MINISTERIO DE EDUCACIN Y CULTURA

INSTITUTO SUPERIOR DE EDUCACIN

DR. RAL PEA

BACHELOR DEGREE IN EDUCATION OF THE ENGLISH

LANGUAGE

ENGLISH AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGE TEACHING METHODS FOR

THE VISUALLY IMPAIRED

Author: Mara Fernanda Bentez Aquino

Tutor: Lic. Mirta Ucedo

Asuncin-Paraguay

2017
 ABSTRACT

Paraguay has not yet attempted to create programs or methods to address the
needs of blind students even though they had been recently included in
standardized education where they participate in English as a Foreign Language
(EFL) lessons. Therefore, the main purpose of this paper is to determine suitable
EFL teaching methods for students with visual impairment as an aid for teachers of
the blind in their efforts to address the needs of blind students. Several methods
proposed by different researchers were contrasted with the Theoretical
Framework, resulting in inferences as to the suitability of the methods, based on
the educational needs of the blind. The objectives of this research were fulfilled, as
it was possible to determine that the specific needs of the blind, as well as currently
used EFL methods for the visually impaired. In addition, this research was able to
identify suitable EFL methods for the blind.

Keywords: Blindness, Visual Impairment, Visually Handicapped, English as a

Foreign Language, Cognitive Development, Social Skills Development, Activity
Theory, Interactionism, Cooperative Learning, Multisensory Teaching, Theory of
Multiple Intelligences.
 TABLE OF CONTENT
Introduction........................................................................................................... 1
Chapter I
Introductory Framework
I.1 Theme ............................................................................................................. 3
I.2 Title ................................................................................................................. 3
I.3 Description of the Problem .............................................................................. 3
I.4 Research Questions ........................................................................................ 3
I.5 Objectives........................................................................................................ 4
I.6 Justification...................................................................................................... 4
I.7 Methodological Aspects................................................................................... 6
Chapter Il
Situational Framework
II.1 Background .................................................................................................... 7
II.2 Researches on ESL and EFL for the Visually Impaired .................................. 15
II.3 EFL and ESL around the world. State of Art................................................... 25
II.4 Currently used EFL methods for the visually impaired ................................... 38
II.5 EFL methods for the visually impaired ........................................................... 40
Chapter Ill
Referential Framework
Ill.1 Theoretical Framework .................................................................................. 68
III.1.1 Blindness and Visual Impairment ............................................................... 68
III.1.2 Blindness and mental imagery ................................................................... 68
III.1.3 Hearing and touch as compensation senses .............................................. 71
III.1.4 Cognition without sight: the role of touch and hearing ................................ 73
III.1.5 The Blind and memory ............................................................................... 75
III.1.6 Language acquisition in the Blind ............................................................... 75
III.1.6.1 First language acquisition in the Blind ..................................................... 76
III.1.6.2 Second and Foreign Language Acquisition in the blind ........................... 80
III.1.7 Theory of Multiple Intelligences .................................................................. 82
Ill.1.8 Theories of Language Acquisition ............................................................... 84
III.1.8.1 Piaget's Constructivism ........................................................................... 84
III.1.8.2 Vygotsky's Sociocultural Theory .............................................................. 85
III.1.8.3 Vygotsky and Leontiev's Activity Theory Applied to Teaching Second
Language to Visually Impaired Students .............................................................. 88
III.1.8.4 Application of the Activity Theory in relation to Cognitive Development .. 89
III.1.8.5 The Activity Theory in the Cognitive Development through Other Senses
............................................................................................................................. 90
III.1.8.6 The Activity Theory in the Cognitive and Social Skills Development ....... 90
III.1.9 Methodological Approaches ....................................................................... 91
III.1.9.1 Multisensory teaching .............................................................................. 91
III.1.9.2 Cooperative Learning .............................................................................. 93
III.1.10 Influencing factors in second language learning....................................... 95
III.1.11 Specific Educational Needs of the Visually Impaired Regarding the EFL
Classroom ............................................................................................................ 96
III.1.12 Games with visually impaired young learners .......................................... 98
Chapter IV
Operational Framework
IV.1 Weaknesses of the currently used EFL methods ......................................... 101
IV.2 Current situation of EFL for the blind in Paraguay and the world ................. 102
IV.3 Suitability of selected EFL methods ............................................................. 104
Conclusion ......................................................................................................... 128
Reference List.................................................................................................... 130
Bibliography ...................................................................................................... 141
Glossary
Annex No. 1 Legal Framework
 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

Figure N 1. Untitled illustration of Table of Pronouns .......................................... 40

Figure N 2. Table of pronouns ............................................................................ 40
Figure N 3. Task reformulation example ............................................................. 41
Figure N 4. Task adaptation ................................................................................ 42
Figure N 5. Consolidation of speech pattern activity example ............................ 44
Figure N 6. Screenshot Activity 7 A .................................................................... 58
Figure N7. Screenshot Activity 9 ........................................................................ 60
 1

INTRODUCTION

Programs of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) for Visually Impaired (VI)

students can be found in different parts of Asia, Europe and USA. On the other
hand, in Latin America, Brazil is the only country which is recently beginning to
provide EFL courses for the blind. These programs apply different approaches and
methods in an attempt to respond to the students needs. In contrast, Paraguay
has not yet attempted to create programs or methods to address the needs of VI
students even though they had been recently included in standardized education
where they participate of EFL lessons. Therefore, the main purpose of this paper
is to determine suitable EFL teaching methods for students with visual impairment
in order to help teachers of English to be better prepared to enhance their
learning.

The inclusion of blind children in the Paraguayan educational system and their
participation in EFL lessons demands the development and implementation of
methods designed to meet their specific needs. In order to develop this topic, the
acquisition of foreign languages by people with Visual Impairment (VI) is
contextualized. Contributions have been made in this field since the first half of the
20th century until today. These contributions help to understand the imperative
need of differentiated EFL methods when teaching the visually impaired. Those
who have recognized the necessity of having suitable techniques and materials for
the visually impaired have implemented programs around the globe, specifically
designed for the blind as an effort to provide them with a good quality education.

Theories on language acquisition and methodological approaches applied to

language teaching are explored as a fundamental part of this paper. At the same
time other factors that might be considered important to the success of students
with visual impairment in the EFL classroom are described. In addition, several
methods proposed by English as a Second Language (ESL) and English as a
Foreign Language (EFL) teachers of the blind are studied in the light of the
theoretical framework of this research resulting in conclusions on the suitability of
these methods in relation to the specific educational needs of the blind.

The first chapter of this paper includes a description of the problem, as well as the
objectives, the justification and other methodological aspects of this research. In
 2

the second chapter, previous researches on ESL and EFL for the blind are briefly
mentioned. In addition, a state of starts on current ESL and EFL programs around
the globe is included, along with a description of the situation of the Paraguayan
educational system regarding this matter. Also, currently used methods for ESL
and EFL for the visually impaired, in addition to other techniques proposed by
various authors are described with detail. The third chapter covers theories on
language acquisition and methodological approaches applied to language
teaching, together with, the specific educational needs of the blind. The content of
the third chapter constitutes the theoretical framework of this research. The last
chapter includes the results of the contrast between the second and third chapter,
which points out the strengths and weaknesses of the present situation on ESL
and EFL for the blind in Paraguay and the world, plus the strong and weak points
of the currently used methods for English language teaching for the visually
impaired. Furthermore, the last chapter covers the outcomes of the analysis on the
suitability of the ESL and EFL methods for the blind proposed by the authors
previously mentioned, resulting from the contrast of the two previous chapters.
Finally, in the conclusion of this research, the fulfillment of the objectives of this
research is discussed.
 7

CHAPTER II

SITUATIONAL FRAMEWORK

II.1 BACKGROUND

The inclusion of blind children in the Paraguayan educational system and their
participation in EFL lessons demands the development and implementation of
methods designed to meet their specific needs. In order to develop this topic, it is
necessary to also contextualize the acquisition of foreign languages by people with
Visual Impairment. Contributions have been made in this field since the first half of
the 20th century until today. These contributions might help to understand the
imperative need of differentiated EFL methods when teaching the visually
impaired. Many programs designed specifically for the blind have been developed
and implemented around the globe as an effort to provide them with a good quality
education.

It is possible to trace back to the year 1931 the first individual efforts of some blind
people who decided to learn a second language, or teachers of blind students who
shared their personal experiences teaching these learners. In that year, Morrisey
(1931), a visually impaired teacher, sustained that blind people were especially
capable of learning a foreign language. He argued that due to their disability, the
blind overdeveloped the sense of hearing. Morrisey (1931), considered that
language was a science of the ear; therefore, a well-trained sense of hearing
guaranteed efficient foreign language learning. On the other hand, Morrisey (1931)
overlooked the fact that a well-trained memory is also a very important factor in the
study of foreign languages (Santana, 2013, p. 71). Despite the fact of overlooking
the benefits of a trained memory in foreign language acquisition for the visually
impaired, Morriseys ideas implied that blind people were able to learn a foreign
language through methods different from those of the sighted students, and that
listening skills should be exploited. This could be considered as one of the first
suggestions from teachers to have techniques which address specific needs of VI
students.

Four years later, Flood (1934), as mentioned in Santana (2013, p. 72) makes
another remark on the need of a special program for the VI students. He studied
 8

the problems that were encountered when the curriculum of standardized schools
was used in Special Schools for the Blind. He concluded that slow reading speed,
a characteristic of the Braille System, delayed the learning pace of the blind due to
the fact that it hindered the acquisition of the intonation of the foreign language. To
respond to this situation, he suggested that a teacher who mastered the intonation
and pronunciation of the foreign language should instruct these students for them
to learn those aspects by memory. Through his research, Flood reached the
conclusion that programs used for sighted children are not suitable for VI students.
Moreover, he proposed the implementation of a general curriculum for blind
children. Nevertheless, there was no implementation of any plans regarding the
needs of VI students until 1963. As well as Morrisey (1931), Flood (1934), was one
of the first who suggested the blind having specific needs, different to those of the
sighted. Furthermore, Flood attempted to take advantage of hearing due to the
lack of sight, a very important detail that would be discussed in this research, as
there is evidence that stimulating the other available senses is essential to the
cognitive and language development of the visually impaired.

Following Morriseys (1931) idea on the importance of hearing in the blinds

language learning process, Daiken (1948) wrote about the Linguaphone method in
1948. He considered it to be a tool to help blind students to learn the native
intonation of a foreign language (Santana, 2013, p.72). The linguaphone method
proposes three basic principles listen, understand and speak. Little attention is
given to writing in contrast to the great emphasis on listening and speaking. The
implementation of a differentiated program for the Blind was again, being
suggested by Daiken. Later on, other authors would propose different plans that
are based on the idea of learning a foreign language through listening to later on
produce in the target language orally.
 9

More than twenty years later, Mathieu (1961) attempted to find new and better
EFL methods to teach the visually handicapped children and youth. He resumed
research on the idea that blind students should not have an impediment to learn
second languages, especially when audio-lingual methods are used. Thus, at the
beginning of his paper, he sustains that

Visually handicapped children are not handicapped when it comes to learning foreign
languages. Today, more and more children are learning foreign languages by a
method, which does not require books, pencils, or eyes. Call it what you will: oral-
aural, aural-oral, audio-oral, audio-lingual, direct, functional, or, if you wish, the natural
method. All these fancy appellations proclaim what every mother has observed: that
children learn their first, i.e. native language by listening, then imitating sounds and
speech patterns until through daily exposure, practice, and correction they venture to
say things on their own. Only long after they have mastered the sounds and structures
of language are they introduced to the written language, first through reading and later
by writing (Mathieu, 1961, p. 269)

This author believed that language is, first of all, something one says and hears,
and that only when the student had mastered the sounds and structures of a
foreign language, reading and writing could be addressed, in that order. As well as
other authors did previously, Mathieu (1961) emphasized the importance of
speaking and listening skills. He states that only by priming orality, writing and
reading can be addressed. In his work, the author also gave a lot of importance to
language laboratories as he believed they were the best way to re-create the
native environment by giving the learners ample opportunity to practice the
language (Mathieu, 1961).In fact, he believed that, if properly used, laboratories
are the key to language learning. This author also highlights the importance of
stimulating other available senses, as well as having opportunities to practice the
target language. Besides, he emphasizes the social aspects of language since he
suggested teachers to prioritize listening and speaking, postponing reading and
writing.

As mentioned in Santana (2003, p. 73), another researcher concerned with finding

suitable methods for the visually handicapped was Leon Dostert (1963). In 1963,
he described the implementation of a program designed by the University of
Georgetown for blind people. The main goal of the course was to train the
students as transcribers of spoken Russian. Listening skills and orality were
 10

stimulated along the course as the lessons were based on recorded speeches
which were later translated into text. This program was considered a success and
gave the chance to the blind of teaching foreign languages. Through Dosterts
experience, there is, once again, evidence that stimulation of the available senses
leads to learning of the target language in the EFL class for the visually
handicapped.

MacDonald (1966), as cited by Santana (2013, p.72) described a course

organized by the National Office of Rehabilitation of the United States seeking to
train blind students, who had been selected throughout the country, as interpreters
or teachers of Russian and German. This program also took place at the
Georgetown University in the Institute of Language and Linguistics. The audio-
lingual method was applied aiming to the mastery of the phonetic system before
the students were taught vocabulary and grammar. The classes included self-
study, tactile pedagogical resources and development of literacy skills in Braille;
with the complement of role-plays, conversations and drama-based activities. In
addition, students were exposed to the target language for periods of over four
hours a day (Santana, 2003). This course was considered effective as the
students were able to work as language interpreters or teachers of German and
Russian after two years of attending the language lessons. The success of this
program is evidence of the need of having special approaches, methods and
techniques, especially intended for the blind. The audio-lingual method was
applied in the search of a method that could be useful in teaching foreign
languages to the blind. Experts designed and implemented this special plan for
this specific population of students with emphasis on oral and listening skills,
addressing language and auditory skills of the blind. Moreover, the teachers of the
program seem to have relied on the blinds memory in regards of them learning
the phonetic system of the language. Russian was taught exclusively by oral
means to demonstrate the structure of the language and to immerse learners into
the target language for them to operate directly in Russian. Furthermore, texts in
Braille and additional materials for reading and listening were specially selected
and adapted for the program.
 11

Santana (2013) also mentioned a group of professors who, in 1966, described an

experiment conducted in the laboratory of languages of the Royal School for the
Blind in Liverpool. They highlighted the academic benefits concerned in the use of
a radio tape for EFL lessons for blind students. The recordings were used in
communicative activities that resulted in positive outcomes. Once again, a
differentiated method is offered for an EFL classroom for visually handicapped
students. The classes were based on the development of listening and speaking
skills following the ideas of the authors previously mentioned. Besides, the
available senses were stimulated in order to give place to learning. Nevertheless,
reading and communication through writing were left aside as well as in other
programs previously designed for VI students.

Marshall (1968), as cited in Santana (2013, p. 73), described how the English
language was taught orally to students who attended the Ebenezer School for the
Blind in Hong Kong. The teachers applied an audio-lingual method there. He
claimed that listening comprehension and oral production were the foundation for
language learning. The fact that students began to write in Braille only at the
second year was also mentioned by Marshall. Therefore, most of the work was
oral until the third year, since it took a year to learn Braille. He also stressed the
recurrent issue of the lack of a wide range of experiences and contact with real life
situations in the classroom as the blind students could only learn by listening to
descriptions or touching hands. Setting the language in context meant great
preparations for classes to keep up with the needs of the blind. Once again,
Marshall, being one of many who ventured to the task of teaching a foreign
language to blind students, recognizes the need for programs specifically
designed for students with visual impairment. Once again the senses of hearing
and speech were exploited in communicative tasks, highlighting the importance of
interaction for the acquisition of a foreign language. Likewise, it is important to
note that the foreign language program was based on the idea that the blind could
decode and interpret the grammatical structures through hearing and the use of
the target language in context.
 12

According to Santana (2013), the most interesting experience in EFL teaching to

blind students with the application of the audio-lingual method is the program
named Catholic Guild for the Blind in New York. This organization started an ESL
project of for blind immigrants of this city as they needed to master the English
language. Snyder and Kesselman (1972), as cited in Santana (2013, p. 73),
mentioned that in the program, the spelling of English was not taught until the
students had gained familiarity with the oral structures. Additionally, they believed
that the development of the listening skill was fundamental in language learning. In
addition, they found similarities between the needs of blind students in the initial
levels with those of the sighted students. Nonetheless, gestures and facial
expressions needed to be taught in order to help blind students to manage
possible professional and social situations. Based on their experiences Snyder
and Kesselman concluded that blind students learn a second language better in
monolingual contexts. Both of these authors recognized the similarities among the
blind and the sighted regarding development, supporting the idea of blindness
neither hampering nor cognitive or language development in the VI individual.

Snyder and Kesselman(1972) also made a remark on the exceptional ability of

learning languages possessed by both blind students with and without education.
This might be the consequence of a greater oral sensitivity and rote-learning
training (Santana, 2013).Likewise, the lack of vision does not impede the language
learning process. In spite of this, a special emphasis on stress, intonation and tone
is needed (as these factors are very significant in language learning to visually
impaired people). Besides, blind students benefited from tactile stimulation during
the lessons. Once again the role of oral skills and memory in the EFL lessons for
the visually impaired is highlighted. Both are considered to be facilitators of the VI
students language learning. In addition, Snyder and Kesselmans program also
pays attention to very specific details in an EFL environment. Elements such as
tone and intonation, which were previously disregarded, are given great
communicative importance and incorporated in the EFL classroom through their
program.
 13

The latest outlined surveys indicate the success of students who participated in
the latest projects may not be related to the appropriateness of the audio lingual
method in addressing the students needs. This achievement may find its causes
in highly motivated learners. In the project conducted by Georgetown University,
students were selected throughout the country. Thus, the learners were probably
educated students with developed skills for foreign languages. The Catholic Guild
for the Blind provided lessons for immigrants settled in the United States who
urgently needed to learn the English language. Therefore, the majority showed an
interest and motivation greater than other blind students in other contexts. Thus,
as in any other EFL context, motivation plays an important role for the success of
the students.

As it is mentioned in Santana (2013, p. 75), Norris (1972) conducted a research in

order to obtain a description of English Language teaching and the approaches
and techniques used by the teachers of the blind. The researcher concluded that
most teachers think that blindness does not hinder the achievement of the
objectives. The main problem that teachers of the blind must face is to provide and
enrich the concepts and language experiences of their students. The lack of
specific experiences leads to the misconstruction of concepts as teachers attempt
to convey them without a context and with few details so that there is only a partial
understanding of the concepts. As a result, this affects the use of language of the
blind student since they are unable to use the concepts taught in class as they
were never fully understood. For the first time in an investigation on the subject,
Norris suggests clarity of concepts to create solid notions in students since this
would allow building new learning on well assimilated conceptual bases.
Consequently, learners will be able to start producing language in context faster,
and would be able to move to the next level.

Claudine (1976), as cited in Nikolic (1987, p. 223) sustained that genetic and
intellectual development are the foundation for any type of study. This resumes the
question of the amount of impact generated by visual impairment and blindness on
genetic and intellectual development. To answer this question the various types of
perception and their influence on the intelligence of blind people were examined.
Claudine concluded that psychometric tests show that, despite reduced visual
 14

perception, blind children's mental development is almost indistinguishable from

that of sighted children. However, this situation is only present when blind and
visually impaired children have gone to school on time for early intervention and
stimulation. Therefore she stated that blindness affects perception but it does not
harm to the normal linguistic and verbal development of the blind and thus permits
no problem in the process of learning and acquiring a foreign language (Nikolic,
1986, p. 223). Nevertheless, she highlighted that appropriate pedagogical and
methodological conditions are essential for the VI learners to acquire a second or
foreign language. Hence, it is possible to see the importance of having appropriate
methods for EFL for the visually impaired, as they become a key to learning the
second or foreign language. Furthermore, it can be inferred that the lack of early
stimulation and use of inappropriate methods damages the development of the
blind child.

Yearly (1978), a teacher from the Worcester College, a school and university for
the blind and visually impaired, wrote a paper named Teaching the more able
visually handicapped student at secondary level in 1978. As mentioned in Santana
(2013, p. 75), Yearly concluded that the success of blind students in learning a
foreign language was due to a few key factors. These were interest, spontaneity,
good listening skills, excellent memory capacity, and concentration power. As
other authors previously mentioned in this paper, Yearly (1978), gives high
importance to listening skills and memory. Additionally, he gives importance to
motivation or interest, which plays an important role in any language classroom
since students interest in the class determines how much they can learn from it.

Weiss (1980), as cited in Santana (2013, p. 76),a professor at a center in

Arkansas, in 1980 became the only person to describe a program that accepted
the interrelation of the macro-skills: reading, writing, listening and speaking in an
EFL class for the visually handicapped (VH). He revised the premises of the audio-
lingual method which suggested the postponement of reading comprehension and
written production until the students had developed fluency in the target language.
In contrast to other authors mentioned above, Weiss considered that the
instruction of the Braille code was necessary before the students received
instruction in L2. Furthermore, this author made a remark on the importance of
 15

materials for VI learners of a foreign language. Referring to materials of Braille

instruction, Weiss (1980) stated that although the manuals of instruction
commonly available are not adequate for everyone, individualized plans for
teaching Braille can be adapted to meet specific needs(para. 1).These plans
should focus on teaching appropriate reading habits. As many others, Weiss
supports the idea of meeting the needs of the blind through proper adaption of
plans and by particularly addressing specific skills involved in language learning.

II.2 RESEARCHES ON ESL AND EFL FOR THE VISUALLY IMPAIRED

Among the most recent researches regarding ESL and EFL for the visually
impaired it is worth mentioning the work of Phillips de Herrera. In her paper
Teaching English as a foreign language to the visually handicapped, she
describes the different guidelines which can be used in schools of standardized
education in which blind learners attended the lessons. Philips-Herrera (1984)
sustained that the activities will contribute to the VH students capacity to be more
responsive in the classroom (Phillips-Herrera, 1984, p. 15). Besides, the author
provided activities in which blind students can participate easily, such as attending
movies with the class. In addition, she proposes to exploit other senses aside from
hearing, such as touch and smelling with activities that address those senses. For
these activities, Phillips-Herrera suggested using modeling clay, fabrics, or realia
such as fruits or vegetables. Likewise, she advices the teachers of the blind to be
very careful in regards to the disability of the students. She believed that teachers
should not have a negative or an overprotective attitude towards the student with a
disability, in order to avoid making the learners feel uncomfortable in relation to
their condition. Betty Phillips de Herrera pays attention to a new aspect to the EFL
classroom for the blind: making blind students participate in the activities in a
comfortable manner. This is related to the affective factor, which can help with
motivation as it creates a friendly environment which promotes language learning.
As well as other authors, previously mentioned in this paper, she proposed
implementing activities that stimulate the available senses of the blind, as well as
specific EFL activities specially design for the blind.
 16

In (1986), Huebner stressed that the success of teaching foreign languages to the
visually impaired might be related in great measure to the help given by the
teacher of the visually impaired to the language teacher (Santana, 2013, p. 76).
This cooperation is important due to the need of the blind to master alphabets in
Braille in order to learn a foreign language. The author considered that it was the
responsibility of the teacher of the visually impaired to train the students in the
recognition of foreign language alphabets and symbols. She recommended that
students should be provided with alphabets in Braille for them to study. Huebner
also recommended the use of additional instructional material, through which the
language teacher of the visually impaired would teach the culture where the target
language is inserted. This author points our direction towards details that never
had any attention in the EFL classroom and should be given consideration. The
mastery of foreign language alphabets allows students to develop their literacy
skills in the target language. As for the culture related to the foreign language, it
would reinforce the meaning and sense of the new language, as well as making
the language learning experience much more meaningful.

In the same year as Huebner, another researcher addressed the subject of

schooling suitability concerning the blind. Nikolic (1986) sustained that visually
impaired students inability to reach the standard levels in foreign language
education is probably due to their receiving inadequate support and
encouragement from the teacher (p. 220). In addition, it was mentioned that
special education would be necessary only if the blind students are in need of a
specific skill in order to meet the level of the sighted students. Nikolic also pointed
out the fact that the materials available were not suitable for EFL lessons for the
blind. Therefore, the materials should be adapted to meet the needs of the visually
handicapped students in order to compensate for the lack of sight. This should be
done through the intensification and promotion of the use of the remaining senses.
He stated that the more senses were addressed the quicker the learning process
would be. As we saw earlier, using inappropriate materials leads students to fail in
the EFL classroom. This is another reminder of the need to find appropriate
methods for the blind.
 17

In the same paper, Nikolic (1986) also mentioned that

There is no specific method for teaching foreign languages to the VI. Teachers should
make the best use of the existing methods. They must establish condition in which all
the senses, including any residual sight, can be fully and actively engaged in the
learning process (p. 229)

Conversely, he suggested the use of an approach already used to teach foreign

languages to the blind: the Audio-Visual Global Structural method. Nikolic agrees
with Guberina (1972) who described results obtained with variations of the Audio-
Visual Global Structural Method (verbo-tonal and audio-tactile). Guberina (1972),
as cited by Nikolic (1986, p. 230),had pointed out that the best outcomes where
those of the students who used both tactile and audio materials, highlighting the
need of stimulating the blinds available senses. Nikolic also settled on the efficacy
of this approach due to the fact that it helps students to develop their
communicative competence before addressing literacy skills since it has an
auditory emphasis, and memory training, as well as helping to acquire rhythm and
intonation. Furthermore, he emphasized the importance of students reading and
writing Braille fluently in their mother tongue for them to progress satisfactorily in
the literacy skills of the target language. Thus, it is observable that a
communicative approach most likely helps the blind students to become
accustomed to the language in order to be able to express themselves in the
target language even before starting to read and write in L2.

Finally, Nikolic (1986) concluded his investigation by stating that there was not a
predominance of a particular factor that would especially affect the teaching and
learning of the visually impaired. He considered that probably all factors played an
important role in this process. Yet in another paper, Nikolic (1987) re-states the
importance of proper adaptation of teaching materials to counterbalance for the
absence or deficiency of sight and to encourage the use of the other senses
Consequently, it could be inferred that appropriate methods for EFL for the visually
impaired, not only have an important role in language learning, but a crucial one.
Many authors such as Nikolic have made a remark on the need of having
materials that meet their VI students needs.
 18

Frantz and Wexler (1994) wrote a paper titled Functional ESOL immersion
program for special Education students, and presented it at the 28th annual
meeting of Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages, in Baltimore in
1994. In this paper, Frantz and Wexler (1994) described a specific EFL program
designed for students with disabilities with very different cultures, languages and
educational instruction. The curriculum of the program was specially designed to
meet the need of students with various disabilities, and was applied in two schools
in Israel, one of which was a school for the visually impaired. Frantz and Wexler
(1994) believed that
It is important in any language class to encourage comfort and promote the self-
confidence of students using the new language. This is even more important for
special education students who often suffer low self-esteem because of their disability
or because of the effect the disability has on school performance. (p.4)

The authors mentioned that several techniques were used to promote comfort and
confidence among students such as an informal conversational tone, role plays,
and grades given on the basis of general effort and oral and written
participation(Frantz & Wexler, 1994).Frantz and Wexler also pointed out the fact
that retention of new content was one of the main problems of the students with
disabilities, and that this program dealt with this issue by dividing the English
language to be covered in several units with different themes. During the time
spent dedicated to each unit, students had a chance to focus on a single theme
through continuous review and reinforcement of the content in every unit. From
this paper it is worth noticing the emphasis given to one of the main goals of the
program which was the creation of a comfortable environment for the disabled
students. Considerable importance was given to this aim due to the self-esteem
problems students with disabilities often deal with caused by the impact of the
disability on school performance. Likewise, it is very important to take under
consideration the promotion of confidence through the creation of a safe
environment, and retention of new knowledge as they were mentioned by these
authors as very important in the language learning process of any disabled
student.
 19

Based on his knowledge as a teacher of English learners in Taiwan, Wu Yu-hsi

(1995), as mentioned in Santana (2013, p. 77) established four principles to guide
the development of the material for ESL lessons. First of all, he considered the
stimulation of listening and oral skills as essential for EFL of the visually impaired;
hence he worked on the development of materials for listening and speaking skills
(Santana, 2013). Second, teaching is meaningful on condition that the educational
resources are related to cognitive and conceptual development of the apprentices.
Third, in order to avoid tedious lessons and artificial learning, the teaching
materials must be combined with activities concerned with the development of
social skills and daily interaction. At last, all materials should be explored and
understood through the senses and movement during the first learning stages.
The author establishes a series of criteria that could help when choosing materials
that are appropriate for EFL class with blind students. It should also be noted that
this research suggests activities that help develop peer and social interaction, as
this helps the learning to become meaningful, as the blind rely on interaction for
language learning. In addition, interaction among peers makes the activity
appealing and motiving for the students. Likewise, it is suggested to use materials
that stimulate different senses, not only sight.

