EIHT JounNAt oF THE INTERNAfloML AssocnnoN FoR THE EDUcAnoN oF DEAFBUND PEoPtE

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CHAI R.TNAN I S RETUIAR.KSOur last executive meeting was heldin Potsdam on the 10th and 11th ofApril. Although most of participantswere from Europe, we managed toget information from all over theworld. We are very grateful toFriedrich Pape and his staffforwelcoming us to Oberlinhaus. Themood of the meeting was veryfriendly because ofthe quality ofthehospitality as well as the active andsensitive participation of thedelegates. In spite of the fact thatmost of the attendants were notEnglish native speakers, it seemsthat the access to the floor wasequal.

The main topics which wereaddressed during this meeting werethe following:

- definition of the policy of IAEDBduring the next years

- location of the next WorldConference in 1995.

After discussions in working groups,it became obvious to all of us thatmany countries would need to besupported by'position statements' of

IAEDB when they have to definetheir policies towards dea{blindness.One of the main concerns at themoment is the situation of adults,since a lot ofneeds are expressedand many different policies arebeing set up. So, it was decided thatbefore the next Executives meeting(which will probably take place atPerkins) a short seminar would beorganised for the executives in orderto address the situation oftheadults all over the world and toagree on a statement expressing theprinciples according to which planstowards the adults should bedefined. This seminar will be short,but it will be effrcient since somemembers of the executive committeeare charged with gatheringinformation and to process it beforethe meeting itself. All the memberscan send reports on the situation ofthe adults in their countries to thesecretariat as ofnow.

We also had to decide on thelocation ofthe next Conference. Onthe basis ofthe reports by theChairman and Secretary Treasurer

who went to Argentina toinvestigate the possibility oforganising the conference there, andafter discussions with LuciaPiccione (Director of the HelenKeller Centre in Cordoba), wedecided that the next WorldConference in 1995 would be held inCordoba. We expect a lot of supportofthe professionals from there.Graciela Ferioli and Lucia havealready done a lot of work with theircolleagues and the local authorities.So, we can expect that this event inArgentina will be an opportunity forthe people from South America toexchange ideas with professionalsfrom other parts of the world. Wemust admit that the cost of thetravel will be more expensive for theEuropean participants. But, foronce, people from South Americawill be in a more favourablesituation, which is fair. In this way,our Association is really aninternational one.

Jacques Souriau

In the Chairman's Remarks JacquesSouriau outlines the IAEDB's plansto produce position statements orpolicy documents that outline ourbeliefs and agreed approach toaspects of deafblind education. Suchdocuments will be useful formembers who are developingservices or who wish to promoteservices in their own country. Itmay help give greater credibility toan initiative in one individualcountry if it can easily be shown tobe part of a much wider andinternationally recognisedmovement. A short clear documenton deafblind edueation is beingprepared for use in influencingother agencies and to assist peopleworking to introduce dea{blindeducation in countries where littleexists.

For some other topics, theprocess ofproducing material and aposition statement and thediscussion and debate generatedwill be of considerable value to theparticipants. The first such topic tobe debated will be services for

EDlroR.IALcongenitally deafblind adults and asmall working group is preparing aseminar for the next IAEDBExecutive Meeting. The seminarwill then be an opportunity for all toshare and learn but will alsocontribute towards producing apcilicy or position statement whichcan be used to help people with thedesign of services and help withlobbying for appropriate and qualityservice provision.

In order to help this process Ihope that the next DeafblindEducation will focus on adultservices. Please let me haveinformation, reports and articles onthe situation of dea{blind and

constitution enables the associationto further develop its activity. Thepromotional activities now beingworked on should be ofbenefrt toexisting and future members. Thespecifrc consideration of adultsfollows naturally from the need tosee achievements in school built onin adulthood and is I think anincreasing priority for many of us.Also we must not forget thosepeople who have not had aneducation that meets their needs,for whom a service or support couldnow be provided based on theprinciples of deafblind education.

