Braille Literacy in Audio Technology Era
Since it
was founded in 1821, Braille
writing system has opened up greater opportunities for the visually
impaired to access unlimited information. They can read and write independently
to improve their knowledge and skills, enjoy literary works, access news,
and even correspond with each other.
In addition, with Braille, blind students have equal access to participate in
education. Braille has also raised the social status of the visually
impaired. Before the invention of the Braille system, people with visual
disability were viewed not just as persons who do not have sight, but
also as different species, more innocent and malleable individuals, even
semi-finished creatures (Aviv, 2010). But now, Braille literacy allows the
visually impaired to have a decent education. Unfortunately, the development
of Braille usage is not as expected because not all blind people learn to use
it. While people know that Braille system is the fundamental tool of
written communication for the blind, there is a decline in the number of
Braille readers around the world. Besides the lack of Braille teachers in
public schools, the rapid development of audio technology is also considered as
another main factor of this phenomena. It would appear Audio books and
screen reading software have replaced the role of Braille. Because of its portability,
cheaper price, and advanced features, most blind people today tend to prefer
reading by listening. Nevertheless, many educational experts believe
that literacy cannot be achieved through listening. Inability to read and write
for both visually impaired and sighted people is considered as illiteracy. Yet
many blind people today do not think that Braille is as important and prefer
speech technology, whereas it will be much more beneficial if both Braille and
speech technology can work together. Therefore, this essay will argue that
Braille literacy is still necessary in audio technology era because it is more
affordable, helpful in daily life, and useful in increasing knowledge and
cognitive skills. Firstly, those 3 advantages will be explored respectively and
the second part will present the benefits gained when Braille literacy and
audio technology are combined.
It is claimed that
Braille materials are unaffordable. Mitranetra Foundation as one of the
providers of book for the blind people in Indonesia explained that
producing a Braille book commonly costs
3 or 4 times more than a
regular book (YMN, 2009). This is because of two things:the special paper required
and standard size of letters. Braille paper should be minimum 120 grams which costs up to 10 times the regular 70-gram-A4 paper (Hakim, R.N, 2008) and the
letter size should not be too small or
too large to suit the fingertips (YMN, 2009). As a result, the Braille book
will be much thicker than a regular book.
One hundred pages of ordinary
book can easily be 350-400
pages of Braille (YMN, 2009).
Anne Taylor, a computer specialist working for
the National Federation of the Blind in the U.S. (NFB) claimed
that besides the paper, a Braille printer or embosser is
also exorbitant, ranging from $1,965 to $86,000 per unit (Taylor, 2001). The high Price of over $1.000 for a single Braille book (Aviv,
R, 2010) has led to a
significant decline in the percentage of Braille readers particularly in
developed countries (NFB, 2010 & Babinszki, T, 2010). Mark Riccobono, Director
of NFB stated that in the
1950s a half of visually impaired in the U.S. used Braille but today, it has fallen
to 10 % (ENGELHART, K, 2010). A similar condition is also
reported by the president of the
Canadaian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB), John
Rafferty who is concerned
with this issue in his own
country (ENGELHART, K, 2010). Blind students prefer to listen to audio books
and use computer screen
reading software when learning (Aviv, R, 2010) because audio books
tend to be cheaper than
Braille books (Sanders, J,
2009). In addition computer installed
with screen reading software also tends to be cheaper than Braille
display or Braille printers (Brent, D, 2000).
However, the belief that
Braille is costly is not totally true. Both the Royal National Institute of the Blind (RNIB) and the
American Foundation for the Blind (AFB) agree that writing and reading
Braille could actually be inexpensive. This makes sense when using a slate and
stylus (RNIB, 2012 & AFB, n.d.). A slate and stylus are tools designed to
emboss the raised dots onto a piece of paper by inserting the paper between two plates of slate and then punching it
from one side to another with the stylus (BANA, 2006). Its function for the
blind is just the same as a pencil
or pen for sighted people (AFB, n.d. & BANA, 2006). Sarah J. Blake, a
consultant for people with disabilities, asserted that A set of slates and stylus is the cheapest, simplest, and
most portable method for writing Braille (Cheadle, B, 1994). In Indonesia, a
package containing slate and
stylus costs only 15.000-35.000 Rupiah
(Tarsidi, D, 2007 & BISA, n.d.); in the U.S., Independent Living
Aids LLC (ILA), a private company providing products for the visually impaired
reported that the price of slates and stylus range from $5,95 to $6,95, and stylus ranges from $1,50 to $3,95 (ILA, n.d.). Another
advantage of using slate and stylus is the flexibility of paper typesMitranetra Foundation, even
waste paper can be used (Tarsidi, D, 2010).