Guinan (1997), as mentioned in Santana (2013, p. 78) researched on ESL

teaching, specifically on the acquisition of first and second language by students
with visual impairments and sighted students. In her work, this author stated her
belief of prioritization of oral skills not being a matter of teaching practice or a
given theory. Guinan (1997) stated that this was likely to be caused by the lack of
teachers trained in Braille. Likewise, she insists on the importance of training
language teachers for the education of students with visual impairment. Teaching
Braille in the students native language to the visually impaired children is essential
to ensure access to proper reading and writing in the target language. Still, she
offers suggestions for teaching Braille in a second language when instruction in L1
is not possible. Additionally, the author talked about the need of cooperation
between teachers of the visually impaired and ESL teachers aiming to the needs
of the visually handicapped for them to reach linguistic competence. This author
points out the importance of students being familiar with the writing system
(Braille) at least in their mother tongue, in order to facilitate the learning of the
 20

second language or foreign language. Similarly, she advices a collaboration

between teachers, so as to work together for academic success of students with
visual impairment.

Santana(2003) published a paper titled Second language learning by students

with visual disabilities: integration as a variable in learning English as a foreign
language in which she details the results of her comparative study between
English language proficiency levels of students with and without visual impairment.
During her research, Santana (2003) was able to observe that, in general,
students without visual impairment show a greater mastery of listening and writing
skills in English. The reason for the blind and visually impaired students to show
certain degree of delay is based in the lack of suitable methodological approaches
employed in the EFL classroom. A lot of visual input was employed instead of
developing strategies that support the conveyance of meaning in terms of visual,
auditory and haptic needs of students through adaptations of audio-visual aids,
activities or the oral expression. While there is no particular method specially
designed for students with visual disabilities, she sustains that teachers should
make an effort to integrate the use of all senses in the learning process. In
addition, the memory capacity of these students should be used as an individual
strategy when developing materials. Still, Santana mentions that the remarkable
skills in auditory discrimination of blind students in their native language cannot be
transferred to foreign language, as the mastery of the sounds of a new language
involves training. The author suggests the use of computers or multimedia
language laboratories, where students can practice their skills to develop auditory
discrimination. Santana introduces us to an important issue to consider: the
advantage of the blind to auditory perception takes practice and training. This
implies that teachers of EFL cannot expect to build on the sense of hearing of their
students VI before having given them opportunities to become familiar with the
second language and their sounds.

Regarding discourse competence, Santana (2003) states that the input of the
mother tongue also plays a crucial role in its development as well as in that of
culturally appropriate behavior. It is, then, vital to ensure that the student knows
how to use the discursive strategies in their native language to be able to engage
 21

in longer conversations and write more extensive texts in the target language.
Thus, opportunities of interacting through activities and resources that require oral
answers would be the ideal for the development of discursive skills of the visually
impaired student. Furthermore, non-verbal communication can cause a lack of
understanding between speakers, hampering the interaction. If this factor is
present in the first language, it can be transferred to the second, facilitating active
participation in conversations in the second language. Here we see that for the
learner to express himself or herself in the second or foreign language, it is best
that they master the discursive skills in the mother tongue to produce in the target
language without difficulty. Perhaps that is why other authors spoke of a
collaborative work between EFL or ESL teacher of the VI and the teacher of blind
students in their mother tongue. A joint work could help to provide a better
academic experience, as the VI could have several opportunities in different
subjects to practice the same skills with a wide variety of activities.

Santana (2013) also dedicated part of her paper to the importance of literacy skills.
She mentioned that the mastery of a literacy code (Braille or ink) plays a crucial
role to read and write in English. Therefore, great importance should be given to
the appropriateness of learning one or both systems based on the visual
characteristics of the student to ensure full access to literacy. As well as this
specific variation, all adaptations should address the lack of vision or serious
deficiencies in the process of learning a second language and set the students
with visual disabilities in the same level as people without visual impairment.
Moreover, she concludes that even though the visual deficit does not affect the
language development of blind and visually impaired learners in a normal
environment, that does not imply that time and resources should not be spent on
developing methodological adjustments to improve reading and writing skills in a
second language. Santana highlights the importance of materials that address the
specific needs of blind students, specifically to help offset the absence of vision.

Motta (2004) studied how visually impaired children learn English based on the
perspective of the Activity Theory, which derives from Vygotskys Interactionism.
The researcher reviewed an EFL class, and the methods used in the lesson, as
they were intended to create critical learners. In her dissertation, Motta (2004)
described a class with VI students who were given materials such as excerpts of
 22

texts in Braille related to social situations or problems. Students would debate

about these topics and their active roles in these issues, and in greater scale,
within society. Through the activities presented there was an opportunity to
evaluate the linguistic competence of these learners, giving them a chance to
perceive how much they have already learnt, as even the students with less
instruction in foreign languages used what they knew in order to express their
ideas. In this way, the researcher aimed to exploit linguistic competence of the
students by means of the development of critical thinking. In this paper, we see
that it is possible to also develop communications activities with an emphasis on
critical thinking and debate. This is an interesting proposal for a class of EFL, as
students use their knowledge of the language in the debate, practicing fluency,
automaticity, and get used to converse in the target language. Furthermore, a
study in which VI students were able to participate without major problems in tasks
based on critical thinking and reflection tells us that blindness does not prevent the
blind from acquiring a new language or communicating in it. In addition, it is shown
that cognitive development of blind students is similar to that of students with
vision since both groups can participate in the same activities.

In her doctoral dissertation, Aikin (2005) studied the role of motivation in the
success of the blind and visually impaired students in English language learning,
as language involves both emotions and cognition and is related to every
conceivable topic in the human repertoire. She believes that high visual content of
textbooks discourages the blind student and hinders their capacity to adapt. The
author appeals to the use of the sense of touch, using a series of artistic resources
in order to exploit the sense of touch, as a transmitter of contents instead of visual
input. It is worth mentioning that the materials designed by Aikin were specifically
created for the integrated classroom in which sightless students share the class
with their sighted peers. The material promoted the desire of the VI students to
learn, in addition to the creation of greater chances for social interaction among
children with and without impairment. Furthermore, the resources were visually
appealing making non-impaired learners willing to experiment with it themselves.
Aikin gives a major role to the affective factor, because in an environment where
students feel unmotivated, uncomfortable or threatened, it is very difficult for any
 23

learning to occur. This is yet another reason to have the appropriate materials in
the EFL class for the VI, as they make the students feel comfortable and included,
as well as allowing them to learn in a comfortable manner, with unnecessary
difficulty. Along with the motivation factor, considering the integrated classroom is
also a highly important point to take under consideration when designing materials
for the visually impaired due to the fact that it will facilitate group work and the
learning environment.

Milian and Pears (2005) conducted a case study with two blind girls of ten and
eleven years old, educated in an English-Spanish dual school in Colorado. The
students attending this institution had English or Spanish as their L1. The objective
of this research was to study if it was possible for visually handicapped students to
attend a dual bilingual school and obtain positive outcomes. When interviewed, the
teachers mentioned that the ESL classes for the blind needed to be very
structured and planned as they could not be very spontaneous due to the fact that
they could not alter the materials in Braille used by the students. Also, they made
a remark on the need to have preparation to teach the blind prior to the beginning
of the school year, along with having information about each student regarding
proficiency level, negative and positive features in relation to language learning,
etc. Additionally, educators pointed out that, for blind students to be able to learn a
language, they need to have strong auditory skills and strong language abilities.
They also indicated that the students should be willing to take risks and contribute
in class and in the school (Milian & Pearson, 2005, para. 20).Likewise,
collaboration with the classroom teacher is also necessary to enable balance
between students' language and educational needs as they have to work on
listening skills even during instruction in L1.As mentioned above, a good auditory
perception in the blind should be developed through different activities both in the
target language and in the mother tongue. In order to accomplish this, both
language teachers and other educators of the blind should work together in order
to improve the language learning and acquisition experience of the impaired
students, as all the teachers should aim to the proper development of the students
skills in order to function as normally as possible in society.
 24

A few years later, Dias (2008) gathered the testimonies of a group of teachers of
blind students after their teaching practice, as an effort to collect the experiences
of teachers working directly with blind students, in order to establish a set of
standards and share them with other teachers. This author gathered a series of
techniques used by three teachers of the blind concerning help from peers,
competencies, materials, reinforcement, application and assessment. Regarding
materials, the teachers stated that every sort of resources could be used in EFL
classes for the blind, although, they must be adapted and applied in a way in
which they meet the needs of the visually handicapped. The teachers mentioned
some adaptations such as having all texts in Braille, and dictating everything they
write on the board for the VI students to write it down. Likewise, if the teachers
used pictures in the integrated EFL classroom they described them in detail for the
blind students to be able to participate in the lesson. Hence, we can see that
adaptations in materials and activities to meet the needs of the blind are entirely
possible, even in the context of inclusive education. In addition, the adaptions in
the activities mentioned by Dias did not require much effort or time from the
teacher. The most important aspect of these activities is that students can be part
of the class, actively. Adaptations make them feel included by the teacher and
classmates. In addition, learning is facilitated by chances to use their unique
capacities with materials and activities useful for them.

Orsini-Jones (2009) studied the experience of three university students enrolled in

an English language course at a university. The study was conducted from the
point of view of the students and the staff involved. Orsini-Jones (2009) stated
many important suggestions regarding development of the four language skills of
the VI students. All of them were adaptations necessary to suitably address the
needs of blind learners. She also highlighted the use of technological tools and the
importance of the affective factor due to the fact that the author considered that
the encouragement and motivation received in the language class, was
fundamental to the students success. Once again, a remark is made on the need
of suitable EFL materials for the VI. The need for this suitability is considered
essential and can affect the whole learning process of the students. Likewise, this
author states that it is possible to include materials for blind students, even within
inclusive education.
 25

II.3 EFL AND ESL AROUND THE WORLD. STATE OF ARTS

II.3.1 Asia

Oman

America-Mideast Educational and Training Services

The America-Mideast Educational and Training Services, Inc. (AMIDEAST), in

cooperation with the Al Noor Association for the Blind, offers a program of EFL for
visually impaired adults in Oman. The program began in February, 2015
attempting to address the need of many visually impaired adults to learn English
for work and travelling purposes. The course is based in the Audio-lingual
approach aiming to the development of students functional vocabulary and
grammar, while postponing reading and writing for once the students confidence
grows (America Mid-east Educational and Training Services, n.d., para. 3), para.
3). Additionally, the course uses technological devices in order to assist the
visually impaired in their language learning process. Priming orality is an idea
suggested since the 1980 by many authors previously mentioned in this paper. As
Santana suggests in her research, this program also takes advantage of
technological tools to complement the EFL experience of the blind.

China

Travellers Worldwide

The company Travellers Worldwide offers a program for visually impaired children
in a school in China. The school applies the computer-assisted language learning
which is an approach to language teaching and learning in which the computer is
used as an aid to the presentation, reinforcement and assessment of material to
be learned, usually including a substantial interactive element (Wang, 2012,
p.223). The Chinese school possesses sophisticated technological equipment and
facilities needed for teaching their 247 visually impaired students. Additionally, the
school also embraces the theory of multiple intelligences in their teaching practice.
It is important to notice that educators in this course prime listening and speaking
skills as the classes are entirely oral and teachers use text books for guidance.
This was suggested by most researches regarding EFL for the visually impaired.
 26

However, we also need to highlight the inclusion of an approach which consists of

a modular theory of the mind that opposes to the traditional conception of
intelligence as a single general faculty.

Russia

International Project Equal Opportunities: Teaching English to Blind and

Visually Impaired Students in Russia (BVI-Project)

The International Project Equal Opportunities: Teaching English to Blind and

Visually Impaired Students in Russia (BVI-Project) was initiated in 2010 by the
Komi English Language Teachers Association KOMELTA and supported by the
members of five other ELT associations in Russia(Teaching English to Blind and
Visually Impaired Students, n.d., para. 1). The program was applied in the Moscow
Boarding School for the Blind and Visually Impaired 1 with support of the
English Language Office of the US Embassy. The BVI-Project started due to the
poor educational access for the blind and the visually impaired in some regions in
Russia. The overall goal of the program is to provide better job opportunities for
these learners by improving access to EFL courses. Besides, the project is also
aimed to promote the inclusive education movement around the world which
supports educational inclusion and access for children with disabilities which
requires teachers to effectively educate these children with a variety of special
needs. The BVI-Project has existed for six years and has encountered many
difficulties due to the lack of resources. The project continues to work aiming to
achieve its general and specific objectives.

During lessons within this program, the teachers used a wide variety of activities
with their blind students. These activities were aimed at different skills and senses,
in order to address the specific needs of the blind. The activities included oral
descriptions, creative writing, as well as games and kinesthetic activities. The
stimulation of differences senses in the context of the language classroom
deviates from visual-centered traditional education, and embraces a more
inclusive approach aimed to expand the integration of a bigger variety of
individuals. This project is evidence that it is possible to create, adapt and take to
practice methods suitable for the blind students needs.
 27

II.3.2 Europe

Pedagogy and Language Learning for Blind and Partially Sighted Adults in
Europe

A few EFL programs for visually impaired students have been carried out in
Europe in recent years. In 2008, the program Pedagogy and Language Learning
for Blind and Partially Sighted Adults in Europe was implemented as a common
goal of the European Blind Union (EBU, France), the Pancyprian Organization of
the Blind (POB, Cyprus), Czech Blind United (SONS, Czech Republic) and the
Slovak Blind and Partially Sighted Union (UNSS, Slovakia). After seeing the lack
of infrastructure, approaches, techniques and teaching tools adapted to the needs
of visually impaired adults, these organizations united with the Grundtvig Learning
Partnership Pedagogy and Language Learning for Blind and Partially Sighted
Adults in Europe.

From 2008 to 2010 the project enabled the partners to work together on the central
issue of the social and professional integration of VI adults through the improvement
of their accessibility to language education. In particular, partners focused their work
on how to reinforce the competences of language teachers in mainstream settings
(Good Practice for Improving Language Learning for Visually Impaired Adults, n.d., p.
3)

Moreover, they developed materials that could add to the idea of accessibility for
the blind. These methods focus on stimulating differences senses, and the 4
language skills on the blind students. Consequently, the majority of the methods
did not imply a lot of work from the teacher, and were really are accessible for any
teacher, e.g. realia. Hence, it is possible to see that those who work with visually
impaired students recognize the need for specific materials that meet the needs of
this particular group of students. Nonetheless, these materials do not have to be
complicated, expensive, nor they need to hamper the appropriate development of
an inclusive language classroom.
 28

European language portfolio

Tell Me How! is the name of project promoted by the European Language

Portfolio for the Blind and Visually Impaired (ELPBVI). The ELPBVI is an
electronic model of the European Language Portfolio created for the blind and the
visually impaired language learners by an association of European partners in
2008-2009 (ICC - the international language association - Tell Me How!, 2015,
para. 2). The students can choose between various languages: English, German,
Bulgarian and Greek languages on the electronic platform, or free of charge online
version as well as printable materials. One of the main goals of the project is to
respond the students learning needs in the best way, providing an appropriate
context and very detailed explanations of how to access, set, and use the ELPBVI.
Furthermore, teachers were trained to reach a better understanding of the needs
of students with visual impairment, to monitor the teaching-learning processes,
and to evaluate the efficacy of the educational approach. Additionally, the course
offers instruments for assessing language competencies of the blind.

The most relevant aspect of the ELPBVI is the effort made by the teachers to
introduce the participants to the electronic platform or its online version. Using
technological tools in the EFL classroom is very important and helpful for both
students with and without disabilities. However, it is important to highlight the need
of students to be guided through the function of the technological tools. Explaining
the platform tools and other activities such as games with foreign language
purposes is highly beneficial for a better use or application of the activities. In
addition, this program included different modalities in order to access the different
resources in different ways, even in a version that could be printed. Therefore, the
materials were accessible for teachers in very different contexts.

Eurochance 1 and 2

The Eurochance 1 and 2 were projects for the blind and the visually impaired,
implemented from 2007 to 2009. The prime goal of the projects was to reduce the
unemployment rate of blind people by improving their qualification and
competences. In addition, the project aims to motivate visually impaired people to
participate more in the social, political and economic spheres (Eurochance 2, n.d.,
 29

para. 1). Courses in Spanish, Italian, German and English were offered to the
target population. Furthermore, methodology and study plans for teachers where
developed, as well as the design and implementation of a learning management
scheme that was able to sustain the on-line learning process.

The project was implemented through the Digital Language School, a digital
language school center based on the Eurochance textbooks (Introduction, n.d.,
para 1).The program provided teachers, classrooms, textbooks, study plans, tests
(exams) and study results. Additionally, students are given a study plan to follow
with guidance of a tutor. The activities included in the Eurochance Study Plan
(Eurochance, n.d.) for the blind included conversations, role plays, translations of
texts, and writing that started with very simple description at the end of the course,
and finalized with the elaboration of essays. Before starting to work with each
book, every student is given the chance to listen to general instructions of how to
use the platform.

The study program, once again, highlights the importance of students receiving
clear instructions to make the most of the technological tools. In addition, the
Eurochance programs have a very important difference with previous language
programs for the blind, in which there was a focus on orality in the first stages of
EFL learning. In these programs, since students and teachers count with the help
of technological tools, the blind can start the EFL course working in the 4 language
skills, without dealing with the slow pace of reading and writing in Braille.
Additionally, work units were organized with levels of difficulty gradually increasing
as the course progressed. As a result, the materials are accessible at no cost,
extending the reach of the program to the whole world.

Czech Republic

European Education Centre in Hradec Krlov

The European Education Centre in Hradec Krlov, Czech Republic holds

English courses for the blind and visually impaired in addition to its other activities
(European Commission, n.d., para. 1). One of its main goals is to fully optimize
access for the blind and the visually impaired to the English language study portal.
 30

The materials used in class have been adapted to meet the needs of blind and
visually impaired students. There has also been training for teachers in order to
prepare them for this sort of instruction. The project is well-known in the region
and has been awarded with European Language Label Award (ELL), an award
encouraging new initiatives in the field of teaching and learning languages, the
rewarding of new techniques in language teaching, and spreading the knowledge
of languages' existence, thereby promoting good practice (European Language
Label, 2014, para. 1)

Unfortunately, there is no extensive or detailed information on this project. There is

not any information on this program that describes the type of methodology and
specific materials used in the EFL program for the blind. Anyway, it is possible to
appreciate the effort of developing a program based on the needs of students with
visual impairment, a prevailing need for the current context. In addition, the little
information available tells us that new techniques were applied during this EFL
program. This can be considered as proof of the great need for new materials for
foreign language classes for the visually impaired.

Provision of Typhlopedic Services and Methodological Activity to Support

Integration of Visually Impaired in High Schools of standard education.

This project aims to the use of the schools educators and their knowledge of
special pedagogy, as wells as school equipment to support visually impaired
students. The main goal is to meet these students special needs effectively in
three particular areas: Mathematics, Arts and Foreign languages, specifically
English. Regarding EFL classes, the school has chosen a few aspects to focus on
during the lessons, considered to be necessary to fill the needs of the visually
handicapped students. First of all they suggest giving extra time to the VI students
for taking notes, reading and writing in Braille (Antov et al., n.d.). Furthermore, the
program focuses on intonation and pronunciation which create an atmosphere and
mood; dialog and improvisation which help to set language into contexts, and
reinforce listening and comprehension skills. The program highlights the
importance of listening skills and encourages teachers to speak naturally, using
clear and concise expressions and literary language (Antov., et al., n. d., p. 4) in
 31

order to motivate students. Besides, vocabulary is taught through verbal

descriptions along with multi-sensorial stimulation through objects and tactile
graphics. All of these aspects are combined in theater-based activities in the EFL
class.

It is worth highlighting that in this program the adaptations are made considering
the four language skills, as the blind are able to work within all of them
simultaneously. As well as previously reviewed programs, there is a focus on
orality, and a few aspects that compose it. Paying detailed attention to aspects of
orality such as intonation, orality helps to set a context for vocabulary and
conversations, making them meaningful. Additionally, having the students practice
to communicate in English is very important in order to avoid rote learning as it
helps to consolidate the target language. Lastly, this program uses an approach in
which multiple senses are stimulated. This is an approach that differs from the
traditional visual-centered approach, but that seems to address the need of
students with blindness.

Bulgaria

Listen and Touch 2004

The project Listen and Touch, started in 2004, was aimed to fulfill the needs of VI
adult students in EFL lessons. Due to the lack of appropriate resources, the
project was created with the goal of improving methods of foreign language
teaching for the blind based on the communicative approach. Thus, the program
included the development of a two-level Braille version of the Streamline English
course, adapted for blind students, and an English Braille Manual. The courses
were also enriched with a variety of other techniques appropriate for the blind (The
Nellip Project, n.d.). Additionally, the program embraces the notion of foreign
language learning as a result of a methodology that addresses all senses.

This program is one of the many that have introduced multisensory teaching in
their classrooms, a subject we will discuss in the next chapter. This methodology
makes sense in the context of teaching students with visual impairment, as the
 32

current education system focuses on visual stimulation. Multisensory teaching

could help to include VI students as well as other sighted students with learning
styles that require other non-visual stimuli. Moreover, the Listen and Touch
program has seen the necessity to develop resources for foreign language
teachers of blind students, since they need access to different methods that could
be used in their lessons. The main purpose of this research is to address this very
same need, and attempts to address it with gathering materials for EFL for the
blind that meet the educational needs of them.

English language learning for visually impaired students (ELLVIS)

Due to the lack of suitable materials for visually impaired people regarding
language learning, the project "ELLVIS" aims to the implementation of innovative
approaches for language learning for visually impaired children and teenagers.
Hence, an alternative interface for self-learning for language learning purposes
was created as part of the project with the purpose of implementing them in a
course specifically designed for the blind. The interface holds a software which
provides assistance and prompting through a system that supplies feedback in
other than audio-file form, namely by the force-feedback reaction that the joystick
offers. (Angestellten-Akademie, D, n. d.) . Besides, the language lessons focus
on communicative listening and speaking skills through the implementation of the
interface for self-learning software, which eliminates the necessity of having a
screen reader. This is a very innovative tool not only in the context of EFL for the
VI students, as the stimulus provided by the software is not auditory, but tactile.
Touch is the means of the blind to experience and build their notions of the world,
stimulating this sense can lead to strong concept formation. In addition, the
visually impaired may be eager to learn by using a technological tool that
addresses their most important sense, one they are used to use for learning.
 33

The force-feedback devices, such as the joystick used in the program, are very
interesting tools to use, as they give users feedback in the form of vibrations (Kato,
2016). Force feedback devices are usually used in video games, and attempt to
imitate real-time interaction. For every movement, mistake, or whatever is
occurring in the game the user receives stimulus in the form of vibrations. As Kato
(n.d.) says in his text

When we play a driving game, we can use force feedback steering wheel and pedals.
It is a simulator and gives us a pseudo-real steering wheel, but not a real one. As for
the real car, car designers try to avoid the vibration of the steering wheel and we have
no feedback from the steering wheel about the angle of the tires. This game is going
to the different direction. Force feedback steering wheel enhances the vibration of
engines and gives us some feedback of the angle of tires. (para. 7)

Technological tools that bring other types of feedback rather than the
auditory one are a very important matter in the context of EFL for the blind.
Students receive multisensorial stimulation, making language content relate
to a variety of feedback. Besides, using joysticks might result in a fun
different way to study languages, which will motivate any student, improving
the learning process.

II.3.3 North America

USA

Kaizen: program for new English learners with visual limitations | for blind
and low-vision adults. Seattle, Washington.

Kaizen program was created in other to respond to the specific instructional needs
of blind and visually-impaired immigrants and refugees learning English as a
Second Language (Kashdan, n.d). The program adapts its classes to the needs of
the students by choosing suitable materials and techniques as well as using
communicative language teaching. Teachers convey the meaning and the
contexts in which words, phrases and sentences are used in the second language
by stimulating multiple senses. The language skills are developed simultaneously,
and in an integrated manner. Besides, the language learning processes is
 34

reinforced through a variety of means, which promotes real, purposeful learning in

the second language. Kaizen teachers provide the students with materials in
Braille most of them written by the same educators. Furthermore, the directors of
the program give informational presentations and training workshops for the
purpose of familiarizing teachers of the blind to the most suitable EFL methods for
assisting visually impaired students. As seen before, the blind are perfectly
capable of working on the four language skills at the same time, as long as the
processes are meaningful for the students. This should be taken into consideration
when choosing methods for language teaching for VI students. In addition,
addressing the educational needs with a variety of activities and using a
multisensorial approach, helps to enhance meaning, and to set context.

BLIND incorporated national federation of the blind (NFB)

NFB-based training center located in Minneapolis, Minnesota provides courses to

several the blind residents of local communities. It offers a distinctive English
Language Learners (ELL) program for blind and visually impaired learners who are
in need of learning English. BLIND Incorporated conducts two summer programs
for blind youththe Buddy Program for blind elementary-school-age students and
the Life 101 Program for blind high school and college-bound students (Pierce &
Frye, 2009, para. 1). Also, the program attempts to develop the learners literacy
skills and vocabulary. Consequently, interpretation of tactile graphics and Braille
reading and writing of un-contracted Braille are within the curriculum of the
courses. Furthermore, BLIND Incorporated also offers a twelve-week training set
of courses for blind senior citizens. Once again, it is possible to see that the four
language skills are stimulated simultaneously through, orality, audition and touch.
The wide use of a modality such as this leads to believe that such approach is
suitable for the blind as language, hearing and haptic stimuli are the manner in
which they experience the world. Therefore, it is very likely that the most suitable
manner to teach languages to the blind is through this same type of simulation.