Other topics in future are likelyto include focussing on

congenitally dealblind adults in communication, interpreters andyour country. Some information can human aids to communication,then be printed in Deafblind mainstreaming, and theEducation and every contribution centralisation or decentralisation ofwill be passed on to the IAEDB services issue.secretaiiat to aid the work of the I look forward to working withworking group preparing for the you to further promote and developseminar. deafblind education.

I felt that the recent ExecutiveMeeting was a very positive stepforward for IAEDB. The new

2Malcolm Matthews

Portugol hosisdeqfblind

conlerencePortugal held its first course ondea{blind impairment in April. Itwas organised by the InstitutoJacob Rodrigues Pereira, Casa Piade Lisboa, under the supervision ofits Director, Carlos Pinto Ascensaoand teachers Maria da GracaPereira da Silva and AntonioRebelo.

One hundred and twentyparticipants from all over Portugalattended the conference, whichcovered topics ranging from thedeafblind individual to methods ofassessment.

Right: Maria da Graca Pereirada Silua at the conference.

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Helen Kellerdeerlblind

owofeness weekOrganisations from all over theworld were invited to participate inthe Helen Keller DeafblindAwareness Week from 22nd-27thJune.

The week, hosted by the HelenKeller National Center in the USA,focussed on dealblind people makingthe transition from school orinstitution to life outside. It stressedthe continued need for accessiblehousing, employment andrecreational opportunities withinthe community.

Ifyou, or your organisation tookpart in any of the week's events, orheld your own to celebrate HelenKeller's birthday on27th June, whynot write in to Deafblind Educationand let other readers know?

Views on eidullsefYices

Educational provision for deafblindchildren has progressed rapidly overthe last few years in most parts ofthe world. Now, many countries areturning their attention to adults,recognising the need for educationbeyond school.

Deafblind Education would liketo run a special feature in the nextedition on services to adults whichinclude education. If you would liketo contribute to this feature, pleasecontact the Assistant Editor, at

Sense,311 Gray's Inn Road,London WCIX 8PT.

The International Association for theEducation of DeaIblind People announces:

I 993 Europeon ConferencettEqual and Exceptional:

Access to Culture for Deafblind People"July 31 to August 5, 1993, Potsdam, Germany

hosted by Oberlinhaus, Taubblindenarbeit(Usher syndrome seminar: 29 - 37 July 1993)

The conference refers to people who despite being deafblind haveneeds for communication with other people, interaction within the

community, close relationships, and access to culture.

Osimo procedings ovoilobleThe proceedings of the European Conference on StaffDevelopment in

Services to Deafblind People, he.Id in{simo, Italy in 1990 are now

If you would like a copy, contact: Lega del Filo d'Oro,Via Montecerno 7,60027 Osimo (AN), Italy

IAEDP MemloershipThe strength of IAEDP lies in its membership, both individual andcorporate. The objects ofthe Association are to promote the recognition ofdeafblindness as a unique disability throughout the world, to promoteservices, to gather and disseminate information and to promote research.

Membership is open to individuals and corporate bodies wishing tofurther these objects. Please complete and return the form below ifyouwould like further information.

r_- -... I I I I I I I I I

- I I I I I

- - - \

i Please tick as appropriate:

II n I am interested in individual membership of IAEDP II tr I am interested in corporate membership of IAEDP II N.*" 1

Address

I Pease send to: Membership, IAEDP, 311 Gray's Inn Roadr London WC1X 8PT. United Kingdom.\.I.IIIIIIIII IIIII III II

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News from PotsdcrmIn case you d.idn't hnow, the 1993

trAEDB" EuroPean conference "Equaland, Exceptional: Access to Culturefor Deafblind People" will be held in' P otsd.am, Germ a n.y. T he con fe rence's

host, Oberlinhaus has prepared thisshort introduction.

On 14th JanuarY, 1887, HertaSchulz, born on 30th JutY 1876,-was

the first deafblind child to be takenin bv the Oberlinhaus. Herta was

brought here for rehabilitationbecause her constant cries wereproving unbearable for the familiesand nelghbours in her Berlin rent-complex.