Braille books are also affordable due to many
Braille printing institutions providing Braille books cheaply,* even for free for their customers. For example, the blind people in Indonesia
can access Braille books at low
cost or free of charge from Mitranetra Foundation (YMN) and House of Braille Publishing of Indonesia (BPBI); in the U.S.,
there are some printing institutions offering free access to Braille books such
as American Printing House for the blind (APH), American Foundation for the
Blind (AFB), and Braille Institute of America; in Canada there is CNIB; and
there are RNIB and Clear Vision in the U.K. Actually, most countries have Braille printing institutions concerned with the free
and easy access to Braille books, therefore, people with visual impairment do
not need to worry about lack of resources.
There is a
general opinion among blind people today that Braille is no longer needed in
daily life, especially when related to literacy. Audio technology is enough to
help people handling most obstacles resulting from vision loss. Bblind people can
read newspapers or magazines by browsing
on various webs and the screen reader will read it clearly; * they can also
make some notes such as shopping lists, schedule, and retrieve account numbers in
mobile phone with screen reading software installed. Laura J. Sloate, The
managing director of a Wall Street investment management company, who has been
blind since she was 6 years old, said that using Braille make her feel isolated
among her sighted peers (Aviv, 2010). In her opinion, literacy for the blind
has evolved with the advanced audio technology and Braille is not necessary
today (Aviv, 2010). Eliza Cooper, a social media consultant who has been
totally blind since the age of three noted that with speech technology
installed into her smart phone, she can identify money, get directions with GPS,
and read printed texts (Cramer, 2013). In leisure time, people with vision loss
can enjoy novels or short stories by listening to audio books without having to
find the bulky Braille book, gliding fingers over the paper , and flipping
pages one by one.
On the other
hand, Monica Maiorano, a college professor and trainer from Italy argues that
after almost two centuries, Braille is still irreplaceable in life of people
with visual disability because it can make them really independent in daily
activities (Maiorano, 2009). She highlighted that Braille code can help the
blind people to recognize the sort of food in cans, the contents of cds, the
drugs in packages, archives in folders, and even numbers and letters in playing cards.
Timothy Vernon, a customer service
representative at NSTAR Electric and Gas who has had vision loss since he was 3 years old described how Braille has
enhanced his life significantly. In his essay titled “Braille: A Special Gift” in
2009,* he claims that Audio technology is an outstanding media but it does not
provide the independence offered by Braille. He also gave example when dealing
with customers via telephone, he often make Braille notes of their addresses,
bills, and other things so he can still read it while listening to the caller
at the same time (Vernon, 2009).
Mabel Soriano Gaerlan, a 36-year-old blind
woman from the Philippines declared in “Braille – A Device For All Time” (2012)
that talking computers, talking cellular phones, talking clocks, and many other
assistive technologies have become
really important for people with visual impairment but Braille is and will
always be the indispensable tool. She also described that because of Braille, she can read books
in spite of the darkness and not rely on her partial sight (Gaerlan, 2012).
There are still
many examples of how important Braille literacy is in daily activity. Another
point to consider as the advantage of using Braille in everyday life is the
fact that people would find it difficult to hear something in crowd situation
so Braille symbols will be helpful in such cases.
Most
blind people today believe that knowledge and literature can be improved without
Braille (Faherty, 2006) because speech technology can deliver the same
information faster than Braille (Halliday, n.d.). According to William M.
Raeder, president of the National Braille Press in Boston, much information is
moving away from words on paper to audio data and speech technology has brought
the blind to the world and the world to the blind (Raeder, 2006, as cited in
Faherty, 2006). As reported in New York Times “Listening to Braille” (2010)
Sloate expressed her opinion that knowledge flows from her ears to her brain,
not from fingers to brain. Although every morning she spends several hours
reading economic reports, it is not in Braille but audio format (Aviv, 2010).
Learning literary works would be better if using the audio system because it would
present to listeners the experience of how every word on a page comes alive in
human interpretation. It is also useful in learning a new language because
listeners can hear how to pronounce each word (Wikipedia, n.d.). Furthermore,
most electronic files can be read by text-to-speech technology so blind people
may have unlimited access to any e-books, magazines, newspapers, and other
articles from the internet (Koziac,
n.d.). Automatically, they can easily enhance their knowledge and skills
through this technology.
Nevertheless,
the visually impaired cannot fully rely on audio or speech technology to
increase their knowledge. Knowledge is closely related to literacy and
listening is not literacy. Many studies show that blind students with Braille
literacy are able to get the same scores as their sighted peers in academic
tests compared to the non-Braille users who can only score about a half of the
sighted people (ENGELHART, 2010). One of the most fundamental weaknesses of
non-Braille readers is the poor quality of spelling and grammar. They only know
that comma is when intonation of a sentence goes down in the middle, without
knowing how to write it. They also have difficulty with formatting: margins,
indentation, indexes, lists, outlines, even how to place a capital letter
(CNIB, n.d.). Someone relying on audio format sometimes cannot distinguish a
word and a phrase in written format (Maurer, 2010, as cited in Aviv, 2010).