Catholic Guild for the Blind

The Catholic Guild for the Blind is a program created by two authors previously
mentioned in this paper: Snyder and Kesselman (1972). It offers courses in
 35

English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) with an emphasis on everyday

conversation and communication skills. The program applies the audio=lingual
method, priming orality (with emphasis on accent, tone and intonation), and most
importantly, listening skills. Additionally, gestures and facial expressions are
regarded as important in the communication process, and taught in order to help
blind students to manage potential situations in everyday life. Snyder and
Kesselman (1972) also believed that blind students are more successful in the
ESOL classroom if they learn the target language in monolingual context. Unlike
other language programs for the visually impaired, which address all language
skills at the same time, Catholic Guild for the Blind prioritizes orality to writing and
reading, probably due to the social needs of students. Nevertheless, paying
attention to various aspects of orality make this element enriched with the context
and solid foundation necessary for understanding meanings.

II.3.4 Latin America

Despite the fact that blind students are admitted in public education with the
support of laws, there continues to be a lack of EFL teaching programs and
methodology designed for visually impaired students in many Latin American
countries. According to Teletn Paraguay (2013), there are several efforts to
include these learners through programs of inclusion with adaptations of school
and home facilities, transportation, curricula and methodology of the standardized
education but few of them include anything regarding the second language or
foreign language classroom. It could be considered that Brazil is the only country
which is attempting to improve the language learning experience of the blind in
their schools as dissertation papers have been written in Brazilian Universities,
regarding this matter (Malta, G., 2009; Motta, L., 2004; Fontana, M., 2009). In
addition, some programs have been designed and implemented in an attempt to
provide an opportunity for language learning of the blind.
 36

Mexico

Educational Guide for Visually Impaired Students - Government of the State

of Aguascalientes

The Government of the State of Aguascalientes has developed an Educational

Guide for Visually Impaired Students in order to spread the idea of inclusion in the
educational community (Garca, 2012). It contains basic information about
students with special needs associated with this specific disability. It also provides
the definition of the general characteristics of this population, and diagnostic tests,
as well as the educational needs of these learners and the corresponding
responses to them. Additionally, it presents an overview of the use of resources to
facilitate access of these students to learning. However, it does not include any
information about foreign language teaching. Therefore, it is possible that teachers
encounter many situations related to the needs of their students and do not have
many materials prepared for them in order to properly address the educational
needs of their students.

Brazil

State Department of Education of So Paulo (Own translation)

The state department of education of So Paulo launched a platform allowing

access for all students of the state who have visual and hearing impairment to a
free online English course. The project started with a total of 4000 vacancies for
blind and deaf students in 2013.A module was developed around the whole
content of the program, including videos and photographs with audio description
for students with blindness and low vision as to guarantee the participation of the
students with these specific disabilities. The online English could be accessed
from homes and also in the rooms of Acessa Escola, where all machines had a
screen reader software that allows blind and low vision users to use the
computers. All students participating in the online English had tutors trained in
disabilities to assist them on lessons scheduled according to the demand. The
course load is of 80 hours, divided into eight modules with 10 hours each.
 37

Accessibility is one of the most important points of this program. The fact that it
can be accessed from homes or schools reaches the blind people that cannot get
to school by themselves for different reasons. In addition, this fact helps those who
cannot go to school occasionally, the program can continue without interruption.
Besides, orality is emphasized through almost all the methods used in the program
which included screen reader, video, audio descriptions of photographs. However,
this focus on orality might be detrimental as haptic input is not used.

Federal Institute of Brasilia (own translation)

The Federal Institute of Brasilia (IFB) implemented an English Course for the blind,
with the objective of giving better job opportunities to visually impaired (IFB, 2012).
For the implementation of this course, the IFB developed a platform with several
modules with resources accessible in all of its content. The videos and photos
presented in the course have an audio descriptor for the blind and visually
impaired people. Furthermore, the computers are adapted with screen-reader
software which allows blind students to use them. The learners also receive help
from tutors through a chat included in the platform. The Course of Integral and
Continuous Training (FIC) (own translation) has a load of 100 hours and will give a
certification in Level A1, following the standards of the Common European Frame
of Reference for Language (CEFR). It is worth noticing that having technological
tools in EFL programs, aids in teaching languages to the blind in a personalized
way. Nevertheless, these platforms do not count with an explanatory section that
familiarizes users with the platform. This a very negative aspect, that makes the
program not accessible for teachers and their students, in schools in different
contexts such as schools in Paraguay which do not have computers or trained
educators that could guide students through the platform.

Paraguay

In Paraguay, students with visual impairment have been included in the

Paraguayan educational system since 2014. This was supported by the
Presidential Decree N 2837 which regulates Law N 5136 of Inclusive Education
issued on December 23rd, 2013. The number of visually impaired and blind
 38

students in standardized education reached 111 in the year 2012 (UNESCO,

2013). Paraguay has managed to formulate guidelines of policy for an inclusive
education and the development of actions that materialize in everyday classroom.
Still, the Ministry of Education has not designed a curriculum to address the need
of students with special needs.

According to a research conducted by Teletn Paraguay (2013) adaptations to the

curriculum are made only in certain schools, the majority follows the MECs
curricula despite having students with specific educational needs in the classroom.
There are schools such as the Luis Braille School in Asuncion, who make
adaptations in order to meet the needs of the blind children, but do not have a
language class due to the lack of teachers prepared for teaching languages to the
blind. Furthermore, special education services are temporary and are intended to
provide early stimulation and initial stimulation, especially to children from the
more remote and poor geographical areas, for their integration into regular
schools. In contrast, the growing efforts of inclusion remain unrelated to the
specialization programs for teachers due to the fact that specialization in any field
of special education has not been provided for teachers since 1990. As a result,
more than 74.2% of teachers do not have expertise in the area in which they work
(OIE, 1994). In an effort to reduce some of the impact caused by this situation, the
Special Education Department runs teacher training programs, in all areas of
counseling and monitoring services. Nonetheless, training program may not be
enough in order to prepare teachers for the many aspects of having students with
disabilities, or being aware of the differences between the learning processes of
the blind and the sighted students. Besides, they might not be aware of the
different resources and possibilities in regards of methods for EFL for the visually
impaired.

II.4 CURRENTLY USED EFL METHODS FOR THE VISUALLY IMPAIRED

In 2008, a Brazilian researcher interviewed EFL teachers of the blind with the
purpose of finding out what EFL methods were used for the visually impaired
students. Therefore, Rosanne Dias (2008) interviewed three EFL teachers of the
visually impaired from different institutions. Through this research, it was
determined that during reading, writing, and grammar activities as well as in exam
 39

days the teachers provide their blind students with a Braille version of the text,
activity or exam sheet that the blind completed in Braille. They also have a book
with a section of the book of their sighted peers in Braille version. Furthermore, if
the class worked with a picture or other kind of visual illustration the teacher would
describe it with detail for the blind students to understand what was being
discussed. A teacher described a lesson in which the blind were separated from
the sighted in order to do a less challenging speaking exercise in order to avoid
complications, even though the VI covered the same content as the sighted in
class. In addition, several methods described by the teachers were not
appropriate for the blind as, the materials mentioned by the teachers were visual
ones.

Dias mentioned that the majority of these methods (2011) described by the
teachers were not appropriate for the blind as they included highly visual
materials. In addition, these activities separated the blind from the sighted, rather
than including them in the lesson, as they had to do totally different activities from
the sighted and not just modified versions of the same activities students without
disabilities were doing. Besides, the blind have not got all the materials the sighted
have, as only one part of the book used in EFL lessons was transcribed into
Braille. Dias (2008) mentioned that this was probably due to the teachers lack of
preparation to meet the needs of blind even though they tried to. In fact, a teacher
was not aware there was going to be a blind child in his/her class. Likewise, she
emphasized on the needs of the teachers of having guidance in the process of
selecting the appropriate methodology to teach the blind.

Therefore, it is very important to provide the teachers of the visually impaired with
guidelines that help to address the needs of the blind. Additionally, the educators
of the blind need available methods that are suitable for the visually impaired, so
as to meet their needs. Sometimes in an effort to choose methods that consider
the needs of everyone in the inclusive classroom, teachers make some mistakes
that can be detrimental to the VI students learning. For that reason, these two
urgent needs of the language of the blind will be addressed in this investigation in
which we will cover the works of different authors who proposed different methods
for the VI. These methods will be analyzed in terms of their suitability regarding
 40

the specific educational needs of the blind, in order to find appropriate methods for
the visually impaired.

II.5 EFL METHODS FOR THE VISUALLY IMPAIRED

This section is focused on a collection of EFL methods for the blind. The following
instructional methods have been gathered from several researchers and teachers
of the visually impaired that sustain these methods are suitable for the blind.
Before diving into the various EFL methods that we have found, it is imperative to
define the word methods in the context of teaching in order to have a better
understanding of this section, which is the core of our investigation. An
instructional or
teaching method is
defined as a way in
which information is
presented by the Figure 1. [Untitled illustration of Table of Pronouns] (n.d.) Retrieved
October 2, 2015 from https://s-media-cache-
teacher to the
ak0.pinimg.com/564x/64/7a/79/647a798a75a41af17257655b2c8002
students (OBannon, e4.jpg

2002). As simple as this definition might seem, it is in reality a little more complex.
According to Davis (1997) when choosing teaching methods teachers and other
members of the educational community, must take into account the students
educational needs. The following methods have been developed and presented as
an attempt of educators to properly address the specific needs of the VI. In this
section, the suitability of these EFL methods for the visually handicapped students
will be described and briefly commented on. Further comments on suitability of
these instructional methods will be presented in Chapter IV.

Activity One. Two Russian teachers of the blind proposed several methods for
introducing new grammatical content to visually impaired students in the context of
inclusive education. Olga Katsap & Olga Vorobieva (2015) suggested that when
the EFL teacher is presenting a new grammatical rule and plans to write it the
board for the sighted students, it is necessary that he or she says out loud
everything that is being written for the visually impaired to feel included, and for
them to be aware of what is happening. If posters and charts are used to present
 41

the grammatical rule, pre-printed Braille materials will be needed for the blind
students. According to Katsap & Vorobieva (2015) teachers should consider that
the form of the table is perceived with difficulty when reading in Braille and is not
clear or easy to read as in the case of a text (p.144). For example, when teaching
pronouns, a chart such Figure 1 could be used to work with the sighted students.
Contrariwise, charts need to be adapted for the visually impaired as depicted in
Figure 2.

This method presented by

these two Russian teachers
takes into consideration the

mechanism of Braille
Figure 2. Table of pronouns. Reprinted from Virtual workshop
reading and one the most on social adaptation of children with physical and mental
disabilities. Materials of the seminar for the teachers of
important characteristics of English working in inclusive schools.(p. 144), by Bart, M. V.,
2015 Syktyvkar, Russia: Syktyvkar State University. Pitirim
touch that is sequentiality Sorokin Publishing centre.Copyright 2015 by the Syktyvkar
(see Chapter III). The blind State University named after Pitirim Sorokin Reprinted with
permission.
need to gather pieces of
information one after the other, as they are not able to perceive many aspects
simultaneously as vision allows the sighted to perceive. Furthermore, saying out
loud whatever is being written on the board, makes the blind aware of what is
happening, and can also contribute to make them feel included. The method also
includes the blind students by proposing special materials prepared for them in
Braille. Making the visually impaired feel included can help to avoid adding
unnecessary difficulty to the comprehension of the grammatical rule. It also helps
to prevent hindering students motivation in the English class. Lastly, this activity
can be used with students of any age and level.

Activity two. The same Russian researcher proposed another method for teaching
grammar to the blind. Katsap &Vorobieva (2015) stated that when

Students themselves must find a specific grammatical phenomenon in text, it is

necessary to give a clear reading assignment. It is desirable to remind them similar
grammatical phenomena in their native language. Keep in mind that reading a text in
Braille needs more time than reading the same text in flatbed type. In addition, in
ordinary textbooks the analyzed grammatical phenomena are often highlighted in the
text in bold, italic, color, underline, or in other ways making them easier to search and
immediately attracting the attention of the reader. (p.144)
 42

When printing a text in Braille it is not possible to highlight any part of the text.
Therefore, the tasks need to be reformulated in order to be meaningful for the
blind. The authors provide an example, as depicted in figure 3, in which the task
asks the students to read first and then presents the combinations of verbs and
pronouns for the students to reflect upon them.

Figure 3.Task reformulation example. Reprinted from Virtual workshop on social adaptation of
children with physical and mental disabilities. Materials of the seminar for the teachers of English
working in inclusive schools.(p. 144), by Bart, M. V., 2015 Syktyvkar, Russia: Syktyvkar State
University. Pitirim Sorokin Publishing centre. Copyright 2015 by the Syktyvkar State University
named after Pitirim Sorokin. Reprintedwith permission.

Adapting EFL tasks is especially important in the context of special education, as it

can be understood as an attempt to include the student in the activities of the
class. It takes into consideration the different educational needs of the blind
making the activity meaningful as the visually impaired are not forced to work with
something that clearly does not contemplate the specific characteristics of the
blind. It also pays attention to the slower pace (when compared to the sighted) of
Braille reading, giving them more time to complete the task. Another important
element of this method is that use of the students native language is advised. This
is very debatable since researches such as Snyder and Kesselman (1972) believe
monolingual context are the best for learning the target language. However, if the
activity is carried out without the use of students mother tongue the activity can be
considered as appropriate. It is also worth mentioning that this type of activity can
be used withstudentsatA2 and superior levels (Council of Europe, n.d.).
 43

Activity three. The following is a writing activity adaptation presented by Katsap

&Vorobieva (2015) who believe that when it comes to practicing writing in the
target language, students are often presented with controlled practice activities,
such as substitution tables. In this type of activity, the learners are supposed to
replace the words in a speech sample with the correspondent words according to
the recently learned grammatical structure. According to the these Russian
researchers when adapting this activity for blind students the teacher should use
either the sentence patterns with gaps (frame sentences) and the words for
reference or elements of the speech sample, written in Braille on separate cards
about 10x7 cm instead of a substitution table (p. 145), as it is illustrated in Figure
4. On the contrary, some researchers such as Kashdan and Barnes (1998) sustain
that activities of these kind can be confusing for Braille readers, since this type of
format requires simultaneous perceptions of several elements on a wide range in a
single glance something that is not possible for the VI students as they rely on the
sequentiality of touch. In this case the students would have to read all of the
sentences first in order to know what part of them is missing, then they will have to
read all of the cards and analyze what words goes into each space. They will need
to read all of the information before starting the activity which might take a long
time. If after reading all the task and the cards, the student starts to read the
sentences with gaps once again and recalls the word he or she will have to start
reading all the cards or reference words again until they find the right one. This
activity can be tedious for blind students because they have to read the sentences
and reference words repeatedly in order to complete the task.

Figure 4.Task adaptation example. Reprinted from Virtual workshop on social adaptation of
children with physical and mental disabilities. Materials of the seminar for the teachers of English
working in inclusive schools.(p. 145), by Bart, M. V., 2015 Syktyvkar, Russia: Syktyvkar State
University. Pitirim Sorokin Publishing centre. Copyright 2015 by the Syktyvkar State University
named after Pitirim Sorokin. Reprinted with permission.
 44

Activity four. Another method for introducing new grammatical structures was
proposed by the two Russian teachers. Katsap &Vorobieva (2015) stated that if
teachers want to clarify any new piece of language with gestures or actions they
must do it together with the blind child. The authors gave the examples of a lesson
on demonstrative pronouns in which the teacher needs to place two objects on the
VI learners desk. One of them should be right in front of the student, and the other
object at the far end of the desk. The teacher must explain everything he or she is
doing, and what is being placed on the desk. Then the teacher must take the child
by the hand, and touch the near and far objects with his/her arm, muttering in
English marking with the voice the new pronouns: Look, this is a car, and that is a
teddy bear (Katsap & Vorobieva, 2015, p.145). The process can be repeated a
few times. Likewise, the child should be given the opportunity to explore the
objects and comment his/her actions. Consequently, the educator must make sure
the student has understood. This is a very interesting activity based on the
interaction between teacher and student, in which the former assists the learner
with language that is usually hard to understand for the visually impaired (see
Chapter III). It also includes touch, having the learners explore the objects and
reflect on the situation themselves. Lastly, this activity can be used with students
in the A1 level (Council of Europe, n.d.).

Figure5. Consolidation of speech pattern activity example. Reprinted from Virtual workshop on
social adaptation of children with physical and mental disabilities. Materials of the seminar for the
teachers of English working in inclusive schools.(p. 144), by Bart, M. V., 2015 Syktyvkar, Russia:
Syktyvkar State University. Pitirim Sorokin Publishing centre. Copyright 2015 by the Syktyvkar
State University named after Pitirim Sorokin. Reprinted with permission.

Activity five. In regards to consolidation of new speech patterns Katsap &

Vorobieva (2015) suggest teachers to use a method that is very popular among
the EFL classrooms of standard education. They proposed to use chain work, as
illustrated in Figure 5, as this will allow a blind student to hear the necessary
structure several times before trying to use it him/herself (p. 147). The method
implies receiving a lot of auditory information that could be use as guidance for the
blind learner to make an attempt to produce language. Likewise, a group activity
 45

always results more fun and encouraging for everyone in the classroom. This sort
of activity can be used in beginning levels such as A1, and A2 (Council of Europe,
n.d.) as reinforcement of class content.

Activity six. The popular EFL game Go Fish was also adapted by the two
Russian teachers in order to meet the needs of the visually impaired. For the
game the teacher will need to print pictures and tasks, using between 3 and 4
phrases for each of the verbs studied during the class or unit. The same labels
should also be available in Braille below the printed text or in the back of the cards
for the visually impaired children to participate in the game. Katsap & Vorobieva
(2015) explain the game stating that

At the beginning of the game, participants take 5 random cards and the remaining
cards are placed in a pile face down. The task is to collect the maximum number of
sets of three cards of the same verb. To do this, they should ask questions using the
studied tense, for example, Past Simple: Did you walk yesterday? If the second player
has a card with the verb walk, he/she says: Yes, I did. I walked in a park and I
walked with my friends and gives the cards to the player who asked the question.
That player gets an extra turn. The collected sets of three cards are put aside. If the
second player does not have the card with the necessary verb, he/she answers: No, I
did not. Go fish! And then the first player takes the top card from the pile and the turn
passes to the next player. (p. 147)

This adaptation of the Go fish game is very interesting as it actively includes

everyone in the class. The blind as well as the sighted students have an
opportunity to practice their oral skills at the same time they can practice Braille
reading in the foreign language. Furthermore, this game can be used in
classrooms of inclusive education which is very important for the urgent need of
the Paraguayan educational system. EFL teachers have blind students in their
classrooms and need to be able to address their needs with suitable materials.
Lastly, this activity can be used at A2 level (Council of Europe, n.d) courses.

Activity seven. Another popular game adapted by the Russian educators is the
Snakes and Ladders game. Katsap & Vorobieva (2015) sustained that can be
adapted by duplicating the boundaries of the playing field and the cells with the
relief contour and elements of the playing field by using diversified applications of
paper or cloth (p. 148). The authors suggest using small toys as an alternative to
 46

chips in order to be distinguishable for the visually impaired through touch. The
participants of the game throw the dice and move the chips according to the
numbers indicated in the dice. If the toy falls on a cell with a snake the player must
go one cell back. If it player reaches a cell with stairs he or she can move its toy
one step forward. If the toy lands on an empty cell the players must pick a task
from the pack of cards, which have the tasks printed and written in Braille. If the
task is performed correctly, the player can move one step forward. If he or she
makes a mistake, the toy must be returned to its previous position.

It is worth mentioning that the adaptation of snakes and ladders game is a very
interesting one as it is a multisensorial method. Students are able to practice their
oral and Braille reading skills in the target language. In addition, students must use
touch and kinesthetic activities in order to play game. The opportunity of acquiring
language takes place within an entertaining activity which motivates learners.
Through this activity the learners can review, consolidate or practice language
content. Lastly, this game be used in any level of proficiency.

Activity eight. Katsap & Vorobieva (2015) also proposed using a flannel graph
(a teaching aid which consists of a board covered with flannel to which paper or
cloth cut-outs are stuck when pressed on the board) as a method for ELF for the
visually impaired. As proposed by the authors, the flannel graph or flannel board
would be used individually with a set of cards with words written in Braille. In
addition, students will have a set of flat geometric shapes made of carpet, paper or
other materials that can be distinguishable by touch. The set of geometric shapes
is prepared to be used when working with the cards to make up sentences in
order to enclose the working space and not to allow the cards to slide and mix up.
It is also used for making some illustrations of flat-tactile elements (p. 149).This
flannel board is very interesting as it allows the students to practice reading and
writing in the target language, at the same time they use touch in order to
differentiate the materials. Teachers can also use this with beginners when
learning how to count in English, or labelling vocabulary. With or without guidance
the visually impaired would be able to use this method without major difficulties
once they are familiarized with it. Last of all, this activity can be used with children
at A1 and A2 levels.
 47

Activity nine. Katsap & Vorobieva (2015) suggested using a bag of fabric which is
opaque, matte, pleasant to the touch and a set of small (10-12 cm) toys, easily
identifiable by touch (p. 149). Learners can describe the toys for the class to
guess what it is, or describe it as they try to find out what it is. This activity is
intended to be used as a warm up but can be used during the production stage in
a class in which students learn to make descriptions. Oral skills are trained during
this methods as well as stimulating touch. Both visually impaired and sighted
students can participate from this activity. It is also worth mentioning, that this
activity can be used in groups of all ages and levels of proficiency.

Activity ten. Katsap & Vorobieva (2015) presented another method in which a
collection of sounds of various topics is presented to the students. Students have
to answer based on the sound with guidance of questions or a context given by
the teacher. For example, the teacher asks students to listen and say what is the
weather like in Susies town. Then, learners listen to sounds of a storm and
answer Its stormy. In this method students exercise their listening skills at the
same time they review vocabulary. Listening to sounds related to particular
contexts helps to consolidate meanings and relate them to situations when
vocabulary, phrases or specific grammatical structure is used. In addition, it is
important to highlight that this activity can be used with students at A1 level of
proficiency (Council of Europe, n.d.). Nevertheless, it can be used with more
advanced groups if the language content of the activity is adapted.

Activity eleven. Another Russian teacher and researcher, Kamilya Yastrebova

(2015), proposed a list of that games that she considered as suitable for the
visually impaired. These games were thought for a group of children learning the
alphabet in English. First, she proposed passing a ball among the students, calling
the letters of the alphabet in the correct order. This is very simple game in which
students learn the alphabet in with the rest of the class. In some way everybody
works in order to recall and say the alphabet in the correct order. A simple
kinesthetic activity is used which works to stablish turns giving everyone a chance
to participate. This game can be perfectly used in the context of inclusive
education, with students at A1 level of proficiency (Council of Europe, n.d.).
 48

Activity twelve. The second game proposed by Yastrebova (2015) is a variation of

the previous game in which one learner says a letter of the alphabet and the other
one should continue with the letter that come next. As well as the previous one,
this game helps to develop memory and attention in a cooperative environment
where all are paying attention to each other in order to get the alphabet right. It is a
very first chance for beginners to hear and start producing the sounds of the new
language. However, perhaps only listening and responding can be just not enough
for the activity to be successful. Only those learners who have a more developed
listening skill would be highly benefited with the activity. In spite of not being as
rich as the previous method, this activity can be used as a quick game for
knowledge reinforcement, with students at the A1 level of proficiency (Council of
Europe, n.d.).

Activity thirteen. Yastrebova (2015) proposed a another game, in which one

student calls a letter and the next student in a row, repeats the letter said by the
first learner and says the next letter in the alphabet. Similar to the previous two
activities, this method in focused on the listening skill and memory. Even though
the main aim of this activity is to memorize the alphabet, pronunciation can be
worked on as a secondary aim. Some concerns on the suitability of this this game
might arise as it addresses a single sense. Although it might be a fun game to play
and exercise memory capacity, it can result in rote learning. In spite of this, the
main goal of the game is to learn an essential knowledge in a cooperative
environment where everybody needs to pay careful attention to the previous
player. Thus, the activity can lead to successful outcomes due to the fact that
learners can develop listening and attention skills, while memorizing the alphabet.
Additionally, we would like to mention that this activity can be used with A1 level
students (Council of Europe, n.d.).

Activity fourteen. The fourth method suggested by Yastrebova (2015) is to find

errors in a written alphabet. Unfortunately, the author did not specify in what
format the alphabet would be written. One possibility is that the alphabets were
written in Braille on handouts that blind students should read carefully, in order to
find errors. This would be an opportunity to read Braille and exercise memory skills
with the teacher's guidance, as the activity should be monitored so that the
 49

students do not learn the alphabet in the wrong order. Nevertheless, this method
might not lead to learning because the activity restrains itself to reading and
identifying the error. Some students might need to go a little further that just
knowing that something is wrong with the order of the letters. Being able to
perform an action that makes the student correct the alphabet (with or without help
from the teacher) and allows them to see the corrected alphabet would probably
lead to a much better outcome.

Activity fifteen. Yastrebova (2015) also believed that a suitable EFL activity for the
visually impaired is to clap hands or stamp when a vowel is pronounced during
alphabet drilling. This activity allows beginners to work with the sounds of the
target language in a cooperative environment, where everyone participates. A safe
environment is created due to whole class participation, as students feel less
pressure to avoid error. The activity encourages attention, purposeful use of
listening skills, movement which produces sounds. All of this can help to create an
environment full of stimuli organized in moments that can be associated to vowels.
It is also worth highlighting that this activity is appropriate for children at A1 level of
proficiency (Council of Europe, n.d.).

Activity sixteen. Yastrebova (2015) presented a lesson plan with various activities
for an EFL class with the visually impaired. The first method is called typewriter.
For the game students need to make a circle facing in. The students must put their
right hand on the next students left palm facing inside too. The hands of the
students will represent a letter they have been assigned. The teacher tells the
student to type a word, for example horse, and the students who represent the
correspondent letter would have to move their hands forward. The same activity
can be done with a variation in which students represent words, and are asked to
type sentences, for example: The horse has got long legs. This is a very
interesting activity; since it relies on cooperation and interaction, as students need
to work togetherin order to finish the task. Furthermore, they have to pay attention
to the other classmates actions in order to play the game properly, mainly
focusing on listening to the previous letter or word. In addition, the game includes
movement and recalling vocabulary or grammatical structures. All of these
characteristics can help to consolidate knowledge and stablish relations that help
 50

students understand and learn concepts, language structures and word spelling
better. This activity can be used in inclusive education with children in school age,
with A1 to A2 levels (Council of Europe, n.d.).

Activity seventeen. Yastrebova (2015) proposed another game she considered

appropriate for the visually impaired, named is Lotto Game. In order to play,
students get cards with words related to specific topics (the author did not specify
in which form of writing the words would be written in, therefore, it will be assumed
that she was referring to Braille). After giving the students some time to read their
cards, the teacher starts to ask questions, if the students have a card with the
word mentioned by the teacher he or she must raise their hands and answer. For
example, if the teacher asks Are you wearing a skirt?, the student holding the
card with the word skirt, must answer creatively. The learner can give a positive
or negative answer, e.g. Yes, Im wearing a skirt/No, Im wearing shorts, which
ever he or she prefers, as the cards are only a way of organizing the activity by
turns. We would like to point out that this game provides the blind with an
opportunity of practicing Braille reading in the target language. Likewise, the
students can work on oral production through this method as well as listening to
their classmates speaking and being corrected by the teacher if needed. A lot of
interaction takes place during this game with the purpose of familiarizing students
with communicative use of language as they use conversation phrases set in a
context by the teacher. This is very important for the blind as they greatly rely in
people in their surroundings for acquiring their first language (see Chapter III). This
activity can be used in inclusive classrooms, with groups of all ages and
proficiency levels, paying special attention to the language content of the game for
each level of proficiency.