Wittt u regulated dailYprogramme and qualifred helP inaccessing her environment, herdisturbing behaviour was quicklYaltered, ut a UY the end of 1888, thethen director of the Oberlinhauswrote:

"Herta is an unusuallY giftedchild. Her dexterity is wonderful' Atfrst, she valued onlY her dolls'Gradually, she exPanded her circleoftrust. Piece bY Piece, she hascompletely achieved what a fullYvisual and hearing child ofher age

would seldom have accomPlished'"Who could have know what

changes were about to occur whenthe d-ecision was made in Warwick,UK, in August 1989 to accept theoffer of thJ Oberlinhaus to host the1993 EuroPean conference in aneastern-block nation on the doorstepof Berlin?

Who could have forseen thepossibilitY that Potsdam, the hostcity ofthe 1993 EuroPean.o.rf"r".r.e, would no longer be

"behind the wall" in 1993? That thewaII would be forever gone? That so

many walls in Eastern EuroPe

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The Oberlinhous, Polsdom

would be falling? That so manYincredible governmental and social

chanses would be imPacting thelivesif the entire populations of allthe former eastern-block nations?

Freedom Bridge, the GlienickeBridge spanning the Havel River,connecting Potsdam with WestBerlin, .yirboli.". the beginning ofa Drocess that began on 9thNovember 1989, when the wallooened and the bridge was crossed

freely again, a Preamble to so manY

profound changes in east-rvestielationships since that date,

The IAEDB's EuroPeanconference site selection for 1993 is

highlighted even more b1-theop"poriunities brought about by theeiimination of all politicai barriersto the east, and the Permanentopening of freedom's bridge. Specialp"ogra.t m" emPhasis andparticipation b1' the easternE,rropeun nations riill be aorosramme feature in 1993.' Fotsdam rrill be celebrating its1000th birthdal-in 1993. As thecultural caPital of the Prussiandvnastv ofthe Hohenzollerns. thecity promi.e. to be shorvcased forthis historic birthdal- celebration'The city's cultural menu will be longand varied. and all r-isitors toPotsdam in 1993 are Promised anexciting staY.

A

last six weeks, are divided into twothree week periods. This new formatis to be evaluated by the end ofthisyear. Already now it seems clearthat it makes it easier for people toleave their work and their familiesto come to our basic courses. Theinterval between the two courseperiods also gives the students anopportunity to work on the thingswhich were taught during the frrstpart and see how they apply topractice, and, if necessary, todiscuss problems which arise duringthe second part. Furthermore itgives the NUD an opportunity toplan the details ofthe second threeweek period in co-operation with thestudents.

Another innovation is our "openhouse" arrangements. Twice a yearthe house is open to larger groupswho wish to work on any problemrelative to deafblindness. Thegloups make their own program andschedules and benefrt from thefacilities at the NUD, including thelibrary, the working rooms and theaccommodation facilities, for theprice of 100 Danish kroner perperson per day.

Non.Nordicvisilors

Non-Nordic colleagues are welcometo contact us if they wish to comehere and study during these "openhouse" weeks, maybe to combine itwith visits to dealblind services inthe Nordic countries. Althoughpriority must be given to Nordicstaff, we will offer you any vacantaccommodation capacity, and will beable to agree on the frnal detailswith you two to three months aheadof your visit. And by the way, weremind you that it is possible to hostindividual visitors or small groups

during our course periods. Pleaseremember that the course activitiestake place in Nordic languages.Contact us for further details.

Ghonges in thefield

Like in other countries, changes inthe way educational and socialservices are organised have a majorimpact on most aspects of day-to-day dealblind work. In the Nordiccountries the decentralisationprocess has dominated the picture.The NUD pays very much attentionto the changes brought about bythis process.

Nordic directoryThe collection of material for staffdevelopment which we call theNordic Directory for Staffin Deaf-Blind Services is becoming steadilybigger. The series now contains 14books (two with accompanying videotapes) and 21 articles.