Besides linguistics, non-Braille users also face problem with signs or symbols
of science, math and music notation (CNIB, n.d.). Irwan Dwi Kustanto, one of
the activists of Mitranetra Foundation, noted that Braille books are much
better in teaching math and science than audio system because it is difficult
to imagine such symbols without direct interaction with the written forms (YMN,
2009 & CNIB, n.d.).
According
to Brian Mac Donald, president of the National
Braille Press (NBP), Braille is literacy for a blind person. He explained that Braille
is concerned with cognition as well. Studies show how the brain changes and
adapts to learning and memory improves more through the interaction with
Braille codes than with audio, which is more passive (Donald, 2012 as cited in
Leibs, 2012). In the 1990s, brain-imaging studies disproved the
previous assumption that the visual cortices of the blind are useless. When
test subjects touched *through* a line of Braille, they showed intense
activation in the parts of the brain where visual inputs usually processed.
These imaging studies have supported educators who are proponents of Braille
and they theorized that it is essential for blind children’s cognitive
development, as the visual cortex takes more than 20 percent of the brain
(Aviv, 2010).
Analyzing the preceding sections, both
Braille and the audio system have their own benefits and detriments, therefore,
it would be much better if they are combined. Braille and speech technology
will bring enormous benefits for the users when they are used complementarily
rather than using one form only. Joseph Abely, president of the Carroll Center,
pointed out that Braille format will give its users a sense of freedom and
independence (Diaz, 2011); and audio format will help its listeners to be able
to interpret all materials comprehensively (Rukmal, 2010 & Majerus, 2011).
Both audio books and screen reading software can help the users to enjoy a more
comfortable situation (Mehrens, 2011). People only need to turn on the player
or open up a file on the computer and then those technologies will read it aloud
(Aviv, 2010). Thus, people can relax while listening. Didi Tarsidi, Lecturer in Special Education
Department, Faculty of Education, Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia (UPI)
analyzed that it is easier for visually impaired relying only on Braille to be
exhausted because they must use both hands constantly (Tarsidi, 2007).
Meanwhile, despite offering a comfortable way of learning, the audio system
cannot meet the needs of listeners for knowledge of the written forms of many
signs and codes.
These facts may have encouraged a
number of companies, profit or nonprofit organization, to design gadgets which
combine both Braille and speech systems to assist people with sight loss. For
example, as reported in Guardian.co.uk 14 February 2012, Apple Inc. Have designed
I-phone and I-pad which are accessible for the blind. They provide the speech
technology so-called voiceover and the Braille screen named Braille touch (Chaudhuri, 2012). As a
result, users can access all menus by listening to voiceover or read it on Braille
display, or let them work together. This means blind people can still enjoy the
audio system without having to lose the essence of literacy.
In conclusion,
while some people argued that Braille is not necessarily deployed in audio
technology era since it is expensive and the roles seem have been able to be
replaced by screen reading software and audio books, it is still important and
irreplaceable for the visually impaired. It is affordable, helpful in daily
activities, and useful in improving knowledge and cognition. Some Braille
devices are expensive indeed such as printers and paper, but fortunately, slate
and stylus have been ready to overcome this issue. They are simple, portable, and
much cheaper than other Braille tools; moreover, they do not need electricity
so it can save on electrical cost.
Concerning with
daily life, Braille is also really beneficial because it can help people with
sight loss to be more independent. By touching Braille codes labeled on packages, bottles, or cases, a person with
visual impairment easily recognizes all selling items in shops, the ingredients
in the kitchen, the contains of cds, and many more. The visually impaired can
improve academic knowledge and cognitive skills with Braille literacy. Subjects
dealing with signs and symbols such as Math and science are easier to
understand with using Braille. Braille is also useful in learning foreign
languages, mainly to know how to spell a specific word. Furthermore, studies
show the close relation between Braille usage and the cognitive development of
the blind. When reading or writing, brain will be more active than when
listening. Moreover, according to the research, those can improve memory as
well. However, Braille and speech technology will be more favorable when they
are combined rather than replace one another since each has own advantages. On
one hand, Human voices in audio books can give different interpretation to what
written on a piece of paper and also make them seem to be alive. Hence, it is
more appropriate when used in literary works such as novels, short stories,
poems, or social science. On the other hand, Braille can help people to know
how to manage a writing properly, such as where to put capital letters, how to
write and use punctuations, how to separate paragraphs, and how the forms of
numbers and symbols are. Both of these key features should be mixed up to
assist the blind people to improve their quality of life. Simply, Braille is
identity for the visually impaired and it is irreplaceable. If sighted people
are not expected to move from written forms to audio system, why must the blind
people feel comfortable when relying merely on speech technology? When sighted
people cannot read and write are considered as illiterate, are the blind people
not the same?
Written by Iin Saputri in December 2012