The chief librarian of the Special Library for the blind of the Komi Republic in
Syktyvkar proposed using tactile books as an EFL method for the visually
impaired. Valentina Milkova (2015) stated that the blinds notion of the world is
formed on the ground of tactile examination of an object, and a child with visual
disorder has to be specially trained for it. She believes that tactile books help the
visually impaired to reinforce concepts as they usually need assistance to
understand stimuli. Tactile books provide the blind children with three-dimensional
 51

drawings and relief images made of various materials and sometimes even
sounds. As sustained by the author, this book mainly stimulates touch through
textures and drawing tactile study which will later help to master Braille reading. In
addition, tactile books contain details that can help the visually impaired to make
associations with the same objects in real life situations, at the same time they
develop motor skills.

Activity eighteen. Milkova (2015) proposed an activity using this fascinating

material in which after listening to a fairy tale the blind child can "retell" it by
means of the available three-dimensional illustrations (p. 199). It can be said that
the activity encourages children to use their listening skills with the purpose of
comprehension. Likewise, touch is used for the blind to stablish a context in order
to start producing an oral story. Visually impaired children have an opportunity for
creative writing prompted by tactile stimuli. The tactile book provides an
opportunity to produce language in an entertaining activity while developing tactile
ability. This activity can be used with children at A2 level of proficiency (Council of
Europe, n.d.).

Activity nineteen. Another Russian teacher and researcher proposed a method of

EFL teaching for the blind that is focused on listening. The researcher mentioned
that previous to applying the method of teaching English to the visually impaired,
the text that the class is going to work with has to be converted into a digital audio
format. When converting the text into audio, it must be recorded in sequences and
with pauses, for the phrases to be repeated and translated. In regards of the
stages to apply this method Olga Minina (2015) stated that

The first step is the removal of phonetic difficulties by working on pronunciation in the
word pause word pause translation format. The next step is the removal of
lexical difficulties. The work is carried out in five stages: at the first stage all the words
that you need are recorded in the word-pause-translation format. The task of the
student is to repeat the words after the speaker. At the next step the student listens
and translates the words during a pause. At the third step students repeat the words in
English after the speaker. At the fourth stage, these same words are read slowly letter
by letter, and the student types them on a computer. As a result, audio lessons on
specific topics are created. Advanced students memorize professionally-oriented or
thematic texts: first, the text is recited sentence by sentence and each one is
 52

translated. Then the text is divided into parts of seven sentences. Each sentence is
recited five times with pauses and a student repeats the sentences after the speaker.
Then seven sentences are recited again without pauses and the student is to repeat
after the speaker in the "echo" mode. All the parts of the text are worked over this
way. At the end of this phase, the whole text is recited without pauses. The task of the
student is to repeat it in the "echo" mode. At the last stage Russian translation of the
text is recited sentence by sentence with pauses. The student gives the English
equivalent of the sentences during the pauses (p. 207).

It is noticeable that little attention is given to reading or writing in Braille which can
be detrimental for the educational needs of the blind. They need to read and write
in Braille as it is the way they would be able to access information the foreign
language, enroll in courses in which they need to read and write in the target
language, etc. In this method, VI learners are not encouraged to use touch that is
the main tool for the blind to form their notions of the external world. A lot of
emphasis is placed on memorization, which can give place to rote learning. In
addition, the author did not mention a time for checking understanding or giving
feedback. This can lead to misunderstanding of concepts and grammar as well as
not setting appropriate basis for new knowledge.

Another researcher who proposed methods for the visually impaired was a
Spanish researcher. Ana Villoslada (2011) proposed several activities for the
Spanish as a Foreign Language lesson for the visually impaired that could be
done in class or in a virtual platform designed by the researcher. The platform was
created in order to be the tool that teachers could use for the development of the
class, and that the blind student uses to follow the class. In the platform students
have images, sounds and activities selected from Unit 1 of the book Las claves del
Nuevo DELE A1 (The keys to the new DELE A1. Own translation). Furthermore,
the platform includes additional activities from different sources and sounds
downloaded from other websites, or created by the researcher herself. Although
these activities were originally designed for teaching Spanish to the blind, they
were included in this paper as they can be adapted, translated and used without
major inconveniences in the EFL classroom. All the activities designed by
Villoslada (2015) are based on personal information, as she believes this topic
helps to promote confidence, as the learners are able to express who they are.
 53

Activity twenty. The first activity proposed by Villoslada is writing and reading
comprehension activity, which starts with the teacher introducing him or herself
saying e.g. My name is Martin, Im a teacher. What about you? The first student
answers and then asks the next student to introduce him or herself. This is
repeated with the rest of the class, each time someone finishes speaking, the
whole class should clap twice or make another noise such as tapping the following
classmates table. The researcher created two audio tracks with the questions and
answers of the activity, and attached them to the platform. She proposed that the
teacher in the class plays the audio tracks for the blind student to receive such
content while they work in the classroom. The class then proceeds to work in
spelling through a dictation activity. The teacher plays the audio track again and
pauses it every time a piece of information is given and asks the students to spell
the words. The activity is a good opportunity for practicing listening skills, and
starting to speak in the target language. This helps the student to gain confidence
and familiarity with the English language. Kinesthetic movements and sound
making are included, enriching the activity in regards to stimulation. In addition,
this activity can be translated and applied atA2 level EFL class (Council of Europe,
n.d.). It can also be adapted and used with different topics and language content,
for different proficiency levels.

Activity twenty-one. The following method consists of the teacher playing the audio
track and stopping it whenever key information is provided. Then the students are
asked to answer some questions, which they have to spell after answering. The
aim of this activity is to have the students learn the words letter by letter, from the
beginning of the course and unit. Thus, the learners can form strong notions of
writing in English. At the same time, they use their listening skills in order to
identify the recently presented vocabulary. This as well helps to reinforce the
context in which this vocabulary and phrases are used. The activity could be
suitable for students at A1 to A2 levels of proficiency (Council of Europe, n.d).

Activity twenty-two. Next, the whole class starts giving personal information, taking
turns starting with the teacher as model (Villoslada, 2011). For example, the
teacher says Im 31 years old, the first student gives the same information about
 54

himself or herself, and so does the next student and so on. The learners would
have to pay attention to the information provided by other classmates as they will
have to introduce them using third person later. The activity helps to develop
listening skills, as they have to listen purposefully in order to recognize
information. Moreover, the students have plenty of modelling from the teacher and
other classmates, which helps them to gain confidence in order to participate.
Besides, teachers can translate, and use this activity in an EFL class without any
inconveniences. Additionally, it is worth mentioning that this method could be
appropriate for an A1 to B1 level EFL class depending on the language content
used in the activity (Council of Europe, n.d.).

Activity twenty-three. Villoslada (2011) proposed the following activity to be done

in the classroom in Braille if the teacher masters this code or in the platform (at
home) where the blind can do their writing tasks. For the activity, the students
have to answer questions related to personal information in a written form. Ideally,
it is best to have the student write in class where the teacher can guide, correct,
and interacts with the learner. In addition, if the blind learner does not do the
writing activities he or she will be left without any activities to do while the sighted
students work if the teacher does not provide another activity. Anyway, with
technology the blind can practice writing with a faster pace than writing in Braille.
Likewise, the students receive instruction from the screen reader that also gives
an opportunity to listen to the spoken English language with aims of understanding
and producing a text according to instructions. Lastly, this method can be used in
courses of all levels depending on the information required to complete the task.

Activity twenty-four. The next activity proposed by Villoslada (2011) is about

countries and nationalities, and the students have to match the personal
information to the correct character. One of the students will be asked to read the
tasks and the reference words. The teacher previously told the students to pay
attention to key words. Then, the audio tracks are played and students are asked
to write down the answers or at least to try to remember them. The researcher
proposes a variation to include the blind students in which every time the audio
track gives information the teachers stops it. The author did not specify if the blind
are supposed to say the answers aloud or if they must write them down in Braille
 55

or if they must follow the activity through the platform. Then the teacher asks the
class to listen to the audio tracks again, in their houses, and to do the written part
of the exercise. In this activity listening skills are used, but without interaction
among the students. Furthermore, the students are only requested to remember
the answers or take notes, the written part is done at home. For this activity no
writing tasks are done in class, perhaps the is to have at least a short writing
activity done in class for the teacher to be able to see if there are any problems, if
everything was understood or not. Even though this method was thought for
Spanish class for the blind, it can be used with the same purposes for an EFL
class with the visually impaired. This method can be used with students at A2 level
(Council of Europe, n.d.),

Activity twenty-five. In the next activity presented by Villoslada (2011) the learners
must distinguish informal from formal speech listening to the audio track. The
teacher asks the students to raise their hands when they hear an example of each
type of speech, and then say which one they have heard. This method can be
considered inclusive as both sighted and blind in the class can participate from the
activity. Moreover, movement is included as part of the response, which may help
to address learning styles of both sighted and visually impaired students. Despite
the fact this activity was originally designed in Spanish, it can be used with the
same purposes for an EFL class with formal and informal phrases in English. The
activity can be used with students at A2 and B2 levels of proficiency (Council of
Europe, n.d.)

Activity twenty-six. Next, Villoslada (2011) proposes the learners to interview each
other to gather personal information such as name, last name, nationality, age,
occupation, phone number and e-mail address. After that they have to introduce
each other to the rest of the class. This activity promotes cooperative learning
since the students work together creating a safer environment where they are less
afraid of making mistakes. The language content of the class is used in the context
of the student as they have to use what they have learnt with their friends or peers.
Likewise, it might be very interesting to the students to do this activity as is one of
the first of the unit and perhaps of the course as well, so they might be exited to
discover as many interesting facts about each other, or at least to speak about
 56

their friends in class. Besides, through this activity they can start to get used to
speak in English and work on fluency as well. It is also worth mentioning that this
activity can be done with students at A2 level.

Activity twenty-seven. Villoslada (2011) proposed another activity language class

for the blind, based on nationalities. The main topic of the method is the blog of a
boy named Joo. The teacher asks the students to brainstorm nationalities they
already know. He or she writes what the students say repeating the word out loud.
Then students listen or read the blog and complete the nationalities that are
missing their last syllable. Despite the activity was created in Spanish, it can be
used in English for an EFL class for the visually impaired. It is possible to state
that in this activity learners are allowed to share their previous knowledge with the
class, which might encourage with motivation and participation. In addition, the
fact that the teacher repeats the words given by the students helps with modeling
correct pronunciation, as well as helping the blind students to properly learn the
words as they are said more than once. Furthermore, visually impaired students
then know what is being said and what is being written on the board. Additionally,
it is important to mention that this activity can be used with A2 to B1 level students
(Council of Europe, n.d.).

Activity twenty-eight. In the following homework activity proposed by Villoslada

(2011) the students must write sentences about their nationality and their
classmates nationalities. In this activity learners have a chance to personalize
their learning, as they have to speak in English about themselves and their
classmates. This might result as a fun activity that encourages learning. The
visually impaired can do this task in the platform or in Braille without major
inconveniences. They have a chance to practice writing in the foreign language, in
this case, in an individual activity. Despite the fact, this activity was prepared in
Spanish; it can be used in English for an EFL class for blind students at A1 to A2
levels (Council of Europe, n.d.).

Activity twenty-nine. Villoslada (2011) proposed another method in which the

teacher uses the platform to work with the students about famous people. The
teacher asks the class if they know one particular famous person, and after they
 57

answer, they will be asked to make pairs and ask each other questions about
personal information of that famous person. After that, the teacher introduces
other famous people with videos, songs and realia in order to make inferences
about the person. For example, if the teacher introduces Shakira, he plays one of
her songs and brings a microphone for everyone to touch. This activity is very
interesting as it might result entertaining to present popular materials such as
trending songs or video clips. As a result, students may feel very encourage to
participate in the activity. Furthermore, touch is stimulated through realia, which
helps to stablish connection between the objects, the concept and the context in
which is used. Although the activity was for a Spanish class, it can be translated to
English for an EFL class for the visually impaired at A2 and B1 levels.

Activity thirty. Villoslada (2011) also proposed a reading comprehension activity in

which the students are asked to match information they previously read aloud. The
learners must work in pairs. The researcher proposes that if one of the students in
the pair is visually impaired, the sighted one must read the options to discuss them
with the VI classmate and choose an answer together. After that, the teacher asks
the class to write a text to use the same information, as homework. This is
definitely a cooperative learning task (see Chapter III)in which blind and sighted
peers help each other in the task. In spite of this, the blind are not fully involved in
the activity. Once again, the researcher leaves writing tasks for homework. It will
be interesting if the students could write at least a short piece in class individually
or in pairs for the teacher to help them with spelling or other problems if needed.
Regardless of the activity being created in Spanish, it can be used in a class for
the visually impaired at any level of proficiency from A1 to C2 (Council of Europe,
n.d.).

Activity thirty-one. The next activity presented by Villoslada (2011) is a listening

comprehension activity. In the first part of the activity, the students work in trios
underlining the verbs in the second column of the activity. Then, the teacher asks
the students to write as many words as possible related to the verb in every
statement. Next, the teacher plays the audio track about people studying, and why
they do it. The teacher stops the audio track after every phrase with aims of
encouraging language content retention, and asks students to match the names of
 58

the people to the reasons they have to study a language. After that, the teacher
plays the audio track again, asking students to raise their hands if they have an
answer. The first and third parts of the activity are not suitable for the blind
learners as they rely on visual input. However, the blind can participate in the
second part of the activity if they have the means to write the words the teacher
asked for, or they can contribute orally. If they are not able to participate, they will
be excluded from this section of the class, with possible negative outcomes. This
second part helps stablishing connections with the verbs, reinforcing the concepts.
The second section can be used in with students in any level of proficiency.

Activity thirty-two. Villoslada (2011) also proposed another method in which the
students must interview one or two classmates about the languages they speak,
how they do it (if they are beginners, fluent, etc), and why they study English. The
blind as well as the sighted can participate in this interactive activity, using their
knowledge in order to communicate orally. The activity might result entertaining,
as the students have to use the foreign language in their own context, with their
friends or peers. What is more, they have the opportunity to practice oral
production, which can help them to become fluent in the language and to lose the
fear of making mistakes when trying to speak the new language. Furthermore,
listening skills are also stimulated as students need to pay attention to their
classmates in order to fulfill the task. Even though this activity was originally in
Spanish, it can be used in an EFL class for the visually impaired at A1 and B1
levels of proficiency (Council of Europe, n.d.),

Activity thirty-three. The next activity proposed by Villoslada (2011) asks the
students to complete the verbs according to subject number. This activity is
proposed to be done in pairs, orally including other verbs that they know. Thus, the
students contribute to their own learning and that of their peers in this cooperative
activity. Besides, they work on listening skills as they need listen to their
classmates. Additionally, they speak in the foreign language getting familiarized
with the sounds of the language. Lastly, this activity can be used with students at
A1 level of proficiency (Council of Europe, n.d.).
 59

Activity thirty-four. Villoslada (2011) also proposed a group activity in which

learners write an advertisement using the content of the unit (personal information,
occupation, interests), and are encourage to distribute the work among all the
members of the group. The text must be about a student looking for someone to
do a student exchange to practice languages. When finished, the text should be
uploaded to the platform. This a cooperative activity in which each learner can
contribute to the task, lowering the affective filter, facilitating learning. Both visually
impaired and the sighted can participate in this activity, as the blind learner can
give ideas orally, or upload the activity to the platform. It is worth noticing, that
learners have a chance to write using what they have learnt, using creativity to
reinforce the context in which specific information is used. They also get
familiarized with using the target language in the appropriate situation. Lastly, this
activity can be used with students at A2 and B1 level of proficiency (Council of
Europe, n.d.).

Activity thirty-five. In the following

activity adapted by Villoslada (2011),
students must write the numbers in
letter as grouped in the activity shown
in figure 6. The activity is presented as Figure 6. Screenshot Activity 7 A from
DELE_DVC_TFM SFL for the blind platform.
some sort of fill in the blanks activity Retrieved October 13, 2016 from
https://sites.google.com/site/deledvctfm/unidad
which might cause some trouble for the -1-pag-6/actividad-7
visually impaired as they have to
download the activities to their computer and open the file in Microsoft Word. The
problem arises as they have to place the cursor on the small gaps between the
numbers. They practically have to guess where the gaps are. Encountering
activities that are not prepared with the visually impaired in mind can lead the
visually impaired to raise their levels of stress, which can hamper learning.

Activity thirty-six. Villoslada (2011) proposed a homework activity in which the

students listen to dialogs in the audio tracks and relate them to the numbers they
have worked on in the previous activity depicted in figure 6. A very important detail
of this activity is that it must be done through the platform. This activity is aimed to
the development of listening skills as well as stablishing a context for the given
 60

numbers. In addition, it is very interesting to have a listening activity at home, as

usually this does not occur since the student do not have the course audio tracks.
Working on listening skill outside the context of the language class can lead to
positive outcomes, such as learning to occur faster and becoming familiarized with
the target language, which helps to lose the fear and stress to start using a foreign
language. Lastly, is worth mentioning that this activity can be done with students at
A2 and superior levels of proficiency, adapting the content of the method for each
level.

Activity thirty-seven. In next activity presented by Villoslada (2011) students must

relate the numbers to several context provided by the book (in the case of the
sighted) and the platform (for the visually impaired). First, the students must have
a conversation with a classmate, about to context is each number related to. Then,
the students listen to the audio tracks and connect the numbers to associate them
for the different contexts. It can be said that this activity helps to provide a context
for the vocabulary, using the students cognitive skills since they have to deduce
the situations to which these numbers belong. In addition, the activity provides
different situations in which numbers will be used, making the language content of
the class easy to relate to students life. Being able to recognize numbers in the
target language for different purposes such as ID numbers, can be of great help
for the blind, as they need experiences that help them to live more comfortably in a
world designed for the sighted. In addition, discussing the context with a classmate
helps to improvement of speaking skills, and consolidation of vocabulary as they
have to use the vocabulary in the conversation. As well as the previous method
this activity can be done with students at A2 and superior levels of proficiency,
choosing the content according to the level of the class.

Activity thirty-eight. Villoslada (2011) also proposed a writing activity in which

learners write five reasons to study English and other five reasons to say, I love
you. The class can also add other ideas to work with. The researcher stated that
this method could be done as both as an oral activity and as writing exercise done
in Braille or through the platform. This activity is very interesting as students use
language to give reasons, something they have to do very often in every sphere of
life, and are very interesting to start working with giving supporting reasons in
 61

beginning levels. In addition, this method helps the learners to express themselves
in English, as they have to use their creativity in order to find reasons for these two
situations. This can become a very fun activity and on opportunity to low the
affective filter if the students are let to answer freely. Lastly, this activity can be
done in A1 and A2 levels of proficiency (Council of Europe, n.d).

Activity thirty-nine. The following activity, adapted by Villoslada (2011), is about

families, and the researcher proposes explaining family members vocabulary to
the blind students through translation, as she finds it very difficult to find other
resources to convey meanings such as these. Despite of that, the author presents
another possible way of introducing these terms, which is using birthdates in
genealogical order and having the students deduce how are this people related to
each other. Additionally, the researcher adapted an activity, as illustrated in figure
7, discarding the genealogical tree the book had in this unit, and replaced it with
sentences that can illustrate the content of the unit (see figure 9). The students

Figure 7.Screenshot Activity 9 A from DELE_DVC_TFM SFL for the blind platform.
Retrieved October 13, 2016 from https://sites.google.com/site/deledvctfm/unidad-1-pag-
6/actividad-9

can read these sentences after they were introduced to the vocabulary in order to
see the language in context. Providing students with translations of the
vocabulary, usually leads to rote learning since they do not have to make any
efforts to comprehend the meaning of each word. It might be better to use the
variation proposed by the researcher, in which students have to infer the
relationship among those people. Making inferences is better as it leads to
consolidation of meaning, figured out by the same students. Adapting the way in
 62

which vocabulary was presented to students makes it accesible for the blind as the
screen reader can be used for the blind to listen to the vocabulary used in context
as they cannot read in Braille. In addition, this activity can be done with students at
A1 level of proficiency (Council of Europe, n.d.)

Activity forty. Using the sentences in the previous method, Villoslada (2011)
designed another method in which the students read the previously mentioned
sentences, and then write more sentences with the missing family relations
through. Once again, the students have to infere based on the information to find
out which terms are missing. This could help to reinforce the meaning of term,
through stablishing relationships with this hypothetical family.Writing what they
have inferred can help students to consolidate knowledge as they start to use it for
the first time. This method is appropriate for students at A1 and A2 levels of
proficiency (Council of Europe, n.d.)

Activity forty-one. In the next activity proposed by Villoslada (2011) the students
need to complete the sentences using possessive adjectives and family members
vocabulary according to who is speaking (it uses the same characters from the
previous activity. This activity is another example that sometimes teachers do not
have to create completely new methods for the blind; they only need to select
currently used EFL methods that meet their needs. This method can be done by
the visually impaired students as they only have to use the platform to listen to the
sentences and complete what is missing. All the gaps to be completed are at the
end of each sentence (one below the other) making it easy for the blind to find the
spaces they need to fill. It is also important to mention that this activity is
appropriate for students at A1 and A2 levels of proficiency (Council of Europe,
n.d.)

Activity forty-two. The succeeding activity is one proposed by Villoslada (2011),

which consists of having the students write names of people in their family, and
interviewing each other about who this people in their family are. Later, the pair
presents each others family members to the rest of the class. However, the
researcher did not specify how the blind are going to write down the names of their
family members, and the information provided by their classmates, or if they are
 63

not going to write any information at all. Assuming the blind attend an EFL class
where the teacher does not read or write Braille (as the researcher stated in her
paper), the blind will not write any information down. Therefore, it would be
appropriate to say that the activity relies a lot on the blinds memory since they will
have to retain all the information given by their pairs. Despite of this concern,
having the blind discuss in the target language, using vocabulary is essential to
improve their ability to communicate in the target language used in specific
contexts. Furthermore, relating the content to the learners life help to enrich
meaning with personal information, making it meaningful. Lastly, this method is
appropriate for students at A1 and A2 levels of proficiency (Council of Europe,
n.d.)

Activity forty-three. The same researcher presented an activity for an inclusive

classroom where sighted and visually impaired students learn together. For this
activity the blind students, working with sighted classmates, have to describe a
people in different pictures. Villoslada (2011) proposes that the blind asks
questions about the illustrations, e.g. Is it a man or a woman? Is he tall? Is he
wearing jeans? After that they work on a summary of each illustration together. In
this activity cooperation between the classmates is crucial in order to do the
activity. It is important that the teacher ensures that cooperation is taking place, or
else the blind will be completely excluded from the activity. Asking questions and
discussing in order to make a summary of each illustration can benefit both the
blind and the sighted learners to become accustomed to using the foreign
language as both help and correct each other in order to write properly. In
addition, this activity can help to language use in the appropriate context, as
learners use what they have learnt in class to produce language based on visual
and verbal cues. This activity is appropriate is for students in A1 and A2 levels of
proficiency (Council of Europe, n.d.)

Activity forty-four. In the following method introduced by Villoslada (2011), the

learners must listen to conversations in the audio tracks and relate them to the
pictures the class had previously written about. The teacher can play the tracks as
many times as needed for the students to do the task. This activity can help to
develop listening skills, as well as helping to reinforce notions, and context in
 64

which language is used as the learners must recognize vocabulary and related to
specific contexts. Nevertheless, it is worth mentioning that the activity relies on the
blind students memory as the VI cannot see the pictures their sighted peers are
working with. It is also important to point out that this activity is appropriate is for all
levels of proficiency (Council of Europe, n.d.)

Activity forty-five. Villoslada (2011) adapted another method in which the students
have to describe a classmate without saying him or her name, and the rest of the
class has to guess who it is. In her adaptation, the researchers proposed using
videos or recordings or famous people and asking them what the voices or
conversation suggest, and what they perceive from them. The sighted students
can do the original activity, as the researcher believes this will not make the blind
uncomfortable since they are aware of their condition. This is a very interesting
method, as the blind have an opportunity to practice listening and speaking skills
while working on descriptions using their background knowledge. The VI students
stablish relations to the idea of descriptions, using non-visual vocabulary such as
personality traits, or even trying to guess what clothes are they wearing. In
addition, there is a lot of cognitive work as the blind have to work on inferences,
and have supporting reasons for they perceive one thing and not the opposite.
Besides, this activity helps to recognize and learn common expressions of the
target language, through which learners can deduce the topic, mood or context of
a conversation. This activity is appropriate is for students in A1 to B1 levels of
proficiency (Council of Europe, n.d.)

Activity forty-six. Another activity that Villoslada (2011) modified in order to meet
the needs of the blind was an activity about colors in which students have to relate
colors to different words such as night, love, laughter, nature, cold. The author
proposes to stablish analogies using the colors with the concepts of cold, warm
and mild. The activity included the colors grouped as it follows, white, black and
gray; warm colors such as red, orange and yellow; mild colors such as orange and
brown, and cold colors such as green and blue. The blind can associate the
different colors in those groups to the different terms. The author did not specify if
the blind will write the connections they make, or if the activity will be done orally.
The importance of this activity can be said to be in the fact that the blind can use
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color related vocabulary to stablish analogies with several concepts. Furthermore,

through the sighted they can build concepts around color words similar to those of
the sighted, as the activity stablished some notions such as those of heat intensity
in order to guide the blind. Thus, it is possible to say that the blind can learn about
colors in the target language trough this method, stablishing connections to other
concepts. This method can be used with A1 and A2 levels of proficiency (Council
of Europe, n.d.).

Activity forty-seven. In the next method, students are asked to mention other two
words that they relate to the different colors. Villoslada (2011), states that the
students should be allowed to make contributions freely. On the other hand, she
advises the teachers to bring objects that the students can touch and play with,
and to which they can associate the colors to. Learners can even try to identify the
objects. This activity stimulates touch at the same time it encourages learners to
make inferences according to their experiences. It would be understandable that
the blind students come up with analogies very different than those of the sighted,
as they have different notions of color words. The blind may contribute with very
interesting notions about each color, as they are based on haptic stimuli. In
addition, it is important to mention that this activity is appropriate for students at all
levels of proficiency.

Activity forty-eight. In order to adapt the following activity Villoslada (2011) focused
on stimulating touch. The researcher proposes presenting the lexicon
correspondent to clothes through an image search of clothing or cut-outs proposed
and take them to the classroom. According to the Spanish teacher, there is
compensation for the lack of vision using the sense of touch, which benefits
students with a style of tactile / kinesthetic learning. However, it can be observed
that a great level of assistance is needed for the learners to do this activity, as
another person needs to provide the blind with the cuts outs as they are not
capable of identifying clothes in a 2-D surface. In addition, it is not clear what the
learners are supposed to do with the clothes cutouts besides holding them.

Activity forty-nine. The following method was chosen in order to meet the needs of
the blind in the presentation stage of a lesson about food. Villoslada (2011)
 66

suggests the use of realia to present the corresponding food lexical content. She
proposes that both teacher and students bring foods from home (fruits,
vegetables, chocolate, etc.). This activity is centered in haptic stimuli that are used
to convey meaning. The aim of the method is for students to relate vocabulary to
tactile stimuli. Thus, the words do not remain as abstract concepts and can be
related to specific experiences. Nevertheless, it should be suggested enriching this
activity by allowing the students to taste the fruits, vegetables and other food
brought for the lesson. As a result, learners will be able to add more experiences
to the new vocabulary, enriching their notions of each word. Additionally, through
this activity they can work on how to describe different tastes, such as sweet,
salty, sour, etc. This method is appropriate for learners at A1 to B1 level.