With people from five differentcountries, the Nordic material isproduced in different languages.The Scandinavians understand eachothers'languages quite well, but asFinnish is a very different language,systematic translation to and fromFinnish is required. In addition tothis we translate some foreignmaterial to include it in the NordicDirectory. We feel that work issometimes duplicated becausepeople are not suffrciently informedabout each other's productions. Ifany of our material seemsinteresting, and you would considertranslations into your language, wewill be very happy to give you amore complete summary and morespecific information.

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Morioono Suosolmiond Elin @srli' hor" sent this reporl.

As many readers will know theNordisk Uddannelsescenter forDovblindepersonale (NUD) is theNordic Staff training centrefinanced by the Nordic Council ofMinisters and serving the fiveNordic countries Denmark, Finland,Iceland, Norway and Sweden. Ourtask is stafftraining anddevelopment through course,workshop and conference activities,a resource service and developmentwork, the working formats givenpriority in this order. The servicesare given to all categories ofstaffworking with deafblind persons ofall ages and with all types ofdeafblindness.

Recentdevelopmenlg

Even if some of the working formatsare quite stable, evaluation, changeand development take place all thetime. This is necessary, because therole of the NUD is to support workwith deafblind people bysupplementing the staffdevelopment activities provided atthe national level. All changes inthe Nordic countries have to bereflected in the work at the NUD.And we are, ofcourse, alsoinfluenced by our European andother international contacts.

The staff development activitiesof the NUD have for the past tenyears focused on basic courses,where several topics relevant to theservice in question (to persons withacquired deafblindness, tocongenitally deafblind children orcongenitally deafblind adults) arecovered. Our basic courses, which

Friedrich Pope, from Germqny,visited Hungory recently ond

brought bocf iliis short ieport.

There is a small group beginning.There is a school for multiplyhandicapped blind children from theCatholic Church. They have two orthree dea{blind children and werewilling to develop this area. So, wehave addresses from this otherregion and we are very hopeful thatthey will come to the 1993 EuropeanConference in Potsdam. We arebattling to develop education fordeafblind children, young peopleand adults in this part of Germany,and I am very optimistic.

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Art for decrfblind people

6

Korin Tibero of Sweden reports ono new prolE t to enoble diofblind

people to enioy ort.

Deafblind people have twolanguages: sign language andbraille. These languages restrictthem to communicating with alimited number of people.

The association for deafPeoPle inOrebro, Sweden, has started aproject to give deafblind PeoPle athird language - the language of art.The artist and deafblind PeoPlehave questions in common. TheYmust often ask themselves, "Am Iunderstood?" or, "Have I exPressedmyself clearly enough?" In theproject a group of deaf and visuallyhandicapped people in Orebro worktogether with a sculptor. The will tocommunicate and strengthen theirlanguages is the base for their work.

The aim of the project is to givedea{blind people access to culture,and to the possibility of sharingsome of the emotions andexperiences that art can give. InSweden today, dea{blind PeoPlehave few opportunities to enjoYculture offered by societY.

The project has three Phases.The first, which is taking Place atthe moment, is a co-oPerationbetween the group of deaf andvisually handicapped people and thesculptor. They work together tocreate sculptures that "talk".

The artist learns to adaPt hersculptures to the needs, functionallimits and resources of the grouP.The artist learns to sPeak clearlY,and the group learns to be sensitive

to the "language ofart". The goal ofthis work is to produce a series ofsculptures that can be distributedvia the libraries of Sweden. Peoplewho live in isolated places or havedifliculty in visiting a library willhave the possibility of a homedelivery service.

The sculptures will be presentedin boxes ofthree. For every boxthere is a theme, ie birds, the beach,emotions, or female qualities, likethe ones shown in the Photo whichrepresent caring, fertility, growingand peace. A theme can also betreated in different artistic ways'For example, a leaf can be shaPed ina naturalistic manner and invarious abstract forms.

