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ABLE 2007: University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY June 5-9. Host: Ruth Beattie
E-mail: rebeat1@uky.edu
Mini Workshop
Friday June 9
Caldwell, Jane and Kristi Teagarden
Adapting Laboratory Curricula for Blind Students and Others with Disabilities
In the past year at WVU we have adapted our General Biology lab exercises for
several blind students enrolled in our lab courses. From microscopic
observations of cells to analysis of colorimetric results, most standard lab
exercises have a strong visual orientation. Some processes like mitosis
are explained mainly through diagrams, and are difficult to understand from
a verbal description alone. To address this problem we developed tactile
models so blind students can make their own observations, trained “seeing-eye
student” assistants, and developed Braille-labeled “manipulatives” to
guide visually-impaired students through standard biology exercises. We’ll
show you what we’ve done, followed by discussion to exchange creative
ideas for accommodating students with various disabilities, describe problems
we’ve encountered (and perhaps solved), and hear about what instructors
have done at other schools.