Activity fifty. The next method is focused on food vocabulary as the students are
asked to match the ingredients of different traditional Spanish dishes. Villoslada
(2011) proposes that the educators bring YouTube audiovisual materials to the
class, including videos of recipes containing fairly auditory input for audio
description. After that, the learners can explain what the typical dishes of each
country are, which ingredients they need to make them and how to prepare them.
The teacher may even prepare a "culinary" class in which students bring Spanish
dishes prepared at home recipes. This method can help the students to use the
vocabulary in context. In addition, this activity is an opportunity to use cultural
knowledge as a way of personalizing class content, making the new information
meaningful for the students. Using YouTube videos encourages students to use
listening skills, recognizing vocabulary in context, with aims to develop an activity
easily relatable to everyday life. Being able to share about their own culture can
motivate the students to use the foreign language. This method can be used with
students at A1 to B1 levels.

Activity fifty-one. In the same research as the previous methods, Villoslada (2011)
adapted a writing activity about everyday activities. Instead of having to use
pictures in order to talk about the daily activities of the boy named Manuel, the
Spanish researcher recommended using audios about Manuels daily activities
through the platform. Then, the learners write sentences on a Microsoft Word File
and send it to their teacher. The Spanish researcher also proposed a variation of
 67

this activity, having the teacher play different sound recordings and asking the
students to guess to what daily activity they correspond. Once again, the
researcher exploits listening skills, this time as a base for the students to make
inferences with vocabulary from the lesson. This activity can help to reinforce
meaning, as auditory cues can be associated with vocabulary. Furthermore, the
students produce language in a written form using their inferences with the help of
a technological tool. Writing in second or foreign language can help to reinforce
notions regarding meaning and grammatical structures, as students have to use
them in order to produce a text. In addition, is necessary to mention that this
method can be used with students at A1 to B1 levels.

Activity fifty-two. Lastly, the same Spanish researcher adapted an activity about
classroom objects. Villoslada (2011) recommended that students move around the
class touching different classrooms objects. In this activity movement and touch
are used, which can benefit the construction of meaning. Touching elements can
lead to associations that enrich the concepts of vocabulary. On the other hand,
moving around the class can break a certain monotony of a typical classroom in
which students have to remain seated. For this, it is important to have a very
organized classroom setting that allows the blind to move without major
complications. Being able to walk around the class can help to make the activity
more entertaining, facilitating learning and making students be eager to see what
comes next. This method can be used with students at A1 and A2 levels.
 68

CHAPTER III
REFERENTIAL FRAMEWORK

III.1 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

The aim of this chapter is to establish the concepts and the theoretical framework
in which this research is based on. The purpose of this is to provide a better
understanding of the scope of this research. Theories on language acquisition and
methodological approaches applied to language teaching to VI students are
explored as a fundamental part of this paper. At the same time, other factors that
might be considered important for the success of students with visual impairment
in the EFL classroom are described. Furthermore, a collection of currently applied
EFL classroom methods for blind students are also presented.

III.1.1 BLINDNESS AND VISUAL IMPAIRMENT

The first concepts to be clarified are those from blindness and visual impairment.
The Worlds Health Organization defines blindness as a corresponding visual field
loss to less than 10, in the better eye with the best possible correction (World
Health Organization, p. 1, 2007). The National Organization of Blind Spaniards
(n.d) (Own translation) states that people with blindness are those who see
nothing at all or those who are only able to distinguish between light and dark, but
not the shape of objects. Only 20% percent of the blind children have total
blindness, not perceiving any visual stimuli. Regarding the term visual
impairment, the World Health Organization considers it to include both low vision
and blindness. In this paper the terms blindness, visual impairment and
visually handicapped are used interchangeably.

III.1.2 BLINDNESS AND MENTAL IMAGERY

The following section seeks to dispel the common belief that lack of vision implies
the absence of mental imagery. Visually handicapped subjects do possess it, but
in contrast to that of sighted people, blinds mental imagery is supported by the
 69

information provided by other senses, which at the same time enables its
construction. A number of studies sustain the existence of analogical
representations in the blind. One of them is a research conducted by Rosa,
Ochata, Fernandez, Moreno, Carretero, & Pozo (1986), through which they
concluded that, as the visually impaired approach the age of formal operations, the
processes of solving tasks involving the active transformation of images are similar
among the blind and the sighted children. Consequently, this statement implies
that there must be a non-visual path, which allows the blind to handle cognitive
representations, functionally equivalent to visually originated images. Furthermore,
this also implies that the blind are capable of performing the almost the same
tasks as the blind. Therefore, teachers of the blind should not believe that the blind
will not be able to do similar tasks involving the same cognitive abilities.

Other researchers such as Millar (1975) stated that blind and blindfolded sighted
people are able of mentally representing spatial configurations learnt tactilely.
Additionally, she highlighted that the blind rely on verbal labelling, rehearsal,
memory for touch and movement, as well as repeated familiarization with spatial
layouts. Furthermore, using both Linda Prings and Rosa et al. researches
Santana (2013) suggested the existence of a haptic code for storing information in
short-term memory. Logically, the exceptional characteristics of touch: slow,
sequentiality in the collection of information, and the small size perceptual field,
determine the type of analogical representations they can build. This information is
important for all teachers of the blind since they should consider it when choosing
the methods for the VI. Teaching techniques should allow the blind to use verbal
labelling, rehearsal, touch, and repeated familiarization in order to form concepts
regarding to language (vocabulary, grammar structures, actions, idioms, etc)

David Anderson (1984) had also commented on blind peoples mental imagery.
After his 1984 research, he concluded that visually handicapped children develop
their data through previous experience and their form of mental representation as
he observed that their concepts of objects were invested with personal meaning.
Even though their answers did not deviate significantly with those of the sighted,
the blind participants of the experiment would refer to other people, places, and
other objects and their characteristics when conceptualizing an item. This reflected
 70

the fact that concepts of the visually impaired largely consisted of perceptual
derived information gained through their senses from their unique interaction with
the world. Andersons contribution can be of great help for the EFL lessons for the
visually impaired since teachers can use this characteristic of the blind to their
benefit. They can exploit the sense of touch, and other possible association of the
students background to stablish as many connections as possible to the different
concepts the class covers. Establishing as many connections and relationships as
possible might strengthen notions of any student regardless of disability.

Several years later, Jedynak (2011) addressed very similar topics to those of
Anderson. She pointed out that the blind develop physical representations that
were very similar to those of their sighted peers even though they rely on hearing
and touch rather than sight. However, there are some minor differences in mental
concepts between VI children and their sighted counterparts. An example of this,
are the visually handicapped children in her research, who were reported to have
a restricted lexicon for animals but a bigger one for household objects. This fact
accounts for Andersons conclusion of blinds concepts of things being invested of
personal experiences conditioned by the modality of their available senses. Data
such as this can also be helpful when choosing the appropriate methods for the
visually handicapped. Teacher must choose techniques that address the available
senses of the blind as they play a very important role in the construction of their
notion of the world. Additionally, educators should consider the fact that visually
impaired can have more difficulty understanding concepts that they are rarely in
contact with, and find appropriate strategies to deal with these situations.

Likewise, support for the existence of mental images in blind individuals can be
found within the field of neurology. Helder Brtolo suggested that visual imagery
does not require a visual input. This statement was based on previous
neurological studies, where the blind presented the same variations in cortical
activity as the sighted but with lower amplitude. Furthermore, he also mentioned
that congenitally blind people also have dreams when asleep. This is a very
important detail as dreams with visual content are expressions of visual imagery
(Brtolo, p. 180, 2005). The researcher monitored the EEG alpha power (type of
brain electrical activity in adults detected by electroencephalography in the
 71

posterior brain, which may be abolished with visual stimulation) in congenitally

blind people as well as in sighted individuals while dreaming and registered no
differences between the two groups regarding the Global Activity Index (overall
brain activity monitored during the study) and the Visual Activity index (total of
visual activity in the brain registered during the study). In addition, these
individuals were able to represent graphically the oneiric scenes they had
previously described orally, showing no remarkable differences to those of the
sighted subjects. This facts account for the blind being able to construct notions
very similar to those of the sighted proving there are fit to attend inclusive
classrooms, as they possess the same cognitive capacities to the sighted.

III.1.3 HEARING AND TOUCH AS COMPENSATION SENSES

The lack of visual information causes the blind subjects to rely more greatly on the
information provided by other senses. Rosa, Ochata, Fernandez, Moreno,
Carretero, &Pozo, (1986) understood the human cognitive system as an active
processor, which uses, in a flexible way, different formats to represent the
information. Cattaneo & Vecchi (2011) reported studies which considered that the
visually impaired have better pitch and tone intensity discrimination, pitch-timbre
categorization, as well as having a lower threshold when discriminating tones in
different frequencies. In addition, when combining enhanced auditory skills with
memory the blind compensate their lack of sight with superior serial memory; in
other words, they are able to recall longer word sentences. However, it is
important to highlight that a study by Rder, Stock, Bien, Neville, & Rsler (2002),
included in Cattaneo & Vecchis (2011) paper, suggests that being capable of
recalling longer pieces of information obeys to better perceptual processing
abilities of the visually handicapped rather than enhanced language functions.
Furthermore, Jedynak (2011) sustained that there is evidence that blind subjects
processed auditory language stimuli faster than the sighted (p. 19). This
information gathered via monitoring brain waves can be a result of an attempt of
the brain to compensate for blindness. Likewise, these auditory abilities of the
blind are a very important factor to consider when selecting activities and methods
during the EFL lesson. Skills such as this should be exploited for activities that
imply auditory perception (practicing conversation, identifying vocabulary, etc.).
 72

Nevertheless, teachers need to help the blind to create stronger basis for
comprehension and concept formation as a greater capacity to perceive the stimuli
correctly does not imply that students understand the meaning of what they are
hearing.

Regarding touch, studies have reported that blind subjects performed better that
sighted controls in a texture discrimination task (Cattaneo, & Vecchi, 2011, p. 34)
and granting-detection tasks. They also showed superior tactile perception in all
four fingers of their reading hand as well as a lower perceptive threshold. Another
important fact is that the enhanced tactile perception of the VI subjects preserves
itself throughout their lifespan. This suggests that the special acuity of their haptic
abilities relays on the constant use of touch in daily activities. Teachers should
consider this fact when teaching the blind, as they should be persistent in
providing tactile input or allowing the visually impaired students to practice their
Braille reading and writing in order to avoid detriment of their tactile skills. Reading
and writing in a foreign language is of great importance for the blind, as this allows
them to gain access to information, and in the case of English, it may allow them
access to a better education.

To combine both auditory and tactile input, it is relevant to mention that Rosa et al.
(1988) observed that the visually handicapped encode haptic and auditory
information, according to the modality of the stimulus. Additionally, encoded haptic
inputs are compatible with auditory ones in short term memory, and can be
combined and used efficiently and simultaneously by the blind in recall and
recognition tasks. The author also mentioned that differences among stimuli give
place to different coding strategies in the blind. During experiments regarding
recall of sets of words, blind subjects needed to elaborate a context predominantly
verbal to complement already existent haptic information in order to be able to
recall the sets of words later on. Contributing on the idea of compatibility of haptic
and auditory stimuli, two German researches published an article titled Hearing
Cheats Touch, but Less in Congenitally Blind than in Sighted Individuals in the
Psychological Science Journal in 2004. Kirsten Htting and Brigitte Rder (2004)
stated that compatibility of haptic and auditory information is better among the
blind. In their paper, the researchers mentioned that when receiving tactile and
 73

auditory stimuli simultaneously, participants tended to misperceive tactile stimulus.

This phenomenon was more pronounced in the sighted participants than in the
visually impaired. Htting & Rder suggested that this was caused by the blinds
higher processing accuracy of the stimuli. Therefore, teachers of the blind should
consider having both tactile and auditory activities as the blind are perfectly
capable of performing activities involving these sorts of stimuli. Activities with
these characteristics can benefit the productions of rich concepts, as they help a
greater amount of associations with a given concept.

III.1.4 COGNITION WITHOUT SIGHT: THE ROLE OF TOUCH AND HEARING.

In his article Impact of Visual Impairment on Development, a Chris Strickling

(2010) refers to the cognitive development of the blind. He states that the blind
child has limited ability to coordinate and organize elements into higher levels of
abstraction, and to verify the information. Therefore, he constructs a reality that is
different from the sighted child's (Strickling, 2010, para. 16). Adding more on the
matter, Santana (2013) suggests that the route by which the information reaches
the brain is very significant for cognition. The quality of the information received
through touch and hearing is very different in nature to that received visually. The
great advantage of sight is that it is a continuous and simultaneous sensory
system, which provides immediate information about the parts and the whole in a
very fast way, offering an integrated vision. By contrast, touch and hearing sensory
systems are sequential and need a narrative type of cognition to extract the full
meaning (Gunaratne, 2016). Moreover, some authors such as Anderson and
Olson (1981) downplay the central role of vision in cognitive development in
sighted people and believe that the information collected by touch can be equated
to that collected visually. On the contrary, others like Fogel (1997), as cited in
Santana (2013, p. 28), claim that the blind develop different cognitive schemes
because of sequenced information obtained by touch.

Marina Bedny and Rebecca Saxe (2012) offered some insights in the cognitive
abilities of the visually impaired. Based on a modality-invariant hypothesis, they
stated that the linguistic and reasoning behavior of congenitally blind and even
deaf-blind individuals is largely similar to that of sighted people (Bedny, 2012, p.
 74

62.), they present very similar concept representations. Furthermore, cognitive

processes formerly considered to depend on vision are preserved despite the lack
of visual input. It was pointed out that visually handicapped individuals are able to
use words that mainly represent visual information for the sighted, whereas for the
blind they may represent other information through analogy to other sensory
modalities. Moreover, the researchers highlighted the similarity among semantic
judgements of actions and object categories of blind and sighted people. Likewise,
drastic changes in sensory experience do not have equally drastic consequences
(Bedny, 2012, p. 70), since such cognitive processes entirely rely on
neuroplasticity and experience. However, the lack of stimuli is more likely to cause
detriment in the development of concepts and possible damage to the overall
development.

Bedny and Saxe (2012) also addressed blinds concepts of mental state (ability of
being aware of abstract activity and physical evidence of its occurrence, e.g.: to
think, hope, dreams, fears). They concluded that due to their increased linguistic
abilities, blind children learn about mental state, and other concepts related to the
mind by particularly through other people talking about it. The lack of visual input
causes the subject to develop social knowledge, such as this particular one, more
slowly than their sighted peers, but this delay is overcome by the blind child (at
least in part) through evidence of language. Nevertheless, language deprivation
would have a greater negative impact than blindness in the development of
concepts regarding mind state.

Overall, blind and sighted share similar concepts despite the reorganization of
brain regions due to blindness. Additionally, in the case of concrete categories,
blind people acquire similar information, which means that they are employed by
similar neuronal systems. Thus, it could be inferred that concrete concepts have
core abstract components that develop independent from the sensory quality of
experience (Bedny, 2012, p. 76). This could lead us to the idea that blind children
are perfectly capable of participating in EFL classrooms along with sighted
students, as they are perfectly capable of achieving very similar notions of their
surroundings. Still, this implies that VI students receive the proper attention to
facilitate language learning.
 75

III.1.5 THE BLIND AND MEMORY

Fernandez, Ochata and Rosa (1988) analyzed the processes of encoding and
storage tasks involving the short-term memory system or working memory, and
concluded that the blind can maintain and retrieve information from short-term
memory not only in a phonemic code but also in a tactile one. They explain that
the two codes are coordinated so that the blind subject turns to a tactile code
when items are confusingly presented phonemically. Raz, Striem, Pundak, Orlov
and Zohary (2007) found that blind people stand on memorizing series of items,
regardless of what position they occupy in the series. They concluded that in the
absence of vision, the world is experienced as a sequence of events by the
constant use of memory strategies in series of tasks in everyday life. Additionally,
the result of this practice develops in superior skills in memorization tasks. The
findings of these two studies corroborate the role of memory in compensation for
lack of vision, as the visually handicapped are forced to remember in things in
series or to operate the tactile code.

III.1.6 LANGUAGE ACQUISITION IN THE BLIND

In order to gather appropriate methods for an EFL class for the visually impaired it
is important to be aware of the process of language acquisition in this particular
group of individuals. Understanding that such processes in the blind do not occur
in the same fashion as in those who are sighted is crucial for a good selection of
material and application of teaching methodology. Thus, both processes of First
and Second language acquisition will be discussed according to research on the
matter. In regard to first language acquisition, the language development in blind
children and the differences and similarities with the development of sighted
children will be covered focusing on Smeds (2015) research. Afterward, available
data on second and foreign language acquisition in the visually handicapped will
be presented, making an emphasis on pedagogical purposes with aims to later
evaluate different methods for teaching languages to blind individuals.
 76

III.1.6.1 First language acquisition in the Blind

As mentioned before, many researchers who have studied language development

in the blind argue that there are no major variations between the linguistic
capabilities between these and sighted people. However, there are some
differences that occur in the process of acquisition of language caused by
blindness itself. As mentioned by Smeds (2015), this can be seen especially
during the period of preverbal communication, as due to the lack of sight,
referential gestures (eye contact, smiling, specific body posture, manual signs, etc)
do not appear in blind infants since they cannot learn them from their parents
visually. Still, there are studies that show that visually handicap children use their
hands to express emotion, recognition, preference, to establish and maintain
contact, and to affirm presence of the mother. Despite this small consequence of
sight, prelinguistic vocalization or babbling develops normally in blind children. Any
symptoms of delay in this matter is considered to be an effect of some sort of
language or experience deprivation rather than one of the impacts of blindness on
language acquisition.

Even though blind and sighted infants reach language development milestones at
the same age, there are some differences that will be discussed below. One of
those differences is that blind children have trouble when learning consonant
sounds that are similar but have a perceptually different place of articulation such
as /m/ (voiced bilabial nasal) and /n/ (voiced alveolar nasal in English). Mills
(1993), as cited in Smeds, (2015, p. 32) reported that visually handicap children
did not present any problems with sound acquisition but only a delay with sounds
with visible articulation. However, this problem is overcome as visually impaired
individuals later on master the use of acoustic information in order to produce
sounds correctly. In addition, research has lead scholars to believe that the blind
are actually faster at processing language, especially initial phonemes, than their
sighted peers.

According to information gathered by Smeds (2015), it has been determined that

blind children have a tendency to use specific rather than general nominals. This is
believed to be caused by visual impairment, making it difficult for blind children to
 77

make generalizations, as the usage remains more tied to the original referent of
the word (Smeds, 2015, p. 35). As a result, specific nominals are more
predominant in the childs 50-word vocabulary (by eighteen months children
usually have a vocabulary set of around 50 words ). Besides, blind children also
use more actions words, usually in very restrictive type of contexts and to describe
or comment on their own actions, or to make requests. Usually, the language of
blind children constrains itself to contexts in which they are able to perceive
objects and actions more easily. An example of this is the fact that their language
is usually related to routines, shared with their parents or things which can be
perceived by hearing. Furthermore, some researchers have suggested that blind
children need more time in order to understand the actions of others and to relate
to events in their surroundings due to their limited experience. Likewise, VI
children produce fewer deictic terms such as these and here.

Despite the fact that blind and sighted children start to combine two and three
words around the same age there is another difference between the language
developments of these two groups specifically regarding early lexicon.
Furthermore, Andersen, Dunlea and Kekelis(1993), as cited by Smeds (2015, p.
36), discovered that blind childrens complex constructions normally refer to past
events, in contrast to sighted children who more often elaborate constructions to
describe current events. This is believed to have the purpose of establishing a
shared knowledge with the caregiver, therefore having a social interactive function
in contrast to a cognitive one. Action and object words are used with the same
function. Likewise, most of the language used by the visually handicapped is often
used to promote social interaction. Thus, it is often said that blind children have a
more expressive language learning style (in opposition to a referential one).

In regard to word meaning and concept formation, several researches have

studied the inability or difficulty of the visually impaired of forming general
concepts, in other words, the ability to extend the domain and application of a
word to new and different referents that share criterial features (Smeds, 2015, p.
36). This process is called process of extension, which often results in
overextensions or in underextensions in blind children. Previously, many
researchers determined this was a delay in blinds capability to form general
 78

concepts as a result of their impairment. Nevertheless, Prez-Pereira & Conti-

Ramsden (1999), as mentioned by Santana (2015, p. 41) opposed the view that
lack of vision harms the cognitive ability of generalizing. Instead, they stated that
the lack of vision in blind children only limits their opportunity to form general
concepts, but it does not prevent them from being able of decontextualizing words.
Despite this effect of blindness, it is considered that the word meaning of blind and
sighted children is very similar with small differences majorly related to lack of
visual experience.

Blind children also have some trouble with referential language relative to
contextual information or concepts of space, as it constantly changes in meaning
depending on the situation and not on time (Fraiberg & Adelson, 1976). This is the
case in the use of personal pronouns, as for its correct use one must understand
the shifts in perspective in the conversation. When first learning to use personal
pronouns, blind children tend to make mistakes, usually by referring to themselves
in third person. It has been suggested that this is caused by the greater difficulty of
determining shifting role that blindness presupposes since it prevents individuals
from getting extra linguistic context and referential information sighted people gain
from vision. Additionally, according to a study by Mulford (as cited in Smeds, 2015)
blind children are delayed (in comparison to sighted children) in the proper use of
spatial terms such as this, that, here and there. They not only make
mistakes when using spatial terms until de age of six years old but also use this
terms less frequently. Moreover, they usually acquire the proximal terms before
the distal ones, which the sighted children do simultaneously. This might also be
related to a delay in acquiring the concept of space, and probably indicates that
blind children acquire a concept of space that is primarily centered on them and
that expands and widens as they incorporate new experiences

When analyzing blind childrens morpheme development, researchers have found

some dissimilarity when contrasting it to sighted childrens morpheme
development. Smeds (2015) mentioned that sighted child used the plural
morphemes, the locative prepositions on and in and the third person present
indicative before the blind child. The blind child used these forms early in formulaic
speech and imitations (Smeds, 2015, p. 42). In fact, blind children use on as a
 79

verb particle before using it as a locative preposition, in reverse order to normal

sighted childrens language development. Nevertheless, the blind use regular past,
present progressive and contractible auxiliary be before the sighted, probably
due to the need to deal with concepts of time before space (sighted children
normally master concepts of space before time) as an adaptive strategy which
aims to elude misunderstanding of the present context. The morphological
development of the blind does not show any impairment or delay, but a different
process with different outcomes which are not detrimental (Perez-Pereira, 2006).

According Landau and Gleitman (as cited by Smeds, 2015), the internal syntactic
structure of the visually handicap childrens language is almost identical to that of
sighted children. The only exception is that some VI children present a delay in the
development of verb-auxiliary structure. Research reported by Smeds (2015) has
shown that this is specific to blind children learning English and that it is probably
correlated to the lower frequency of verbal auxiliary in their maternal input or
linguistic environment (primary caregivers usually ask few questions and give
many commands). Nevertheless, by the age of three the sighted and the visually
impaired population are linguistically indistinguishable from each other in all
linguistic levels. In addition, blind children develop no differently from the sighted in
regards to the emergence and percentage of use of coordinate and subordinate
clauses.

Researchers Such as Perez-Pereira (2006) have widely reported that at the

beginning of their combinatorial speech blind start using imitative speech
associated with particular situations and routines, in other words, they start
reproducing chunks of the caregivers speech related to different contexts or
events. This is believed to be caused by the need of relying on language for social
interaction as the visually impaired lack visually oriented non-verbal
communication such as eye contact. According to information provided by Smeds
(2015), imitation might be considered a strategy used by the blind to avoid social
isolation because it promotes social interaction. Additionally, research has proven
than the blind use more imitative unanalyzed phrases that sighted children in the
same developmental stage. Perez-Pereira (2006) also mentioned that blind
children have a Gestalt style (children transition from mere repetitions or rote-
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learned phrases to item based constructions and toward a gradual process of

schematization and generalization) language acquisition strategy since these
children tend to use frozen, or unanalyzed, phrases first and analyze them later
(Perez-Pereira, 2006, p. 360). As a result, modeled speech is more prominent in
blind childrens vocabulary. Nevertheless, these chunks of language (that are
usually rote-learned phrases) are gradually analyzed, and broken down in order to
better understand the meaning of the elements in their structure, for them to be
used in different contexts. Thus, some scholars consider imitations and formulaic
speech as a tool to promote linguistic, cognitive and social development (Smeds,
2015). Perez-Pereira & Conti-Ramsden, as cited by Smeds (2015, p. 30), actually
considered that the Gestalt language learning style of the blind is a
compensational strategy as it helps the blind to increase verbal memory
performance through processing language by chunks. Furthermore, they
mentioned other compensatory mechanisms such us the ability to pay attention to
spoken language.

III.1.6.2 Second and Foreign Language Acquisition in the Blind

The existing research on second language and foreign language learning in blind
students is not very extensive and has been limited to the development of
methodologies for second language and foreign language lessons for the blind.
There is little research focused on comparing the abilities of the blind to learn a
second language or foreign language with that of the sighted. In 2015, Helena
Smeds conducted one of the only studies regarding the matter, a study in which
she compared the language abilities of the blind and the sighted. The aim of the
research was to discover the advantages on second language acquisition in
visually impaired individuals. The researcher pointed out some characteristics of
the language abilities in people affected by blindness that should be taken into
consideration when selecting methods and choosing the methodology for the EFL
classroom for the visually handicapped.

After conducting three studies with blind and sighted children, Smeds (2015)
concluded that all the test results demonstrated an advantage for early blind
individuals (in contrast to the late blind and sighted) for acquiring a second
 81

language. One of these advantages was the blinds greater phonological short-
term memory capacity, which allows the visually impaired to have a superior
capacity of learning new words. Additionally, it influences many other important
factors of learning a second language: acquisition of syntax, early oral fluency
achievements and the ability to produce less accented speech at early stages of
L2 acquisition, as well as learning at a faster rate and ultimately the acquisition of
the target language. Cattaneo &Vecchi (2011), as well as Rokem &Ahissar
(2009), as cited by Smeds, (2015, p. 90) sustained that this enhanced
phonological short-term memory performance in congenitally blind individuals is a
result of a compensatory mechanism in the process of perceptual encoding, an
idea also supported by Cattaneo and Vecchi (2011) in their work Blind Vision.
According to these researchers, it is the ability to chunk verbal material that has
become enhanced in these individuals (Smeds, 2015, p.182). Additionally, blinds
L1 learning strategy in which they use reproductions of chunks of adult speech
supports this notion. Moreover, during the second study of Smeds (2015)
research, it was found that this perceptual advantages were not diminished when
the visually impaired had to perceive sentences in white noise (as this only
disturbs perception), but were disturbed by babble as this interrupts the
compensatory chunking mechanism. Nevertheless, this advantage was only seen
in low levels during second language learning, leading to the notion that
compensation occurs partially.

Another advantage of the blind individuals in L2 learning is recognition memory

which is very important in second language acquisition, because it increases the
pace of acquisition of new words forms and grammatical functions such as
morphological endings. Moreover, in combination with phonological short-term
memory, it greatly benefits receptive and productive foreign language lexical
competence. Additionally, Smeds also mentioned that according to the recent
advances a set of cognitive and perceptual abilities can be associated with highly
successful language learners, and they are related to working memory;
phonological short-term memory, implicit learning and associative memory
(Smeds, 2015, p. 183). Accordingly, both the phonological short-term memory
tests and the recognition memory test in Smeds study focused on various
elements of recognition of the sound system of language. Therefore, the
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researcher was able to conclude that these abilities are related to the auditory
perceptual ability, in which researchers, such as Rder & Hotting (2004), found the
blind to be better than sighted L1 speakers.