For contrasting effects, differentboxes are made of differentmaterials, such as bronze, wood andstone. Wax, tar and spices are usedto activate the sense of smell.

Second stogeThe second phase is to search themuseums in Sweden to frnd Piecesof art that they will allow people totouch. An inventory will be made ofthese objects, which will be made

available to dealblind people.Another aim is to persuade one ormore museums to open rooms for"touch sculptures" and to arrangean exhibition of "touch art" that willcirculate among the libraries ofSweden.

Third stogeThis stage aims to create a centre,or an art school for deafblind people,where they can learn to work withclay, plaster, wax and wood. The"touch sculptures" in the librariesand museums will act as inspirationfor the pupils as they continue theirwork at home.

The first phase ofthis Projectbegan in February 1992 and will befinished in the autumn. During thisshort period of time, the members ofthe deaf and visually handicaPPedgroup have shown a remarkableability to discover and understandthe "language of art" and to findways of expressing their feelings.

The Iirst part of the Project willbe presented in the ONCEFoundation Pavilion at ExPo'92 inSevilla, and will include the threesculptures in the photograPh.

Ieeichit g in PoleindIt was useful to acquaint them

with their immediate surroundings:the classroom, corridors, school,dining rooms and bedrooms. Step bystep I started to teach them abouttheir families, relatives, homes,names and so on. Their parentsbrought family photos which helpedin my work. I also tried to explainchanges in their surroundings, forexample the cycle of the seasons.We went walking though parks,forests and vegetable gardens. I didmy best to familiarise the childrenwith events going on around us.

During my lessons I used a lot ofreal objects, pictures and texts. Islowly introduced speaking by signsand by touch. It was hard work, notonly for me, but mainly for thestudents because they were notused to working and they soon feltweary and discouraged. I had toteach them how to work, eat, dressand undress, go upstairs anddownstairs and so on.

Today, we have three groups of,deafand blind students in ourcentre. The first is for beginners andhas four children in it. The teachingmethods are similar to those I havedescribed above, but the studentsare also learning some Polish,mathematics, and physicaleducation.

The second group contains fourchildren with residual sight anChearing. There are many differencesbetween them, so we have to useindividuai teaching methods.

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ln 1986, the Polish Ministry ofNotionol Educotion estoblished o

soeciol closs for deofblind childreniir the Educotionol Centre for Blindchildren. in Bvdooszcz. Krvslvno

Klugiewiiz, o ieo-cher of d&f6lind- children reports.

At frrst, I worked alone with a classoffive students: two girls and threeboys. Then, a friend of mine helpedme to lead it. Using a specialmethod of teaching, I began workingon breaking down the students'passivity and making theminterested in learning. As thechildren were not completely blind tr

was able to use their residual sight.

I take care ofthe third Broup,which contains five students atdifferent levels ofability. They arelearning Polish, mathematics,biolory, geography and history.Three hours a week they havespecial lessons to prepare them fortheir future careers. All ofthechildren have to train to do manualwork.

All the students can takedictation from signed speech. Theycan also understand what they readand pick out special words or sig:nsin a long text. My students havestarted to be interested in manythings around them and now theyask a lot of questions.

Our children come from all overPoland. Some of them live very farfrom school, so they board. Co-operation with their parents is good,although there are a few cases ofchildren being rejected. Twice ayear, all parents have theopportunity to take part in ourlessons. They are instructed in howto help us in our work. Of course,they can also comment on ourmethods and may have their ownrequirements.

As an institution, we have a lot offinancial problems. The school alsolacks equipment. However, despiteour difficulties we know that ourwork with deafblind children is anecessity. We must teach themabout the world around them andprepare them for living on their

Oceania (The Pacific Region) hasbeen busy developing services.Currently an excellent researchproject is being undertaken in theregion via a combined effort of theEbenezer School for the Blind (HongKong), The Melbourne Universityand The Victorian Association forthe Biind, to deyise a low visionassessment test suitable for use indeveloping countries. A trainingpackage wili accompany the testand it is hoped that it will alsoprove to be a useful tool for multi-handicapped biind children. Theproject offrcer is currently visitingmany institutions and organisationsthroughout the world to collectrelevant information.

