop more control over own life, and take part fully in the world around them

Leads to confidence and positive self-esteem

Overcome low societal expectations

Self-DeterminationECC Essentials (p. 26) includes

Self knowledge

Awareness of individual rights and responsibilities

Capacity to make informed choices

Problem-solving and goal-setting skills

Ability to engage in self-regulated and self-directed behavior

Self-advocacy and empowerment

Assertiveness skills

This area of the ECC highlights the importance of believing in oneself, while understanding one's abilities and limitations.

Students learn from successes and failures how to achieve one's goals in life.

Self-determination is the ability for people to control their lives, reach goals they have set and take part fully in the world around them.

HOW do we teach all that?

Can it be combined?

Can it start early?

What comes first?

The Heart of the Matter

These ECC areas give us as educators the means of addressing the needs of our students with visual impairments

Lack of vision is not a minor consideration even for those who have additional or multiple impairments – educational requirements can be big!

The ECC is the heart of our responsibility as TVIs and O&Ms; epitomizing the “right to be different,” and empowering our students to access their education and make their own decisions in life as productive, independent adults.

The Heart of the Matter

Bringing together all of these skills learned in the expanded core curriculum produces a concept of the blind or visually impaired person in the community.

It is difficult to imagine that a congenitally blind or visually impaired person could be entirely at ease and at home within the social, recreational, and vocational structure of the general community without mastering the elements of the expanded core curriculum.

What is known about congenitally blind and visually impaired students is that, unless skills such as orientation and mobility, social interaction, and independent living are learned, these students are at high risk for isolated orunproductive lives.

This expanded core curriculum is the heart of the responsibility of educators and specialist serving visually impaired students.

These areas are not and cannot be adequately addressed by regular classroom teachers, or paraprofessionals, for this is the core curriculum that is essential to students who are blind and visually impaired, and it epitomizes their

"...right to be different..."

References Allman, C. B., & Lewis, S. (Eds.). (2014). ECC essentials:

Teaching the expanded core curriculum to students with visual impairments. New York, NY: AFB Press.

American Foundation for the Blind (n.d.). The Expanded Core Curriculum for Blind and Visually Impaired Children and Youths. Retrieved from http://www.afb.org/info/programs-and-services/professional-development/teachers/expanded-core-curriculum/the-expanded-core-curriculum/12345

American Foundation for the Blind (2015). Learning About Blindness: What is Blindness or Low Vision? Living with Vision Loss. Retrieved from http://www.afb.org/info/living-with-vision-loss/for-job-seekers/for-employers/visual-impairment-and-your-current-workforce/learning-about-blindness/12345

References (cont.) American Foundation for the Blind (2015).

Resources for Job Seekers, Employers, and Professionals. AFB CareerConnect. Retrieved from http://www.afb.org/info/living-with-vision-loss/for-job-seekers/12

Chicago Lighthouse for People Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired (2015).Working with Someone who is Blind or Visually Impaired. Retrieved from http://chicagolighthouse.org/programs-and-services/employers/working-someone-who-blind-or-visually-impaired

References (cont.) Expanded Core Curriculum Advocacy (ECC Advocacy)

(2012). What is the National Agenda? American Foundation for the Blind & Perkins School for the Blind. Retrieved from http://www.eccadvocacy.org/section.aspx?FolderID=13&DocumentID=5345

ECC Advocacy (2012).Expanded Core Curriculum Subjects and Skills. American Foundation for the Blind & Perkins School for the Blind. Retrieved from http://www.eccadvocacy.org/section.aspx?FolderID=13&SectionID=143

ECC Advocacy (2012) What is the expanded core curriculum? American Foundation for the Blind & Perkins School for the Blind. Retrieved from http://www.eccadvocacy.org/section.aspx?FolderID=13

References (cont.) Hatlan, P. (1996) Core Curriculum – The Right to be

Different. Retrieved from http://www.afb.org/info/programs-and-services/professional-development/teachers/expanded-core-curriculum/the-right-to-be-different/12345

Lewis, S. (2012).The Need for Targeted Instruction in Independent Living Skills in the Curriculum of Students with Visual Impairments. Council for Exceptional Children – Division on Visual Impairments. Retrieved from http://community.cec.sped.org/dvi/resourcesportal/positionpapers

Lohmeier, K. (2002). State Standards and the Expanded Core Curriculum Aligned.(J. Erin Ed.) Retrieved from http://www.pathstoliteracy.org/expanded-core-curriculum#overview

References (cont.) Martinez, D. J. (n.d.). Essential Employment Skills that

May Not Be Included in the Job Description: A Helpful Pre-Employment Resource for People who are Blind. Arizona Governor’s Council on Blindness and Visual Impairment. Retrieved from https://www.azdes.gov/uploadedFiles/Employment_and_Rehabilitation_Services/Rehabilitation_Services/essential_employment_skills_white_paper.pdf

National Federation of the Blind (2015). Braille Readers are Leaders Campaign. Retrieved from https://nfb.org/braille-campaign

National Federation of the Blind (2014). Blindness Statistics: Statistical Facts about Blindness in the United States. Retrieved from https://nfb.org/blindness-statistics

References (cont.) New Hampshire Department of Education (2007). Tip

Sheet #2, The Expanded Core Curriculum. New Hampshire Professional Development Center. Retrieved from http://www.nercve.umb.edu/index.php?page=tip2_ECC

Paths to Literacy for Students who are Blind or Visually Impaired (n.d.). Expanded Core Curriculum. Retrieved from http://www.pathstoliteracy.org/expanded-core-curriculum#overview

Perkins School for the Blind (2012). Understanding the Expanded Core Curriculum. Perkins.orghttp://www.perkins.org/stories/blog/expanded-core-curriculum

References (cont.) Texas Education Agency (2014). 2014 Guidelines and

Standards for Educating Students with Visual Impairments in Texas. Retrieved from http://www.tea.state.tx.us/index2.aspx?id=2147498410

Texas School for the Blind (2014). What is the Expanded Core Curriculum? Texas ECC Committee Report. Retrieved from http://www.tsbvi.edu/resources/203-resources/3973-ecc-flyer

United States Department of Labor (n.d.). Skills to Pay the Bills: Mastering Soft Skills for Workplace Success. Office of Disability Employment Policy. Retrieved from http://www.dol.gov/odep/topics/youth/softskills