III.1.7 THEORY OF MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCES

The theory of multiple intelligences is a modular developed by Howard Gardner, a

Harvard Professor, in 1983. This theory refutes the idea of intelligence being a
single general ability that could be measured by standardized short-answer tests.
Gardner believed that human beings have nine different kinds of intelligence that
reflect different ways of interacting with the world (Wayback Machine Internet
Archive, 2012, para. 1). Although the Theory of Multiple Intelligences establishes
that every human is born with the same set of intelligences, each person has a
unique profile, with each skill being at a different level of development. In addition,
the Harvard professor sustained that if the term "intelligence" is equated to the
term "capacity", it should be a skill that can be developed.

Gardner considered that intelligence is the ability to solve problems or to create

products that are valued within one or more cultural settings (Gardner, 1993, p.
10). This concept is applicable to all Gardners 9 modules or types of intelligence.
According to Gardner (2010), the logical-mathematical intelligence refers to the
capacity to discriminate, logical or numerical patterns. It also relates to being able
of handling long chains of reasoning. The linguistic intelligence is related to the
sensitivity to sound, rhythm, and meanings of words, and to the different functions
of language. The spatial intelligence is reflected in the good capacity to perceive
the visual-spatial world accurately. Likewise, the subject with a good level of
spatial intelligence is able of making changes and modifications with base on
previously perceived spaces. On the other hand, bodily-kinesthetic intelligence is
the ability of controlling one's body movements or handling objects skillfully to
solve problems, or create something. Musical intelligence refers to the ability of
producing and appreciating rhythm, pitch, and timbre.
The last four intelligences were not included in the original theory, and are related
more to matters of the human existence and the relation with others. Intrapersonal
intelligence refers to having access to one's own feelings and the ability detailed,
 83

to discriminate among them and draw accurate upon them to guide behavior;
knowledge self-knowledge of one's own strengths, weaknesses, desires, and
intelligences (Gardner, 2010, p. 6). Interpersonal intelligence is the capacity to
detect and respond appropriately to the feeling, character of other people, as well
as their personality, believes and motivation. Gardner also spoke about the
naturalist intelligence, which is reflected in those who are good in recognizing and
categorizing the living things such as animal and plants (Wayback Machine
Internet Archive, 2012). Likewise, these people are also good at identifying other
features of the natural world. Last of all, existential intelligence refers to the
sensitivity and capacity to confront deep existential matters or questions, such as
the purpose of existence, the ephemeral nature of humanity.

In addition, Gardner believes that motivation is a major factor for development of

human intelligence. Therefore, the teacher should try to promote these
"intelligences" and affective factors. Gardner emphasizes the fact that all minds
are equally important and that the current school system does not treat them
equally, but prioritizes logical-mathematical and linguistic intelligence (Wayback
Machine Internet Archive, 2012). Following Gardners ideas, the EFL teacher will
need to enhance the different intelligences of their students, which are closely
related to their learning styles.

Regarding this reseearch, Multiple Intelligences Theory is taken into account as it

is important to understand that every student learns in a different fashion,
especially those who have a disability. The students intelligence or capability
should be exploited in the means of learning. When it comes to the blind, it is
important to know that they are especially good with auditory and tactile stimulus.
Thus, this should be taken into consideration for the selection of methods for EFL
class. Likewise, linguistic intelligence should be addressed in the classroom in
terms of perceptual and production skills, as it is the most important tool blind
students have for social interaction.
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III.1.8 THEORIES OF LANGUAGE ACQUISITION

The circumstances in which the educational process takes place along with the
cognitive and psycho-affective conditions of the learner and teachers preparation
determine the methods and the quality of the stimuli during language learning.
Many have developed theories of language acquisition that attempt to describe the
process in which individuals learn a language. Different paradigms and
approaches have emerged in the light of these theories, aspiring to create the best
possible environment for learning, and are currently applied in language teaching.
Theories of language learning are essential to build a teaching practice that aims
to provide basic driving actions that integrate theory and practice. Thus, this
section will describe the theories that provide a framework for recollection of
appropriate methodology for teaching the blind. Furthermore, this segment will
focus on Villosladas research presented in 2011, which is focused on EFL
teaching methods for the visually impaired.

III.1.8.1 Piagets Constructivism

Constructivism has Piaget as its major representative and it is based on cognitive

models. This theory advocates that language development is a constructive
process that takes place within interaction between the organism and the
environment in which it lives. Likewise, it understands learning as an internal
process in which knowledge constantly changes due to the interaction between
information from the environment and cognitive mechanisms. Moreover, according
to cognitivists, the acquisition of a foreign language is different from L1 acquisition
since a number of sub-skills needs to be practiced to reach fluency and
automaticity in the target language. Such practice should also lead to the
integration and organization of the foreign language in mental representations.
Due to this difference, two types of processes are established: controlled
processes (learning) and automatic processes (acquisition) or conscious and
unconscious knowledge. Since the language is not an independent capacity, there
must be a connection between the conscious and unconscious practice.
 85

Piaget stablished four phases of language acquisition development in children, the

first being the sensorimotor phase (Malta, 2009). This stage is organized around
perception and motor skills and takes place around 0 to 2 years of age. The
second is the pre-operational phase, which takes place around 2 and 7 years of
life, when language begins to be structured. The next stage is the concrete
operational stage when children acquire reflectivity in the language. Lastly, around
12 years old, children reach the formal operational phase, and they become able
to reflect on the past, present and future (12 years).

Piaget sustained that humans see the world through symbols used as signifiers.
The blind individual has some influence on the formation of symbols, contrasting
with those created through the vision and, therefore, however slight, there will
always be a difference in the concepts. For Piaget, vision loss will impair the ability
to organize and retain mental representations, affecting rational thought. On the
other hand, other authors oppose to this idea, for example, Webster and Roe
(Villoslada, 2011. p. 31), believed that these delays on the model of Piaget are not
due to lack of conceptual skills but due to the importance of the visual experience
in the concepts being investigated. They claim that once the experimental
conditions are adjusted, blind children should not show any delay in the acquisition
of these cognitive skills. Similarly, Rosa et al. (1988) stated that the delay of the
blind child occurs only in the stage of concrete operations. During adolescence,
the visually impaired manages to reflect hypothetically and deductively just as
other colleagues. In addition, VI children "have no delay in the tasks that are
carried on the language or formal operations stage" (Rosa et al. Al, 1988, p. 262).
Once the child reaches the stage of formal thought, he will be fully able to
overcome many figurative problems caused by the lack of vision.

III.1.8.2 Vygotskys Sociocultural or Interactionist Theory

For Vygotsky, human development occurs through a process of exchange and

sharing of knowledge in a communicative and social environment which we
understand as culture. In other words, this means that we convey cultural
knowledge through language. Therefore, language is the main vehicle for such
processes and is what decisively influences the development of the mind.
 86

Nevertheless, language and thought are two different things with different origins
which functionally interconnect during development, verbalizing thought and
making speech rational. Moreover, thought is not subordinated to language, it is
influenced by it.

Vygotsky considered childs language to be initially social (it is how the child
communicates with the caregiver) and is exterior in form and function. Gradually,
the language is internalized and passed through an egocentric period with an
external form but with an internal function. Finally, thought becomes verbal but
with an internal structure. Furthermore, Vygotsky believed that children essentially
learn when they are helped by adults. In order to explain this, he coined the term
"zone of proximal development, a term that refers to the distance between the
actual level of development of the individual determined by the ability to
independently solve a problem without help, and the level of potential development
as determined through problem solving under adult guidance or collaboration with
a more capable peer. Vygotsky believed that children should not be judged only
about their performance when they are working on their own, but also what they
can do when they are helped by adults or working in peer groups. Some children
might be able to complete tasks in a group before they learn how to do it on their
own.

According to Vygostky, thought and language pass through a series of plateaux

of development (Blunden. 1997. para. 10). Then, speech is divided in social
communicative speech, which is used to communicate with others, and egocentric
speech. The latter is the language used to control and self-regulate the individuals
own behavior, although it does not represent the egocentric thinking. For
Vygotsky, egocentric speech derives from social communicative speech and is
used to mediate the childs own actions as he or she usually narrates when
performing an action. Later in development, the egocentric speech becomes inner
speech that is unintelligible to others but serves to regulate one's actions and
behavior. Having derived from egocentric speech, inner language helps to
organize thought to facilitate the performance of the next action or move.
Afterward, non-verbal conceptual thought takes root alongside unconscious
socialized speech.
 87

Regarding learners with disabilities, Vygotsky coined the term "Defectology" as he

believed the disability itself was not the only factor that could hinder the language
acquisition. For this author, the social problem caused by the disability has a
bigger impact than the impairment by itself. Vygotsky claims that all disabilities
primarily affect the social relations of children who receive a different social
treatment from that which others receive. Besides, Vygotsky argues that there is
compensation in the absence of vision, which does not occur through the
replacement of the physiological functions of sight by over developing others
organs, but with a complex restructuring of all physiological activity, with training
and adaptation only achievable with help from the caregiver (Villoslada,
2011).Nevertheless, this means that not all blind people would be able to reach
biological compensation as this can only be attained with special training and
stimulation. As mentioned before, if blind children are not taken care of accordingly
to their needs, the deprivation of the needed stimuli would create a greater
damage that their disability. Likewise, Vygostky sustained that higher mental
functions are influenced by the affective and cognitive aspects. In other words,
social interaction triggers compensatory mechanisms to mediate and function.
Likewise, it is considered that the deficiency generates conflicts in the zone of
proximal development, but can be mediated by the use of compensatory strategies
and help of an adult.

This theory developed by Vygotsky is very much related to the objective of this
research for several reasons. As it has been previously mentioned, the blind
children (as well as sighted) tend to develop an egocentric speech via which they
usually speak about actions they are performing or routines they go through along
with their caregivers. Later on, they show signs of developing inner language and
very complex concepts of their surroundings. This fact can lead us to infer that the
blind, who do not have any other disability besides blindness, go through the same
developmental stages as the sighted. In addition, the fact that Vygotsky
highlighted the importance of the caregiver in the development of the childs
language and cognition can be related to researchers sustaining that blindness is
not as damaging for the child, as it is to deprive him or her of stimuli.
 88

III.1.8.3 Vygotsky and Leontievs Activity Theory Applied to Teaching Second

Language to Visually Impaired Students

This section is focused on the works of Motta (2004) and Villoslada (2011), both of
whom presented researches in relation to teaching second languages to blind
children. Motta specifically studied the application of Vygotskys Activity Theory, to
explain the teaching and learning processes in an EFL class in Brazil with students
with visual impairment. On the other hand, Villoslada (2011) used the application
of the Vygotskyan Activity theory as part of the theoretical framework of her paper
based on the work of Motta (2004). Regarding to the objective of this
investigation, the Activity Theory helps to identify the elements involved in the
system of teaching and learning, and indicates how social aspects influence group
behavior. Including the application of the Activity Theory in this work is very
important as it highlights the role of the environment, the activity performed by the
subject and the mediation needed to complete a task. All of these elements have
been considered important for the general development of the blind by recent
investigations.

The cultural-historical theory of activity was initiated in the 1920s and 1930s by
Lev Vygotsky and group of revolutionary Russian psychologists as a reaction and
criticism to the widely-spread stimulus-response model of Pavlov. Vygotsky and
his colleagues Luria and Leontiev, formulated the concept of artifact-mediated and
object-oriented action. These concepts stablished that a human individual never
reacts directly (or merely with inborn reflects) to the environment. The relationship
between human agent and objects of environment is mediated by cultural means,
tools and signs (CRADLE - Center for Research on Activity, Development, and
Learning - University of Helsinki - Faculty of Behavioural Sciences, n.d.). These
tools can be either physical or psychological, the latter including language, the
most significant tool for collaborative human activity (Hasan &Kazlauskas, 2014).
The components of this theory are: motive, goals, action, tasks, operation, social
rules, the subject of activity and tools needed. Moreover, it is characterized by a
combination of objective, ecological and socio-cultural perspectives of the human
behavior interrelated in both individual and social levels (Motta, 2004).
 89

Even though Vygotsky is considered by many to be the founder of the cultural-

historical theory of activity, Leontiev is responsible for the Activity Theory as it is
understood today. He conceived the term activity as a holistic, high-level, and
collaborative construct that must be always understood on the basis of its cultural
and historical context. Leontiev, also sustained that an activity both mediates, and
is mediated by, the physical and psychological tools used, as well as the social
context of the activity (Hasan & Kazlauskas, 2014, p.10). This implies that the
tools available and what the tool is capable of doing determine what can be done.
Tools can be primary, which means there are physical tools; secondary, including
language, ideas, models, etc.; or tertiary, such as communities, context, or the
environment.

III.1.8.4 Application of the Activity Theory in relation to Cognitive

Development

As it was previously discussed, total blindness is considered a complete loss of

vision or slight perception of light and shadows. However, the impact of blindness
is not limited only the absence of sight. In comparison to the language
development of the sighted, blindness produces many differences in blind
childrens language development, as well as in foreign language learning, since
the VI subjects do not have the support of the visual input along with the auditory
stimulus. Thus, they do not get a full understanding of the events in their
surroundings (Motta, 2004). Sighted teachers of the visually impaired must take
into account that they possess mental images constructed from a perceptual
system organized differently from that of the blind. This difference is caused by
knowledge of the external world being produced by the kinesthetic/tactile and
auditory senses. These issues are worth to be considered by the teacher as they
have many implications for the teaching process.

Sight provides us with an integrated picture of the world. Conversely, due to the
lack of visual input, students with visual impairment tend to memorize and repeat
concepts, using words without sufficient knowledge of their meaning (imitation).
Even though the chucking compensatory mechanism can be considered an
advantage during L2 acquisition, it could be totally unsuccessful if the right
 90

conditions do not take place. In addition, conceptual and language development

may be compromised when relying on information from subjective or imprecise
verbal descriptions. Hence the importance of enriching the sensory input and the
quality of information transmitted orally or through touch. This means that clear
information from several sources should be combined to allow the brain to form
concrete concepts for the blind to be able to build novel concepts upon them.

III.1.8.5 The Activity Theory in the Cognitive Development through Other

Senses

Observing how people disabilities work, many interesting facts can be highlighted,
especially from the perspective of Activity Theory. According to Motta (2004), one
can see the relationship between the uses of the other senses and the zone of
proximal development (ZPD). The impossibility of using the instrument of sight
caused by disability, at the same time allows simultaneous interaction in search of
other possibilities for learning of performing an action. Researchers such as Roder
and Hotting (2004), Perez-Pereira (2006), Cattaneo and Vecchi (2011) and Smeds
(2015), have pointed out some of the compensatory mechanisms in the blind.
Additionally, evidence of neuroplasticity in those with visual disabilities is evidence
of how the absence of a tool shapes the development of the individual, positively
or negatively altering the results of their actions in the context they live in.

III.1.8.6 The Activity Theory in the Cognitive and Social Skills Development

In the words of Motta (2004), sight is considered a social element that unites the
individual with the environment. This can be related to Vigostkys concept of
defectology, which establishes that the social problem caused by the disability has
a bigger impact than the impairment by itself. All disabilities primarily affect the
social relations of the individuals, as the social treatment they need and receive is
different from the social relations of others surrounding them. As mentioned
before, without the ability to mimic or use non-verbal communication the
development of certain social skills implies a longer amount of time than that of the
sighted children. Therefore, the exposure to language, social situations and having
help from a caretaker can help to overpass this difficulty, resulting in appropriate
 91

behavior from the social point of view. For Motta (2004), teachers and educational
centers offer little motivating conditions and insufficient information about the world
around VI students. Therefore, it is crucial that educators seek references for the
blind student and provide data and objects related to their life context.

III.1.9 METHODOLOGICAL APPROACHES

As the main focus of this research is to gather EFL methods for the visually
impaired, in the following sections we will focus on the work of Villoslada (2011) in
which she proposes several methods for Spanish as a Foreign Language classes
with blind students. In her paper, she focuses on two methodological approaches
she considers suitable for an EFL class with blind students. These teaching
approaches are multisensory teaching and cooperative learning. Both of these
approaches are based on Vygotskys Theory of Activity and Gardners Theory of
Multiple Intelligences previously discussed in this paper. In addition, they address
the specific needs of the visually impaired students in an inclusive classroom.

III.1.9.1 Multisensory teaching

Villoslada (2011) defines multisensory teaching as a method in which all of the

senses available are used as a way to capture the information from the
environment, and to combine the data obtained in order to produce complete and
meaningful learning. Based on previous researches, Villoslada (2011) emphasizes
the need for teachers of the blind to use adequate methods and a multisensory
teaching approach in which students can relate concepts with the information
acquired by other sensory channels other than sight. Thus, it is necessary for the
teacher to be aware of different teaching and learning strategies that stimulate
different senses. Nevertheless, it is very important to point out that, adaptations of
conceptual content are not necessary, if not unadvisable. Blind students are able
to form very similar concepts to those of the sighted through language and the
other senses available. For these reasons, the adaptations must be done in the
activities, methodological strategies and evaluation criteria as well as in the use of
materials for the blind to be able to participate in them. Furthermore, in many
 92

cases, the adaptations are valid for the entire class and not only the students with
disabilities.

Based on the framework of multi-sensory learning, Villoslada (2011) mentioned

some important criteria to follow when embracing this approach in any inclusive
classroom. First, it is very important to provide clear and systematic information
without too many distractions. Second, there must a detailed description of any
visual illustrations for the blind student to grasp the concept. Third, teachers must
include multisensory activities and not only those based on visual observation.
Lastly, activities and exercises that require complete pictures and phrases of the
same book should not be included in great quantity.

Regarding the evaluation criteria, the multisensory teaching advices the adaption
of the assessment in order to address the specific characteristics of the handicap
students. In the case of the blind students, they are able to perform oral tests in
the assessment if the subject allows them to. Nonetheless, in written tests,
teachers need to consider that Braille has a slower reading and writing pace.
Therefore, the blind students should have additional time to complete these sorts
of tasks.

Multisensory stimulation is essential to compensate for the lack of vision as it is

believed to increase the sense of confidence and to foster a positive attitude
towards learning languages (Villoslada, 2011). Besides, it meets the need of the
blind learner to work with different ways to construct meaning and acquire
concepts that allow them to interact with their peers in class and society. In the
field of foreign language teaching, this teaching approach provides many tools for
teachers to apply when developing activities for the benefit of blind learners.
Moreover, this approach can meet the needs of the whole group of students, since
it encourages teachers to be aware of the multiple intelligences and different
learning styles of their students when teaching. Hence, it is important to prepare
teachers of the visually handicap students for them to be ready to properly
address the needs of a group of students with specific characteristics.
 93

III.1.9.2 Cooperative Learning

In Villosladas paper, Cooperative Learning is defined as a learning process that

emphasizes collaborative efforts between teachers and students. Additionally, this
approach also encourages an active participation and interaction of both students
and teachers. Furthermore, knowledge is understood as a social construct, thus,
the educational process is facilitated by the interaction, assessment and
cooperation among peers. Also, this approach considers that collaboration among
students helps to build better, and more diverse concepts, as well as a good
learning environment fostered by the integration of the group of students in the
classroom. Additionally, it encourages a more reflexive type of learning, based on
the skills of the students, aiming to increase the interaction amidst them, and the
improvement of their communicative abilities.

In this approach, each of the learners works with peers in small groups in order to
achieve common and individual goals simultaneously. Also, this structure
encourages teamwork and an intrinsic motivation to learn based on the will of
achieving personal and social development. This implies that in a language class
the students with a higher language level will help the ones with a lower level and
that learners work together for the accomplishment of the class general needs.
Therefore, every member in the group is granted with roles and individual
functions. Nevertheless, all the activities are based on metacognitive, social and
communicational strategies with the aim of improving the interaction between
members. Likewise, individuals and teams reflect on their own work processes,
the outcomes, and their attitudes, so that they improve their social skills and
interactions.

This approach can be considered as important for this research as it allows

students to be the protagonists of their learning process. The teacher becomes a
facilitator who supports the construction of meanings using the tools offered by
multisensory teaching. Besides, it allows integration of blind individuals for the
benefit of the whole group, improving the context of the learning process, since
Vygotsky sustained through the concept of defectology, that the biggest impact of
any impairment are the social differences that it brings upon the subject. Creating
 94

safer and friendlier environments reduce anxiety and other feelings that prevent
the blind learner from acquiring a second language (Akin, 2002). In addition, the
cooperative learning approach fosters a meaningful interaction that develops
knowledge of the target language because of the exchange and negotiation of
meanings among students.

III.1.10 INFLUENCING FACTORS IN SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNING

In 2011, a Paraguayan researcher named Teresa de Jess Gonzlez published

her research titled Mother tongue as a facilitator of written production in a second
language (La lengua maternal como facilitadora de la produccin escrita en la
segunda lengua. Own translation) in which she mentions some factors that
influence the acquisition of L2 related to our research. First, she mentioned
neurophysiological maturation, understood as a process of internal development,
genetically determined, for both first and second language, which possesses
guidelines that are met inexorably. Moreover, it involves the basic neural abilities
for the acquisition of language and physical-articulatory components to produce
the sounds of each language. This implies that if an individual lacks naturally
developed skills for language learning, any attempts of imposing any sort of
knowledge related to language will be futile (Gonzlez, 2011).

This author also mentioned another factor influencing L2 acquisition: knowledge of

the world or, in other words, previous experiences obtained through the learners
own culture, considered a source of motivation. Likewise, Gonzlez used the ideas
of Jerome Bruner who believed that the learner must be aware of the conceptual
structure of the context the language will cover, including both the social and
tangible world. Gonzlez considers that this previous experiences integrate the
contents of the linguistic expression of the student. Thus, the target language
should include both the physical and abstract components of the environment of
the school and the learners society. This, besides being an encouraging topic for
the learner to produce language, helps the students to constantly employ the
second language.
 95

Lastly, Gonzlez sustains that another important factor for L2 acquisition is the
interaction with the environment. This interaction implies the relationship between
the students and their caretakers, teachers and peers. A language teacher or a
caregiver that masters the content to be learned constitutes a good model to learn
from, and is essential to avoid mistakes. Nevertheless, another element within the
interaction with the environment is the approaches and methods used for
language teaching. It is then crucial to have the appropriate teaching materials that
facilitate L2 acquisition.

In 2002, Elena Aikin studied the influence of the affective factor, specifically of
motivation in L2 learning of blind students, and of the sense of touch as a potential
source of motivation. For her dissertation, Aikin uses Krashens Monitor
Hypothesis and Affective Filter. The monitor model establishes the existence of a
monitor that controls the production of the learner. On the other hand, the Affective
filter sustains that affective factors are related to the process of acquisition of a
second language. Motivation, self-confidence, and anxiety caused by a hostile
environment will hamper the language learning process. Consequently, Gonzlez
(2011) states that in many cases, pathologies related to language articulation are
attributed to affective factors. Hence, the importance of both environmental and
affective factors in relation to language learning.

In relation to the affective factor, Aikin mentions that it is especially difficult for VI
students to follow a foreign language class with predominance of visual aids, and
where they are not properly integrated in the activities. The author believes that
they can acquire language naturally and therefore teaching techniques can be
adapted to reduce or replace the visual information input materials. Besides, the
researcher equates the blinds haptic stimulation to the visual stimulation of the
sighted in terms of motivation. Therefore, Aikin suggests stimulating other senses
such as touch and hearing, and working for integrating the blind students into the
activities of the class in order to foster a good environment and motivation.
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III.1.11 SPECIFIC EDUCATIONAL NEEDS OF THE VISUALLY IMPAIRED

REGARDING THE EFL CLASSROOM

According to Sylvie Kashdan & Robby Barnes (1998) from the Kaizen Program for
New English Learners with Visual Limitations, visually impaired ESL students
need some form of individualized instruction and problem-solving specifically
adapted to their particular needs (Kashdan & Barnes, 1998, para. 14). These
sustain this because of their awareness of the need to have activities related to
reality, especially with social interaction (asking for help, what to ask in a public
service office, etc). This helps the lessons to be meaningful and to avoid
unnecessary difficulty. In addition, the authors believe that teachers of the blind
are usually not familiarized with what their blind students need, what they are able
to do, and what are they specially good at. Even though they might be willing to
help these students they are unable to help them effectively. In addition, EFL and
ESL programs are usually developed without considering the needs of the VI, and
rely on visual aids and materials as well as vision-based learning experiences. In
the case of the Paraguayan Educational system, despite a change of legislation in
regards to the inclusion of students with disabilities in schools of standard
education, no special plans have been designed to assist the needs of blind
students. This situation, might probably lead to poor or inadequate teaching, which
can be detrimental to motivation, learning and even development.

Sighted people are constantly exposed to print language, images, and

combinations of both of these in their daily life activities, in other words they
always have some models of what written language is and what it is used for
(Kashdan & Barnes, 1998, para. 20). On the other hand, experiences of this type
are not as present in the blinds routines as they are immersed in a world prepared
for those who can see. Therefore, little familiarization with reading and writing can
be expected, as well as a slower literacy development, vague notions of the
process of writing down spoken language and little understanding of activities such
as going to the cinema, going to the post office, etc. Thus, the visually impaired
students need frequent exposure to writing in different accessible resources and
reading in Braille. Also, they need to learn English in an environment oriented to
their needs that avoids visual cues and helps them to interact with others.
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Another important need of blind learners is that they need to be taught to use
touch in order to learn about objects and their surroundings (Kashdan & Barnes,
1998). This is due to the lack of opportunities for non-intended learning through
the sense of touch to occur, especially outside the school environment.
Additionally, visually impaired people are not generally distracted by objects near
them, which results in not being motivated to explore and learn about the things in
their environment unless they are encouraged to do so. Without encouragement
and opportunities to use touch, the blind often become passive receivers of stimuli
and do not engage in active exploration or experimentation, necessary for the
development of any of the five senses. Consequently, they need to be
encouraged and supported with activities and materials that help them to develop
touch. Stimulating the blinds sense of touch, and creating ways for them to learn
through haptic means might also help to make the VI learners feel included, as
well as motivate them to participate and make efforts to learn the target language.
As we have mentioned before in this research, some researchers believe that the
blinds haptic concepts can be equated to sight in relation to visual imagery,
notions and concepts of objects and the world. Hence, it is very important to
address this sense as it is important for cognitive development, as it constitutes
the most important mean to experience and know the world for the blind.

Having discussed the specific needs of the visually impaired, the authors made
suggestions to take into consideration when choosing activities for the visually
impaired. The following are important for this investigation as they concern
materials for the ESL environment. Kashdan and Barnes (1998) believe that

The fill-in-the-blanks, unscramble-the-words, matching exercises, charts, and other

such E.S.L. skills-based literacy exercises are disorienting and confusing to many
Braille readers, especially those who are beginning English learners. Although such
formats may seem intuitively obvious and clear to print readers, they can be
experienced very differently by Braille readers. This is because the tactual sense
requires that information be derived by experiencing a moving narrow field of
perception, unlike the visual sense, which allows for simultaneous perceptions of
various aspects of a wide field--including such things as a page layout, chart or
sentence formation--in a single glance (para. 24)

Likewise, teachers should focus lessons on real-life situations, total physical

response activities, and games that involve haptic input or that imply manipulating
concrete objects such as arts and crafts. Activities that address multiple senses
enrich and reinforce meanings or concepts being conveyed in spoken or written
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communication. Also, repeated and meaningful daily practice with Braille literacy
materials and activities helps to overcome the impact of the lack of sufficient
exposure to materials written in Braille outside the formal educational context.
Lastly, it is very beneficial to call students' attention to tactile signs and objects in
the classroom, or other learning environments.