A new body has also been formedin the area. It is the Pacific IslandCouncil and has representatives

from all the developing isiands inthe Pacific including Fiji, WesternSamoa, Vanuatu, Tonga, theSoloman Islands, Papua NewGuinea and the Cook Islands. It ishoped that this body will be a co-ordinating body for training andinternational projects and so help toavoid unnecessary duplication ofservices and training programmes.As there are only very low numbersof multi-handicapped blind childrenincluding those who are deafblind,much of the focus of training in thePacifrc Islands will be acrossdisabilities. Thus a very goodinterpersonal network is rapidlybecoming established betweenprofessionals working in the area ofvisual disability and those in otherdisabilities.

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Ccrncrdisn developmenls

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It took ten years to makegovernment officials understand thespecial needs of deafblind childrenand adults in Canada. Only in thepast two years has deafblindnessbeen recognised as a uniquehandicap here in Canada. This hasprompted studies on the integrationof deafblind children in communityschools, independent living facilitiesand on the delivery of socialprogrammes to ensure deafblindCanadians have access to thefundamental elements of daily life.One-on-one intervention has beenrecogrrised as the indispensablecommunication link between theenvironment and a deafblindperson. To meet this requirement,intervention service programmeshave been instituted in educationalestablishments, at home onweekends, during school breaks andthe two month summer holiday.These intervention programmes arenow being provided in most regionsofthe country.

No progrommeA very special programme hasrecently been approved by the SocialServices Ministry of the Province ofOntario. This programme has beentailored to the needs ofone22yearold deafblind person. She isprovided with her own flat,intervenors and computerequipment. It is a model for otherdeafblind people. Volunteer help isalso provided from friends. Thisindividualised programmeemphasises independent living,education and employment. It wasdesigned by the young woman'smother who also supervises theprogTamme.

Since the beginning oftheinauguration of the first group homeor supported independent livingfacility in 1985, six more wereopened last year in three regions ofthe country. These seven homes arelocated in communities where theyoung deafblind residents shareamenities and collective resourceswith their peers. This integrationhas created a chain reaction ofawareness of the abilities ofdeafblind people. Some of theseyoung adults have also foundgainful employment. Others are

The Conodion Deof-BIind ondRubello Associotion (CDBRA) wosformed 17 yeors ogo by porents

whose children otiended oneducotionolfoculty in Ontorio. !t

wos esioblished oui of concern forthe future of their young deofblind

children ond the desire io ossisiporents. Slqn Munroe, President of'CDBRA

brinos reoders up to dotewirh thelorcst in deo]blind

educotion in Conodo.

enrolled in a continuing educationor vocational programme taking thechallenge of a university degree. Agroup of adventitious deafblindadults have succeeded, with thefrnancial help of rotary Clubs, inacquiring a specially designedapartment building.

lnlervenor coutseThe CDBRA, in collaboration withthe Canadian Institute of the Blind,has promoted the establishment of acollege diploma course forintervenors. The first group of29students will complete the frrst yearof the two year course in June 1992.The course includes students fromCanada and the US. Another twentypart-time students are following afour year weekend programme.

To promote high performance ofintervenors a special awardcompetition has been opened acrossCanada. This competition is beingpromoted through the Andrew LoveMemorial Fund founded by

Andrew's parents in September1991. The fund can also be used toassist dea{blind persons pursuingvocational or university courses.

The CDBRA has also instituted aNational Intervention Fund to helpparents and dea{blind adults inemergencies or in situations whereintervention services are notprovided.

Canada has gained morerecognition on the internationalscene through its participation inworld conferences. This is alsoevidenced by the requests forinformation and assistance whichcomes from various parts of theglobe.

The recent publishing ofthe bookVision in Children, Normal andAbnormal has enhanced thereputation of the CDBRA. TheAssociation is also recognised as oneofthe world leaders on the conceptof intervention and the developmentof intervention programmes tailoredto the special needs ofdeafblindindividuals.