The suggestions made by these two authors fall inside que multisensory teaching
approach previously discussed. A variety of stimuli is given importance as a crucial
element in the creation of meaningful and clear context and concepts for learning.
Moreover, some importance in the learning process is given to movement,
something that was only done by the multiple intelligence theory. Including
kinesthetic activities can help to benefit both students with and without disabilities
as they expand the spectrum of learning styles covered by the lessons. All of
these suggestions will be taken into consideration when selecting the appropriate
methods for the visually impaired in the following chapter, as these suggestions
are related to approaches and educational theories previously discussed in this
chapter.

III.1.12 GAMES WITH VISUALLY IMPAIRED YOUNG LEARNERS

A Russian EFL teacher from the Boarding School for the Blind and Visually in
Moscow named Kamilya Yastrebova (2015) believes that EFL teachers of the
blind have the challenge of making a child interested in everything that is behind
the wall of darkness (p. 187). She sustained that in order to achieve this teachers
need to be creative so as to make adaptations within the teaching process with
aims of meeting the needs of their students. The author also speaks of a common
misconception which considers that learning depends on a serious or solemn
environment and that enjoyment and laughter prevent learning from taking place.
The Russian teacher contradicts this myth by stating that language learning and
having fun are totally compatible. Consequently, she considers that the best way
to combine these two elements is playing games in the EFL classroom. This is
very important information for the EFL teachers of the blind, as games are a very
common section of language lessons especially for young learners. Visually
impaired children in inclusive education classrooms should be able to fully
participate in every activity including games. Games are mainly interactive
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activities from which students can benefit from; there is a constant sharing of
information in an entertaining way that should be used as much as possible with
children.

Yastrebova (2015) mentioned that using games helps to create a meaningful

context for language use (p.188). In addition, they create opportunities for
communication and interaction among students, besides being challenging and
motivating. Besides, they are an excuse for practicing language skills, and of
constantly making the students use the target language. In addition, the Russian
teacher believes that games should be the heart of language teaching rather than
a warm up or time filler since they promote communicative competence,
motivation and fluency in the second or foreign language. This last matter is very
significant to this research due to the fact that blind students greatly rely on
language, and of course, interaction for learning and experiencing the world. They
need constant opportunities to engage in communicative activities, and other tasks
that help to stimulate their available senses in order develop their capacities in
order to learn in the best possible way. EFL teachers of the visually impaired
children should not leave games only to the beginning and ending of their lessons,
they should try to use games thought in the different stages of a lesson making the
best out of the possibilities given by games.

Several benefits of using games for EFL teaching were also presented by the
Russian teacher. In regards to affective factors, Yastrebova (2015) believes that
games lower the affective filter, encourage creative and spontaneous use of
language, promote communicative competence (p. 188) and are very
entertaining. According to the author, cognitive benefits of games are their
suitability to be appropriate for reinforcing new knowledge and the fact that they
are an opportunity for reviewing language. In addition, the focus of games is on
using grammar in a communicative way. In terms of adaptability game encourage
students to use all four skills when playing and are easily adjusted for any level,
age or specific needs. Games also benefit class dynamics and facilitate
participation of the whole class and are student centered. This information
provided by the authors lets us know that games help to create, first of all, a safe
environment in which children can learn with, at least, low levels of stress. This
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would allow any learner to engage even in very challenging activities and
situations in which motivation and good previous experience would most likely
lead him or her to learning. Additionally, games are the perfect scenario for
practicing to communicate in the foreign language. There cannot be a more
positive outcome than learning while enjoying an activity that makes the students
want to come back to the class and continue learning English.

Nevertheless, Yastrebova (2015) sustained that in order to achieve the most from
educational games, it is essential that suitable games are chosen (p. 189).
Whenever a teacher selects a game for his or her lesson many factors such as
age and level should be considered. In the case of the non-sighted students,
teachers should keep in mind their needs of full explanation of the game, detailed
description of the equipment and the layout of cards and other additional materials
of the game. As we see games can be highly beneficial for the blind EFL students
and can probably lead to a fun entertaining manner of acquiring language in a safe
and friendly environment. Nevertheless, the only way to exploit the advantages of
educational games it is choosing suitable ones. Teachers should keep in mind the
needs stablished by Kashdan & Barnes (1998) mentioned above, the needs of the
blind for interaction and understanding that, even though they cannot perform
exactly as sighted people do, they are perfectly able to do great in activities that
meet their needs and that stimulate their capacities. Presenting students with
tasks that address their particular needs and capacities is sustained by the
Multiple Intelligence Theory, which suggests that teachers should provide
elements that help the learners perform at their best current potential in a specific
skill in which they stand out. One way of achieving this is by using a multisensorial
didactics, which addresses multiple senses in a wide variety tasks so that more
learners can feel included and participle with constant high difficulty or even
failure. Games integrate language learning with multisensorial stimulation in a
friendly context that facilitates learning. They should be strongly considered as a
very important part of an EFL class
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CHAPTER IV

OPERATIONAL FRAMEWORK

IV.1 WEAKNESSES OF THE CURRENTLY USED EFL METHODS

The Brazilian researcher Rosanne Dias (2008) interviewed three EFL teachers of
the visually impaired from different institutions as to determine several aspects of
current EFL lessons that include students with blindness. It was determined that
during teachers provide their blind students with a Braille version of the texts,
activities and exam sheet used by the resto of the class. The visually impaired also
had with a section of the content of the book of their sighted peers in Braille for
them to follow the class. Furthermore, visual aids used in class were described to
the VI students by the teacher so as to make the blind aware of what was being
discussed.

Even though reading and writing in Braille is of extreme importance for the blind in
order to learn a language, limiting methods to texts, and writing activities is no
enough to make an EFL class appropriate for the blind. They also need stimulation
of other senses, a lot of interaction and cooperative work, as well as activities
carefully designed in regards to the outline, for the blind to able to work with them.
Besides, the visually impaired students should work in the same conditions as the
sighted as possible, not only because they have very similar cognitive skills, but
because they can perfectly perceive that they are separated, and left without doing
anything but listening while others work. The sense of exclusion can lead to more
serious learning disabilities caused the students level of stress, as a result of
exclusion and constant frustration. Therefore, special attention to the selection of
methods for EFL for the visually impaired as they can have serious negative
impact on the students academic life.

Teachers of the visually impaired in countries such as Paraguay should be

provided guidelines that help to address the needs of the blind students under
their care in addition to methods that are suitable for the visually impaired. As a
solution for the current situation in Paraguay where teachers have blind students
in their EFL classes without having formal training in special education, we
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propose that the Ministry of Education and Cultures designs specific programs for
English language teaching for the visually impaired. In addition, a subject that
covers the educational needs of students with disabilities including the visually
impaired, should be incorporated in the curriculum of the Bachelor Degree in
Education at the Instituto Superior de Education Dr. Ral Pea.

IV.2 CURRENT SITUATION OF EFL FOR THE BLIND IN PARAGUAY AND THE
WORLD

In regions of the world such as Asia and Europe EFL teaching for the blind has
been present for decades. In Asia, the first programs of English for the visually
impaired date back to 1968 with the Ebenezer School for the blind in China. There
are other language programs for the blind in other countries such as Oman and
Russia, where various authors have designed EFL methods they believe to be
suitable for the visually impaired. On the other hand, Europe has several projects
and programs that include EFL for the visually impaired in many countries in
Europe. Some of these programs are international such as the projects Pedagogy
and Language Learning for Blind and Partially Sighted Adults, Tell me how!,
European Language Portfolio For the Blind and the Eurochance projects. In these
programs, a special curriculum is designed for the blind as it recognized the blind
have specific educational needs, different from those of the sighted. In addition,
many have conducted researches on the language acquisition characteristic of the
blind (Smeds, 2015), their specific needs regarding language learning (Villoslada,
2011; Santana, 2013) and methods that address the educational needs of the
visually impaired (Villoslada, 2011)

Similarly, in the USA, many experts have explored the field of EFL for the blind,
offering programs that attempt to meet their needs regarding language learning.
The Kaizen program for new English learners with visual limitations can be
considered as one of most important programs in North America, as the teachers
of that program identified the specific needs of the blind. The creators of this
program Kashdan and Barnes (1998) attempt to address them with adaptations in
techniques and materials that enhance the VI students language experience.
Additionally, great amount of research in regards to foreign language acquisition in
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the blind has been done in the USA, providing the insights that helped to build the
notions we currently have on this matter.

In contrast, Latin America has fallen behind in regards to EFL for the visually
impaired. In fact, Latin American countries are just starting to develop policies and
curricula for inclusive education, which means that the blind have been recently
included in the standardized educational system. However, in the majority of these
countries the language class has not been adapted to the needs of the visually
impaired. The only country in which studies on the matter have been carried out is
Brazil. Researchers such as Motta, Dias, Malta, and Fontana have studied the
language learning process of the blind, adaptations to the current curricula in order
to meet the needs of the blind, and have analyzed the current situation of the EFL
experience of the visually impaired in Brazil.

The situation of EFL for the blind in Paraguay is also not favorable for its supposed
beneficiaries as even though, Paraguay passed the Law N 5136 of Inclusive
Education in 2013, the Ministry of Education has not designed a curriculum as to
address the need of students with disabilities, including those with blindness.
Adaptations to the curriculum are made only in certain schools; none of them
covers the EFL class as there is a lack of prepared language teacher that know
how to address the needs of their students. This is probably caused by the fact
that specialization in any field of special education has not been available for
teachers since 1990, resulting in 74.2% (OIE, 1994) of the Paraguayan teachers
not having any formal preparation to teach students with disabilities. This situation
is detrimental for the appropriate education of the visually impaired, as the
teachers are likely to ignore the educational needs of the blind students as well as
of the differences between the learning processes of the blind and the sighted
learners. Besides, they might not know what resources and possibilities they have
in order to address the needs of the VI students, especially in regards to methods
for EFL for the visually impaired.

Many negative situations can arise from the blind being presented every day with
activities that do not include them or do not address their needs. It is very likely
that the blind fall behind in their learning compared to their sighted peers, because
it is difficult for them to understand the lessons as the manner in which information
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is presented to them, does not take into account the way they learn. As a result,
they need more time and effort to reach the same learning, and skills. Likewise,
they can suffer from emotional and learning problems caused by periodically
facing the frustration of not being able to do the same task everyone else is doing.
In addition, because they cannot benefit from the current educational system,
many blind students (or their caregivers) may feel that they are wasting time going
to school and therefore decide to stop attending school. The fact that the blind are
not able to learn a foreign language due to the inefficiency of the educational
system, eliminates the possibility of accessing information, and / or education that
may help to improve the quality of life of blind students.

IV.3 SUITABILITY OF EFL METHODS

The following section focus on suitable methods for EFL proposed by EFL
teachers of the blind. After contrasting the information presented in both Chapter II
and III, some important insights have been reached regarding the suitability of
these EFL methods for the blind presented in Chapter II. The following methods
can be considered as suitable for the visually impaired as they cover the needs of
their educational needs and the theoretical framework of this investigation.
Moreover, these methods can be used in the context of inclusive education, which
is very important to the Paraguayan EFL teachers, as their blind students are
inserted in inclusive education classrooms that are currently not prepared to
address their needs.

It can be considered that the method proposed by Olga Katsap & Olga Vorobieva
(2015) (Activity One) for presenting a new grammatical rule is suitable for the
visually impaired as it takes into consideration the needs of the blind. It
contemplates Braille reading and the sequentiality in which information is gathered
through touch. Furthermore, it addresses both hearing and touch making it a
multisensorial method for both the blind and the sighted students in the classroom.
This matches the principles of the Activity Theory, which state that the tool used to
perform an action greatly determine what can be done or not. In this case, this tool
helps the blind when being first introduced to a new grammatical rule. Through this
method they are able to listen or read in Braille in order to receive new knowledge,
in a concrete way that is compatible with the needs and capacities of the blind. At
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the same time it implies interaction between teacher and student which is an
important detail considered very important for the blind. Interaction helps the blind
students to feel included, to be motivated, and to get information about the
environment as well as the target language. In regards to the affective factor we
believe that including the VI learners in the lesson through the adaptation of
methods or with the use of methods specially designed for them avoids pressure
and stress from the students as well as preventing the task to be harder than an
EFL task should be.

The same authors proposed another method in which students have to deduce the
grammatical rule from texts (Activity two). In this adapted method teachers need to
reformulate tasks for them to become more meaningful and to make sense for the
visually impaired. Making the activity meaningful will probably result in a better
attitude in the students; they will be more motivated and eager to learn. Likewise,
the activity is based on the sense of touch and the fact that receiving information
through touch implies sequentiality and a slower pace than reading though sight.
Besides, through the reformulation of the task the teacher can make emphasis on
any piece of the target language facilitating the second step on the activity which is
reflecting on the emphasized pieces of the text. Consequently, presenting the blind
with an opportunity to use Braille also helps them to become familiar with reading
in the target language. This method can be considered as suitable as it addresses
touch, the most important sense of the blind in regards of experiencing the world.
Moreover, it challenges the students as they need to discover the grammatical
rules themselves. In addition, this sort of activity is related to the zone of proximal
development, as students with guidance of the teacher make a little effort in order
to scale onto the next level. This activity matches the Activity Theory as the
method was adapted in order to meet the needs of blind so as to meet of the blind.
Therefore, the possibility of learning the same content expands, creating higher
chances of reaching the goal of the activity.

Katsap & Olga Vorobieva (2015) proposed an activity for controlled practice of
writing based on recently learned grammatical structure(Activity three). The activity
was the very common task called fill in the blanks in which students have to
complete the missing elements of the sentence with the appropriate word. In the
case of the blind they had the reference words on the bottom printed in Braille or in
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separated cards with the words written in Braille. An activity such as this seems to
disregard the needs of the visually impaired as it does not consider the
characteristics of touch (sequentiality and slower pace). Finding themselves before
a difficult task that goes beyond their capacities the VH students might feel
overwhelmed and quit trying to complete the task. This can cause the stress levels
of the students to rise reducing their chance of succeeding in the language class.
Therefore, this method cannot be considered as suitable as it does not address
the needs of the blind and does not consider the affective factor. Nevertheless
with some adaptations this method could become appropriate.

It must be recommended that the teacher or an aid reads the sentences to the
students (who previously read the cards with reference words). Whenever the
reader reaches the gap in the sentences they could make a noise such as
clapping or make a noticeable pause for the blind students to know that something
is missing. Then the VI students can complete the sentences with the words they
recall or go through the cards again. Whoever is reading the cards for them can
repeat as many times as it is necessary. With this adaptation the teacher will be
covering hearing, touch (considering the need of having a longer time to read),
interaction, and the affective factor as this variation might result challenging and
motivating. This method can also be used in inclusive classrooms if the sighted
students have cards with reference words themselves.

Katsap & Vorobieva (2015) proposed another method (Activity four) for teaching
new grammar content with clarification through gestures and actions. They
proposed doing the actions with the blind students, moving their hands and
leading them through the activity. This method can be considered as suitable as it
is greatly based on interaction through which the blind are able to understand
concepts that might stay beyond their grasp if they are not assisted. Furthermore,
the students are being encouraged to use touch in order to explore objects and
therefore the context of the activity. The method is also an opportunity to hear and
produce language, and have a one-to-one work time with the teacher, making it
easier for the educator to notice if the student has comprehended the concepts or
any other problems. Moreover, this might help with creating confidence and
motivating the EFL visually impaired learner.
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In some cases having suitable methods for the blind does not necessarily imply
having to adapt methods used in EFL classes for sighted children, sometimes
educators only need to select currently used methods that work for everyone.
Katsap & Vorobievas (2015) also suggested chain work activity as an appropriate
method to use with the visually impaired in the EFL context (Activity five). It can be
considered as suitable as it majorly relies of interaction between everybody in the
classroom, lowering the affective filter, and, therefore, promoting learning (Activity
theory). Besides, it stimulates hearing at the same time it creates a safe
environment in which the VH can start to produce language with guidance,
something that might result harder if done alone (zone of proximal development).
This activity can be used in inclusive education classrooms as both sighted and
blind students can participate without considerable complications.

Katsap & Vorobievas (2015) adaptation of the Go Fish game (Activity six) can be
considered as suitable as it includes all learners in the class and creates an
opportunity to practice their oral skills. Likewise, there is also a chance to read in
Braille in the foreign language which is one of the most important educational
needs of the blind. Furthermore, it implies peer interaction agreeing with
Vygotskys interactionist Theory in which great importance is given to the relation
between peers, the context and tools. The later has been adapted with aims to
improve the chances of the blind of reinforcing new knowledge, matching the
principles of the Activity Theory. Likewise students acquire language in a
comfortable and fun context which facilitates learning. The method stimulates
speaking, hearing and touch (vision in the case of the sighted students) making
the activity a multisensorial one.

The adaptation of the game (Activity seven) Snakes and Ladders made by Katsap
& Vorobieva (2015) can be considered as suitable as it meets the needs of the
blind and matches the theoretical framework of this research. First, it a
multisensorial method as it addresses touch (when students distinguish their toys,
and read in Braille) and hearing (listening to the classmates read their cards, or
the teachers instructions). Besides, the learners can practice their oral and Braille
reading skills in the target language, as well. In addition, students have to perform
various tasks that include verbal and kinesthetic ones. This is supported by the
Multiple Intelligence Theory of Howard Gardner according to which multiple skills
 108

should be stimulated in order to improve learning quality while it also reaches

students who do not learn through visual input. Besides, language acquisition
takes place within an engaging activity which helps the students feel comfortable
enough to learn language, it also makes the class more appealing, and students
may become more interested in language learning (affective factor). Furthermore,
this activity can help the class to review, consolidate or practice language content
and can be used in inclusive education. Finally, this activity meets the principles of
the Activity Theory as the visually impaired work with tools that help them to reach
the goals and learn the language content, since they are designed to meet their
needs. In addition, the interaction with classmates also improves the chances of
learning to take place.

The flannel graph method (Activity eight) proposed by Katsap & Vorobieva (2015)
can be considered as suitable since it allows the students to practice reading and
writing in Braille in the target language. At the same time, textures are used as a
way of identifying cards, shapes and models. Touch is used for the students to
stablish relations with words and meanings, reinforcing concepts due to the fact
that more stimuli can be related to a certain word. Even though this activity is only
focused on touch, and is intended for individual work, it addresses a specific need
of the blind which is their necessity to have contact with Braille reading and writing,
and their need to use the sense of touch to experience the world and learn. Touch
is how they form the majority of the notions that help to build concepts in the VI
students mind. In addition, this activity can be adapted for several levels and does
not require much preparation from the teacher.

The method of describing toys placed on fabric bag (Activity nine) proposed by
Katsap & Vorobieva (2015) can also be considered suitable. Oral skills and touch
are stimulated and put to work simultaneously creating comfortable spaces with a
game that helps to have the learner using the target language, which is the
ultimate goal of the language classroom. Furthermore, this method addresses an
available sense, in order to make students recall vocabulary; helping them stablish
connections among what they feel and what have they learnt in class. This game
addresses one the most important needs of the blind which is stimulating touch,
the main source of information for the blind, making knowledge more meaningful.
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In addition, playing the game with whole class is connected to the Vygotskys
sociocultural Theory, which emphasizes the importance of interaction for those
with disabilities. Through this activity learners can benefit from the friendly
atmosphere of the game, as well as from listening their peers and the teacher
describing the different objects. Besides, this game can be played in different
levels and in teams in order to boost motivation. However, in order to be effective,
it must be present in a moment of the course in which students only need to
consolidate vocabulary related to their descriptions; this would not work at the
beginning stages of learning new words or grammatical structure.

Katsap & Vorobieva (2015) presented another method in which a collection of

sounds of various topics is presented to the students (Activity ten). This method is
considered as suitable as learners use listening skills for vocabulary revision.
Listening to sounds associated to particular contexts helps to consolidate
meanings. Through this method students can start associating vocabulary and
grammatical structure to specific settings. Even though it only addresses listening
skills, the game takes place in a cooperative environment as they give an answer
as a group lowering the tension created by fear of making mistakes. Nonetheless,
as well as the previous method, this activity can work only if the students have
some familiarity with the vocabulary or grammar of the unit. Nevertheless, this
activity matches the principles of the Activity Theory as the tool matches the needs
of the blind, facilitating learning. Furthermore, the game uses noises from the
different contexts, with meets the principles of the Interactionist and the Activity
Theory, as both state that humans learn from environment, and the interaction with
it. Even though, the contexts are presented artificially, learner can benefit from the
experience, as connections are stablished between target language and stimuli.

Kamilya Yastrebova (2015), proposed a game in which students pass a ball

among everybody in the class, saying all the letters of the alphabet in the correct
order (Activity eleven). This activity can be considered as suitable due to the fact
that it helps to develop memory in a cooperative environment in which all students
contribute to saying the alphabet in the correct order. A simple kinesthetic activity
is used which works to stablish turns giving everyone a chance to participate,
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creating a safe and organized context for the game to take place. Even if the body
movement is very simple, holding and passing a ball is very appealing for children,
especially those with body-kinesthetic intelligence, who learn best with body
movements, touching and performing actions. The simplicity of this game allows
everyone both sighted and blind students to participate. Interaction among peers
plays a very important role in this game, as children can benefit from hearing and
sharing other classmates.

A variation of the previous game was presented also by Yastrebova (2015) in

which one learner says a letter of the alphabet and the next one continues with
following correspondent letter (Activity twelve).This activity stimulates listening
skills, memory and attention, in a cooperative environment. Additionally, it is an
opportunity for beginners to work with the sounds of the new language. Interaction
is essential for this activity, as learners need to listen to each other to play the
game, which may lead to reinforce knowledge and disregard inaccurate notions.
However, the fact that the focus of the activity only addresses listening skills may
not always result in positive outcomes as only those who have a more developed
listening skill or an auditory memory would be benefited. Therefore, this method
cannot be considered as suitable. Luckily, it can be enriched with other activities
that involve touch, movement, or exercises cognitive skills such as inference or
dedication, which may constitute a more meaningful activity that embraces more
types of learning skills and senses. Furthermore, it will provide a wider set of
stimuli that can enrich the activity avoiding rote learning.

Activity thirteen proposed by Yastrebova (2015) can be considered as suitable for

the blind since it implies purposeful use of listening skills for alphabet
memorization. In addition, learning takes place in a cooperative environment
where students pay careful attention to the previous player. Furthermore, this
activity presented as a game, can be an entertaining way of memorizing such an
essential knowledge in EFL learning since it helps to make the students feel
comfortable, lowering stress levels, facilitating learning. Moreover, this activity
matches the concept of zone of proximal development as students work together
to learn language content they havent yet mastered. They are more likely to recall
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a bigger amount of letters through this activity than if asked to say the full alphabet
out loud on their own. Thus, the activity can lead to successful outcomes due to
the fact that learners can develop listening and attention skills, while memorizing
the alphabet.

Activity fourteen proposed by Yastrebova (2015) consisted of finding errors in a

written alphabet. Although, the author did not specify in which format the alphabet
will be presented to the class, it can be said that the activity basically implies to
identify errors in the alphabet. This activity can be considered as suitable as
students read the alphabet in Braille, or listen to the teacher saying he alphabet
while exercising memory skills in order to find the errors in the alphabet. In other
words, learners learn or reinforce learning based on what they receive from
interaction in the classroom context, matching the principles of the Activity Theory.
However, this method can be enriched with the principles of multisensory teaching
as this activity only addresses touch or hearing. Students might be benefited with
correcting the alphabet, as they not only have to recognize mistakes but recall the
right order and apply this knowledge to correct the alphabet. Being able to adjust
the alphabet (with or without help from the teacher) may help to reinforce
information this topic. We propose providing the alphabet in cards (one letter per
card) in a flannel graph for each blind student. They have to read the alphabet in
Braille, spot the mistakes and re-organize the alphabet cards. The suitability of
this activity relies on the fact that it addresses touch as well as kinesthetic
movement. This matches both the Multiple Intelligence theory and Multisensory
Teaching as the activity addresses more than once sense and skill, including a
wider variety of learning styles. As a result, more students can feel included, more
comfortable in the activity, allowing learning.

If the alphabet is said by the teacher, the task then becomes a group task. Then,
students can be asked to say the alphabet correctly until they reach the part where
they heard a mistake. A very interesting detail is that, in this variation, the teacher
can present errors regarding order or pronunciation for the learners to correct. In
order to enrich this variation with kinesthetic activities, the teacher can ask
students to clap, stamp or raise their hands every time they hear a mistake,
matching the principles of the Theory of Multiple Intelligences, which encourages
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educators to address intelligences such as the kinesthetic one, which are not
normally included in formal education classrooms. This variation can also be
considered as suitable as it becomes a group task helping the blind students to
work on an environment where they feel more comfortable, enhancing the learning
experience. If students were asked to do this activity on their own, the pressure
and tension would probably prevent the learner of performing to their full capacity.
In the light of the concept of proximal development, we can say that this activity
helps the learners to work with a concept they havent yet mastered, in a
collaborative activity, in which, with the help from their class, they can perform
better that they would on their own. This variation matches the principles of the
Activity Theory and the Sociocultural Theory as learners benefit from tools and
interaction that help to meet their needs, facilitating learning.

The method referred to as activity fifteen, presented by Yastrebova (2015) can

also be considered as suitable because it allows beginners to work with the
sounds of the target language in a cooperative environment since a safe
environment for learning is created through group participation. Furthermore, the
activity matches the Interactionist theory, as it relies on the interaction among
peers that have listen carefully to each other, and even producing different sound
that help with the dynamics of the game. The game creates an environment full of
stimuli that can be associated to vowels, something that goes in line with the
Activity theory which suggests that learning can be produced by information and
stimulation received from the environment.

Activity sixteen presented by Yastrebova (2015) can be considered as suitable

since students need to work together in order to finish the task. The suitability of
the game relies on the fact that it works within the principles of both the
Interactionist theory and cooperative learning, as interaction is the main element of
this activity. Furthermore, they respond with kinesthetic and verbal answers to
auditory cues, matching the multisensory teaching as more than one sense is
addressed. In addition, this method takes in hand the needs of the blind as it
seeks knowledge consolidation through forming a variety of connections with
concepts, language structures and word spelling. This helps to form stronger
notions of what is learnt in class through means that are suitable for the blind.
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Activity seventeen, proposed by Yastrebova (2015) can be said to be suitable as it

provides the blind with a chance of reading in Braille in the target language, an
important need of the blind as stated by Kashdan and Barnes (1998). In addition,
the students produce spoken language as a response to the teachers verbal cues.
Interaction is an essential piece of the game with the purpose of familiarizing
students with communicative use of language as they use conversation phrases
set in context. This is very important for the blind as they greatly rely in people in
their surroundings for acquiring language. Therefore, it can be stated that this
activity matches the principles of the Interactionist Theory, which gives human
interaction a central role in learning and development. It also meets the principles
of the Activity Theory as interaction, tools and context (listening to classmates play
the game) lead the blind to learning as they work according to the blinds needs.

Activity eighteen designed by Valentina Milkova (2015) in which tactile books are
used can be considered as suitable as it helps the visually impaired to reinforce
concepts mainly through tactile stimulation, addressing the needs of the blind of
using their haptic abilities to experience the world. Likewise, touch is used for the
blind to set a context for vocabulary, grammar structures, etc. In addition, the
activity encourages children to use their listening skills purposefully
(comprehension, listening for specific information, etc), matching the Interactionist
Theory, as they receive information through interaction. Moreover, the method
provides an opportunity to produce language in an entertaining activity while
developing tactile skills, lowering stress levels and encouraging motivation, which
helps to facilitate learning. In this activity, the tool is specially designed to meet the
needs of the blind, as well as the activity, enhancing their chances of learning.

Activity nineteen presented by Olga Minina (2015) cannot be considered as

suitable since little attention is given to reading or writing in Braille. The blind need
to read and write in Braille in order to adapt to the demands of life itself regarding
work, education, etc. In addition, in this method, VH learners are not encouraged
to use touch, and emphasis is placed on repetition and memorization. This method
can lead to rote learning, as only few connections can be stablished for concept
conception. Furthermore, body movements or touches are not encouraged,
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hampering the process of the blind to become active learners. Thus, we

recommend enriching this activity with kinesthetic movement, tactile stimuli, or
even auditory cues that help to provide the blind with more elements to relate to
vocabulary, grammar structures, phrases, and contexts.

Activity twenty proposed by Villoslada (2011) can be considered as suitable as the

activity provides a great context for using oral skills in the target language, which
promotes student confidence and familiarity with the target language. Even though
it is not clear why the researcher believed it was necessary to play the audio
tracks for the visually impaired students to learn the same content practiced by the
whole class. The activity matches the principles of the Multiple Intelligence Theory,
as auditory, verbal and kinesthetic skills are included in the same task.
Additionally, the activity and its participants are working together for the purpose of
learning as they follow guidelines to meet the needs of the blind and sighted
students with different learning styles, addressing the principles of the Activity
Theory. Moreover, verbal interaction and cooperative work are the center of this
game, as students need to listen to each other, and respond verbally and
kinesthetically to auditory cues, fulfilling the principles of the Interactionist theory
and Cooperative Learning.

According to the theories included in this paper, activity twenty-one proposed by

Villoslada (2011) cannot be considered as suitable. Although, this activity
promotes strong notions about word spelling in the second or foreign language,
only listening and verbal skills are used. This method mainly promotes
memorization and repetition, which can result in rote learning. Despite the fact, the
blind can perfectly do the original task; the problem with this method is that it might
not be meaningful enough for it to lead to learning. Although this activity can be
used with aims of reinforcing knowledge and context in which this vocabulary and
phrases are used it must be enriched in order to embrace more learning styles,
and provide more elements to relate to given notions and settings. In order to
improve this method, students can clap or stamp their feet after each letter said
while spelling. Another variation is to have teams or groups that compete in
spelling the words correctly (orally). Thus, the activity would include kinesthetic
movement, while making noise, which is not traditionally permitted in most
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classrooms. This may help to improve the students confidence and motivation
facilitating learning.

Activity twenty-two adapted by Villoslada (2011) can be considered as suitable

since interaction is the key element of the method because students must listen to
each other, recall information and later present it to the class. The learners have
plenty of modelling from the teacher and other classmates, which helps them to
gain confidence that boosts motivation for everyone in the class to be able to
participate. This is very important for the blind, as they need a lot of interaction
with peers in order to learn the language. In addition, this obeys to the principles of
the Interactionist theory, which emphasizes the role of social interaction in
language learning. Furthermore, the activity is cooperative as students need to
work together to fulfil the task, presenting each others personal information. In
regards to the Activity Theory, the activity and the interaction among peers meet
the needs of the students, enhancing their chances of learning.

Activity twenty-three proposed by Villoslada (2011) cannot be considered as

suitable for the blind despite the fact it has some positive aspects. It provides an
opportunity to write in the foreign language, which is a very important need of the
blind as Kashdan & Barnes (1998) mentioned. In addition, the learners also have
an opportunity to listen to the target language with aims of understanding and
producing a text according to instructions. However, this activity is restricted to
individual work and is limited to reading (or listening) and writing. This activity can
be enriched with additional tasks that involve interaction such as presenting
themselves to the class, in order to work on oral skills. In order to make the activity
more exciting, everyone can make a song with their personal information and sing
it for the class. It can be a rap or another music style that results appealing to the
class.

Moreover, each piece of information that is presented to the class can be

associated with a certain body movement (this can be done in both scenarios, with
or without the song). For example, whenever saying their full names e. g. My
name is Pedro Martnez, students must touch their heads with their right arm.
Likewise, it can be done individually, or in duos and trios if some students are
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afraid to present the song on their own. Thus, the activity would address the
notions of the Multiple Intelligence theory, as it includes verbal, auditory,
kinesthetic and interpersonal intelligences. Simultaneously, it includes interaction
and cooperative efforts among students working together in order to complete the
task

Activity twenty-four proposed by Villoslada (2011) cannot be considered as

suitable there is little interaction among the students. Furthermore, the students
are only requested to remember the answers or take notes, the written part is
done at home. The writing part of this method is done as homework, which might
not create the best possible situation. Ideally, the teacher should have the blind do
a short writing activity class in order to identify are any problems regarding writing,
comprehension, etc. However, if the educator does not master Braille reading and
writing, the task can be done through the platform at the blind students home.
Another problem with this task is that the blind students remain almost as passive
listeners during the task, only repeating information they heard in the audio track.
This method can be modified in order to meet the needs of the blind, and students
with different learning style rather than the auditory or verbal one. While identifying
information from each character the students can clap softly when they hear
information for character A, and, loudly when they hear information for character
B. Another variation is to make shapes circles and triangles with their arms,
according to whom does the information corresponds to (teacher might need to
model the shapes with the students in order to avoid misunderstandings). Another
variation is to organize shapes on their desks; for example whenever they hear
information about character A, they place a square (it can be a wood bloc,
cardboard, piece of fabric, etc).

With this variation the method includes stimuli for listening, verbal and kinesthetic
skills are used. In addition, if the class uses the shapes, they would be stimulating
touch. Thus, the activity meets the principles of the Multiple Intelligence theory, as
it stimulate more than one type of skill or intelligence. As the whole group works
together, the activity becomes cooperative, as all contribute to the activity.
Furthermore, working together helps the students to be comfortable as they work
in the language activity.
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Activity twenty-five adapted by Villoslada (2011) can be considered as suitable as

both sighted and blind in the class can participate from the activity. Movement is
included in the activity, making it more meaningful as it helps to embrace more
learning styles rather than listening skills (Multiple Intelligence theory). The activity
is cooperative, as all students play a part in the activity, creating a safe and
friendly atmosphere for language learning. Thus, the context and the activity as
well as the interaction can be said to aid in the learning process, as they are
adapted to the blinds needs, matching the principles of the Activity Theory

However, the activity can be complemented with a creative task in which students
form groups and write short plays in which they use one of the phrases they have
heard, to later present them to the class. Another option is to provide comic strips
with the dialog bubbles left in blank that students can complete, using one of the
phrases they heard. As a result, the learners will be able to use the formal and
informal speech in a collaborative task, in which interaction plays an important
role. Furthermore, the creative characteristic of the method may help to set a
comfortable environment to work with classmates, thus, facilitating learning along
the rest of the properties of the task.

Activity twenty-six proposed by Villoslada (2011) can be considered as suitable as

interaction and cooperation are essential to this activity. In addition, it creates
friendly atmosphere for learning the target language. Furthermore, the content of
the lesson is used in a context that is familiar for students, as they have to use it
with their peers. The method may be appealing and motivating for students as
they can discover facts about each other, and speak about their friends in class.
Besides, through this activity they can start to familiarize with speaking in the
target language and work on fluency as well. The activity addresses the needs of
the blind enhancing their chances of learning the language.

Activity twenty-seven presented by Villoslada (2011) can be considered as

suitable as learners share previous knowledge, in a collaborative task. In regards
to the affective factor, we can say that working together might encourage
motivation and participation. Furthermore, repeating the words given by the
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students is one way of modeling correct pronunciation, and of letting the visually
impaired students know what is being written on the board. Therefore, the blind
can feel included in class and comfortable, as they are aware of what happens in
their surroundings. The best situation will be having the students read the text in
Braille, along with the class, as to give them an opportunity to use the writing
system. However, the researcher did not specify if the activity was to be done
orally or in written form. Lastly, it is worth mentioning the author adapted this the
outline of the task, leaving the gaps at the end of each phrase in order to facilitate
the work of the blind, matching the needs of the visually impaired stablished by
Kashdan& Barnes (1998)

Activity twenty-eight proposed by Villoslada (2011) can be considered as suitable

as learners have a chance to personalize knowledge while practicing writing in
English in an individual task. Writing about themselves and their peers, may result
as an entertaining method that sets a good atmosphere for learning. In addition,
the visually impaired can do this task in the platform or in Braille without major
inconveniences. This activity can be enriched by having the students present in
English, what they have written to the class, the teacher can help by asking
questions such as how old is your friend?. Students can also work in groups and
talk about an imaginary person, or the character in a book or movie, and present
the character to the class. As a result, the activity will become more interactive and
cooperative. In addition, it will create a fun and safe environment for learning to
occur. Therefore, it the task will become a great tool, which will set the appropriate
environment for language learning.

Activity twenty-nine proposed by Villoslada (2011) can be said to be suitable as it

might be an amusing method for students as it includes trending famous people,
their songs, and videos. Therefore, the class will be set in a friendly and fun
environment that is beneficial for learning. Furthermore, touch is stimulated
through realia, which helps to enrich concepts matching the principles of
Multisensory Teaching. The activity is also cooperative and interactive as the
whole class works together to guess who this famous people are, and to learn
about them. Besides, it matches the principles of the Activity Theory as it provides
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the learners with the tools, the context, and the environment needed for language
learning.

Activity thirty presented by Villoslada (2011) cannot be considered a suitable

activity despite being a collaborative task, because the blind student is not fully
involved in the activity. In order to include the blind students entirely in the task,
they might also have their own role as the sighted (writing). The blind can present
the work to the class or, if they can use Braille, they should be allowed to write
their work down in Braille or at least in the platform. Giving the visually impaired, a
role or responsibility in the task may lead them to be more comfortable in the
activity, which is beneficial for learning. Paying attention to the affective factor,
along with the interaction might help to create an appropriate activity for the blind
to learn English.

Activity thirty-one presented by Villoslada (2011) cannot be considered as suitable

as the first section of the activity does not address the needs of the blind as it
relies on visual input. In addition, the matching section of the method is also not
suitable for the blind as the blind are asked to match sentences. Kashdan& Barnes
(1998) believe that this type of activity can be baffling for Braille learner, as they
require simultaneous perception of several elements in a single glance. Obviously,
this is not attainable for the VI students as they rely on of touch and its
sequentiality. However, they can participate in the next section where they can
contribute orally or writing the words if they have access to the platform or if they
can write in Braille. The blind need to be presented with other types of activities
that take under consideration the characteristic of touch. Some examples can be
answering questions, multiple choice exercises (with a maximum of three choices,
placed one under the other), that they can do in a written format or orally.
Additionally, kinesthetic responses can be explored as part of the activity.

Activity thirty-two presented by Villoslada (2011) can be considered as suitable as

it is focused on interaction. Furthermore, blind and sighted learners participate in
the activity, using communicative language. Speaking English with friends or peers
may be appealing to students, which would lead to a friendly atmosphere that
promotes learning. In addition, learners practice oral production, which
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encourages fluency in a cooperative and interactive activity. Lastly, students use

their listening skills while they pay attention to their classmates giving them
information. These factors can be considered to give the appropriate tools, context
and interaction for the blind to learn English.

Activity thirty-three proposed by Villoslada (2011) is suitable for the visually

impaired as it is a cooperative and interactive activity. Furthermore, this method
leads students to work on orality and listening skills as they need listen to their
classmates. Moreover, learners speak in English getting familiarized with the
sounds of the language. This activity can be complemented with a section in which
the whole class checks the answers together. In this section, kinesthetic and oral
responses can be included as well as sound-making. Therefore, the activity will
provide the right tools, and set suitable context and interaction that address the
needs of the blind in order to promote learning.

Activity thirty-four presented by Villoslada (2011) is suitable as it is a cooperative

task in which both blind and sighted learners can contribute and participate in the
task. This, along with the use of technological tools may lead to the creation of a
friendly and inclusive environment that promotes learning. In addition, the students
use what they have learnt in a creative method that reinforces the context in which
the target language is used. Therefore, it can be said that this is an interactive and
cooperative task that will lead the students to work in their ZPD, with the possibility
of performing even better than they would do on their own. Thus, the activity will
provide the appropriate tools, interaction and context necessary to meet the needs
of the visually handicapped students.

Activity thirty-five adapted by Villoslada (2011) cannot be considered as suitable

since it has the fill in the blanks format which causes troubles for the visually
impaired as they almost have to guess where the gaps are. This can lead the blind
to feel stress, which can be detrimental for the learning process. In order to make
this activity suitable for the blind, the format needs to be changed, leaving the
gaps at the end of each phrase. If the class is able to read in Braille, students can
use cards, cards in a flannel graph in order to write the numbers. Additionally, this
activity can be done either individually, or in pairs. Therefore, the blind will be able
 121

to work with touch and its sequentially, as well as reading in the target language in
Braille. As a result, the needs of the blind will be addressed, improving their class
and learning experience.

Activity thirty-six proposed by Villoslada (2011) is suitable since its purpose is to

develop listening skills as well as stablishing a context for different numbers. In
addition, working on listening skills outside the classroom can lead to a better
familiarization with the target language. Likewise, the activity can help the visually
impaired to gain fluency, and to lose the fear and stress of using a new language.
Additionally, the activity helps to set a context for the numbers reinforcing notions
of the class content with aspects that can be related to the students life. The task
provides the tools to relate the information to specific contexts through a
homework activity matching the principles of the Activity Theory.

Activity thirty-seven presented by Villoslada (2011) is suitable as it provides a

context for the vocabulary and prompts cognitive skills use. In addition, it makes
language relatable to the blind learners own life, which creates strong notions of
concepts and context. Besides, discussing the context with a partner makes this
activity collaborative and interactive, as learners work together in order to fulfil the
task. Additionally, this activity sets the appropriate context and provides the tools,
interaction and task for language learning to occur. Thus, it is possible to say that
it matches the principles of the Activity Theory, meeting the needs of the blind as
well.

Activity thirty-eight proposed by Villoslada (2011) is suitable as students give

supporting reasons in the target language, while using their creativity. This may
lead to setting a fun and appealing environment that promotes language learning.
In addition, the activity is cooperative and interactive, as students work together
and share ideas in this method. Thus, it can be stated that this activity is suitable
for the blind to start using their previous knowledge in a communicative activity,
leading to knowledge reinforcement. Therefore, this method matches the
principles of the Activity theory as the interaction between students, and the tools,
and actions in this task facilitate the VI students learning experience.
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Activity thirty-nine adapted by Villoslada (2011) can be considered as suitable

since learners infer the meaning of new vocabulary. Making inferences can lead to
positive outcomes, such as knowledge consolidation as the meaning is
discovered by the students. In addition, the outline (adapted by the researcher)
matches the needs of the visually impaired, as a geneolical tree would only baffle
students since the relations stablished by it, rely on vision. Presenting sentences
that can illustrate the content of the unit can help the blind to read without major
difficulties that can hamper the learning process. In addition, this new formant can
be read by screen readers for classes in which reading Braille is not possible. The
activity is cooperative and interactive as the students get to the meaning of the
different words together. It also promotes the use of cognitive skills and helps to
stablish connections between the different words in the vocabulary of the lesson,
which results in stronger concept formation. As a result, the method matches the
principles of the Activity Theory as the task provides the appropriate actions, tools
and interaction in order to produce learning. However, the activity can be still
enriched with kinesthetic and sound-making responses that can be associated
with basic family vocabulary.

Activity forty designed by Villoslada (2011) is suitable as students make inferences

based on the information privided by the task. This cognitive skills use may result
inmeaning and context reinforcement, through formingdifferent
connectionsbetween the different terms studied in the lesson. Additionally, the
writing section of the method helps to consolidate the knowledge by using English
in written form. The activity can be said to give the appropriate context and provide
information that enriches the concepts presented to the students. However, it can
be enriched by cheking the answers with the class or making a game in which
students present some of the people in their family and ask the class to say how
are these people related in other ways. For example, Ana is my sister and Pedro is
my cousin. Pedros mom is Angelina. Whats the relation between Ana and
Angelina? Angelina is Anas aunt/ Ana is Angelinas niece. As a result, the activity
would be more intereactive, and cooperative provinding the interaction needed for
the blind to have a better learning experience.
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Activity forty-one proposed by Villoslada (2011) is suitable since the outline of the
activity facilitates the work of the visually impaired since gaps are at the end of
each sentence. It also gives a context for learners to use their language
knowledge and reinforce notions on the topic through using cognitive skills
(inference). Nevertheless, it can be complemented with a section of the lesson in
which the class shares the answers orally. The students can also write about their
family, using the same terms proposed by the activity and present their text to the
class. Thus, the activity becomes interactive and cooperative, for language content
to be fixated through writing, speaking, and listening. The activity matches the
principles of the Activity Theory as it provides the appropriate tools, context, and
interaction for the blind to speak and write about family members, leading to a
better assimilation of the class content.

Activity forty-two proposed by Villoslada (2011) is suitable since having the blind
students use English in a communicative activity is essential to improve oral skills,
and to reinforce the context of recently learnt vocabulary. Furthermore, relating the
vocabulary to the learners personal life helps to make the activity meaningful.
Moreover, sharing information in English is essential to improve oral skills in the
target language used in specific contexts. The activity is highly interactive and
cooperative, attaining the needs of the blind of interacting with others in order to
learn a language. The activity gives the visually impaired the right activity, and
context for learning English, matching the principles of the Activity Theory.

Activity forty-three presented by Villoslada (2011) is suitable since is highly

cooperative and interactive as learners ask questions and discuss in order to fulfill
the task. In addition, the activity can lead to reinforcing the context in which the
target language is used, as learners use what they have learnt in class to
communicate. Nonetheless, one negative aspect of this activity is that the blind
only contribute orally to this task. Perhaps, a specific role can be given to the blind,
such as uploading the text to the platform, with the help of the sighted classmate.
In that manner, the visually impaired may feel more included in the task as they
have a responsibility, which can lead to a better working atmosphere that will
facilitate learning. As a result, the method will match the principles of the Activity
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Theory as the task provides the appropriate actions, tools and interaction in order
to produce learning.

Activity forty-four introduced by Villoslada (2011) is suitable as it can aid in

concept and context reinforcement. Despite the fact, the method relies on the
blinds memory as they cannot see the pictures their sighted peers are working
with, the information obtained in the previous activity may help to make inferences
in order to do the task. The teacher can make a review of each picture, asking
questions to the class in order to aid students in recalling what is happening in
each one. In addition, listening skills are also exploited in this task and is used to
make associations. Even though the task involves individual work, it also has
cooperative section as the class works together in order to match each picture to
the audio tracks. The method addresses the needs of the blind, as it provides a
context, tools and interaction for language learning to occur.

Activity forty-five adapted by Villoslada (2011) is suitable as blind students use

non-visual vocabulary such as personality traits for descriptions. In addition, the
activity prompts cognitive work as the learners have to make inferences, and give
supporting reasons for their perceptions. Besides, in this activity students use
common expressions from the English language to deduce the topic, mood or
context of a conversation. This activity can make the blind feel included as
alternatives for descriptions are presented, resulting in a friendly atmosphere
which embraces their different needs and abilities. This method facilitates
language learning in the visually handicapped as it provides the right activity,
interaction and tools for the needs of these students.

Activity forty-six modified by Villoslada (2011) is suitable for the blind as they use
color vocabulary stablishing connections and analogies to other concepts. The
blind will be able to acquire the cultural meaning of the different colors through the
analogies presented by the book related to intensity, and temperature sensation.
This activity can be done orally, as it can easily prompt the exchange of ideas
among the whole class. The activity is highly interactive and cooperative, besides
from constructing strong notions of cultural concepts. Therefore, it can be stated
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that this activity provides the right activity, tools and interaction needed for
language learning in the blind.

Activity forty-seven proposed by Villoslada (2011)is suitable as it uses haptic

stimuli while it encourages the blind students to make inferences. This activity
matches the needs of the blind students as it constructs analogies between
abstract concepts and touch, the main form in which the blind explore and learn
about the world. Thus, the activity is not only stimulates verbal and auditory skills,
it also addresses kinesthetic ones, making the activity match the principles of the
Multiple Intelligence Theory as a several skills are addressed, covering a wider
range of student learning style. For these same characteristics, the method is also
multisensorial as it involves listening, and touches for inference making.
Additionally, this method is interactive and cooperative as the learners share their
perceptions and ideas to the whole class freely, which also leads to the
construction of a friendly environment that promotes learning. As a result, the
activity matches the principles of the Activity Theory, as it provides the tools, the
activity, the interaction and context necessary for the blind to learn English.

Activity forty-eight adapted by Villoslada (2011) is not suitable as the blind are very
likely to have trouble identifying clothes in a 2-D surface, such as cut-outs. In
addition, it is not clear what are the learners supposed to do with the clothes
cutouts besides holding them. It would be best to bring 3-D objects, or bigger 2-D
shapes made with harder materials than paper, such as thick cardboards, that
would allow an easier reading of the shape by touch. The use of realia will also
be very helpful in this case, complemented with descriptions of the different
clothing items. The class can also talk about what you do with the different clothes,
e.g. the socks go in your fee; as well as in what season or occasion people wear
each type of clothing. In this manner, the task will be able to provide the necessary
tools and activity needed for the blind to learn the target language.

Activity forty-nine proposed by Villoslada (2011) is suitable as it is centered in

haptic stimuli that are used to convey meaning. As a result, the words do not
remain as abstract concepts, but are related to specific experiences and
sensations. This activity matches the needs of the blind students as it touch, the
 126

main form in which the blind explore and learn about the world to form concepts.
Thus, the addresses kinesthetic skills, besides auditory and verbal ones, making
the activity match the principles of the Multiple Intelligence Theory since various
skills are addressed. Likewise, the method is multisensorial because it comprises
listening, and touches for the formation of concepts. Additionally, this method is
interactive and cooperative as the learners share their perceptions to the class,
which can lead to a fun and appealing environment that promotes learning.
Therefore, this method includes the tools, context, activity and interaction
necessary for language learning.

Activity fifty proposed by Villoslada (2011) is suitable since it helps learners to use
the vocabulary in context in a communicative activity. In addition, students use
their cultural knowledge for personalization of class content, making it meaningful.
Besides, the use of YouTube videos promotes the use of listening skills, and
vocabulary recognition in a fun activity that may motivate the students to follow the
activity. Likewise, the learners share their knowledge and experiences to the class
making the method interactive and appealing to the rest of class, contributing to
the atmosphere of the lesson. In addition, preparing dishes in the class is a
kinesthetic activity which can help to reinforce different concepts, as well as being
entertaining and meaningful to the learners. As a result, this method is suitable
since it provides tools, context, actions and interaction that address the needs of
the blind, therefore matching the principles of the Activity theory.

Activity fifty-one adapted by Villoslada (2011) is suitable for the blind as it exploits
listening skills for inference making, while using vocabulary from the lesson.
Listening skills are stimulated as an alternative for visual input, for the visually
impaired to able to attain the similar amounts of information. In addition, this
activity reinforces meaning, as auditory cues are associated with vocabulary and
contexts. Furthermore, the students produce written language strengthening
notions regarding meaning and grammatical structures, as students have to use
them so as to write the text. On the other hand, it was not specified if the class
would make the inferences together and later write them, or if this is an individual
task. However, the best is to share the inferences in some point of the class,
whether it is during the activity, or while checking the answers for interaction to be
 127

a part of the task. This method is suitable since it provides appropriate tools,
context, actions and interaction for the blind students. For this same reason, the
activity matches the principles of the Activity theory.

Activity fifty-two adapted by Villoslada (2011) is suitable for the visually impaired
as it involves touch and movement, something that benefits the blinds learning
experience. Haptic stimuli and movement can result in associations that enrich the
notions of the vocabulary. Besides, moving around the class breaks the traditional
classroom rules in which students have to remain seated almost all the time,
making the activity more appealing and motivating for the learners. As a result, the
fun activity makes the students feel more comfortable and open to learn English.
Besides, the activity matches the principles of the Multiple Intelligence theory as it
addresses students with high verbal, kinesthetic, and auditory learning styles. This
also makes the activity multisensorial as a variety of stimuli (tactile, kinesthetic,
and auditory) is presented. Lastly, the activity is interactive and cooperative as
students move around the class together, doing the activity. Therefore, method is
suitable and matches the principles of the Activity Theory because it provides
appropriate tools, context, actions and interaction needed for language learning in
VI students.
 128

CONCLUSION

The general objective of this research was to determine suitable EFL teaching
methods for students with visual impairment. This objective was achieved as it
was possible to determine that activities referred to as one, two, four, five, six,
seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven are suitable according to the theoretical framework
of this research. Equally activities thirteen to twenty-nine are suitable for the
visually impaired as well activities thirty-two to forty seven as they match the
principles of the Multiple Intelligence theory, the Activity Theory, Interactionism,
Cooperative Learning and Multisensory Teaching. Likewise, activity forty-seven,
forty-nine, fifty, fifty-one and fifty-two are suitable, because they follow the same
theoretical principles included in this research.

The first specific objective was to describe the current situation regarding EFL
teaching methods for the visually impaired in Paraguay, and the world. This
objective was achieved as the current global situation regarding EFL was
described. In Europe, Asia, USA and Brazil, many programs for the visually
impaired have already been implemented, experimenting with methods that were
considered suitable for the visually impaired. In addition, several researchers in
these countries studied several matters regarding EFL methods for the blind.
However, the situation is not as favorable in Latin America (with the exception of
Brazil), as countries in this region are just starting to develop guidelines for
inclusive education. Programs and methods for EFL for the blind have not yet
been introduced or developed in Latin American countries, constituting a very
detrimental situation for the suitable education of the blind, in the field of foreign
languages.

The second specific objective of this research was to identify the currently used
EFL methods for visually impaired students. This objective was fulfilled as it was
possible to determine that the most commonly used EFL methods are texts and
EFL writing activities in Braille. In addition, images used in the EFL class were
described in detail for the visually impaired.

The third and last objective of this research was to identify the specific educational
needs of the visually impaired in the EFL class. This objective was fulfilled as it
 129

was possible to stablish several needs of the visually impaired. In the first place,
for language learning, the blind have the necessity of interacting with peers and
their surroundings, as they rely on modelling and repetition to learn the language.
They also require touch stimulation, as the blind experience and construct their
notions of the world via the sense of touch. It is important to highlight that the blind
need stimulus that can be analyzed in sequences, as it is one characteristic of
touch. This also applies for EFL activities usually contained in books for this
purposes, as the blind struggle with activities such as fill in the blanks, matching
exercises, and genealogical trees as this type of exercise requires the students to
perceive various elements in a single glance.

In addition, practicing to read and write in Braille is essential for the blind, as it
reinforces the language learnt in class. Being exposed to Braille provides models
of what written language is and what it is used for, which would help to reinforce
notions of written language. Furthermore, activities related to reality are extremely
important for the visually impaired, as they are meaningful and can be easily
related to real life situations. Moreover, the blind need to associate as many
sensations, stimuli and experiences as possible to the concepts covered in class,
as this factor helps to construct strong notions and concepts for the language
content of each class.
 130

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