Our most gratifying achievementis to have continually improved thequality of life of many deafblindCanadians and succeeding in havingdeafblindness recognised as aunique handicap.

Future eictivitiesWe have developed a'Global Plan ofAction'to be implemented over thenext 3 - 5 years with a'SpecifrcPlan ofAction'for each year. One ofthe short term goals is to intensifyawareness of the needs of deafblindindividuals through various mediaavailable at both the national andregional levels.

Other goals include: campaigningextensively to heighten the profile ofmultisensory impaired people;encouraging federal and provincialministries to recognise theindividual needs of a dea{blindperson and urging employers toaccept the potential of dealblindpeople.

Because of frequent demandsfrom organisations both in Canadaand abroad we have formed aConsultative Committee whoseresponsibility will be to facilitateworkshops on various aspects ofdeafblindness that is education,intervention, parents' assistance,independent living facilities, and soon. These consultative services willbe offered in Canada and the US.

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As the Centre for Dea{blindChildren at Mampong-Akwapim,Ghana, continues to grow, we aim todemonstrate qualitativedevelopments in our operations.Such development includes healthyrelationships with all our workingpartners and other clients oftheCentre, in addition to improvementsin our strategies for effective jobperformance.

There are currently ninedealblind pupils at the centre, withvarying degrees of ability. The staffincludes ten teachers and twohouse-parents.

All our programmes are designedto help the deafblind studentsacquire daily living skills andvocational skills which will beuseful to them in their future lives.We place great emphasis onorientation and mobility training, inaddition to training in localhandicrafts. Other subjects includelanguage development, numberwork and religion.

SeminnrsA number of training seminars wereheld during 1991 at the centre,aimed at teachers, parents andhouse-parents. In June, a group ofteachers got together to improvetheir effrciency and discuss ways inwhich they could keep themselvesabreast ofchanges in theirprofession.

In July, a workshop was held forparents of deafblind children todetermine the most appropriateways of involving them in thecentre's activities. The three major

discussion topics emphasised thateducation must never create adivision between home and school;that parents have knowledge whichshould be used as a basis forplanning school programmes andthat the biggest problem faced bymany parents is stress, which needstactful and professional handling.

The third seminar, in September,was organised by the SpecialEducation Division of the GhanaEducation Service and broughttogether 40 house-parents fromschools for the disabled across thecountry. The group examined therole ofthe house-parent and theways in which educationalprogrammes can be continuedoutside the classroom.

All three seminars provedextremely popular and useful. Inthe future, the centre hopes tocollaborate with others in the areato make training accessible to all.

ProblemsTwo major problems for the centrein recent months have been lack ofaccommodation and transport. Thecentre had only one room forteaching which could not house itsnine pupils and ten teachers, sotemporary accommodation wasfound at the Demonstration Schoolfor the Deaf. However, that school isalso facing accommodationproblems, so the solution wasinadequate. A new classroomannexe is now being built at thecentre which should resolve anyfurther difficulties.

The centre's minibus has brokendown and is beyond repair, whichhas made it difficult to visit thestudents' homes for counselling andfollow-up visits. It has also beenalmost impossible to take thestudents on educational visits toplaces of interest. We hope thatanother bus will be available soon.

During 1992, the centre intendsto build upon relationships with thestudents'families, to improve co-operation between the home andschool. All staff are keen toencourage greater parentalinvolvement in the programmesrunning at the centre.

Once the classroom annexe hasbeen completed, three moreteachers will be recruited inSeptember. This will mean that thethree deafblind children currentlyon our waiting list can take theirplaces at the centre.

This year is a very important onefor the Lega del Filo d'Oro, and wehave a very interesting programmeof collaboration with othercountries. These activities includedeafblind people themselves, theirfamilies, teachers and specialists.

In July, we will be welcoming sixstudents and their teachers fromAalborgskolen, Denmark for aweek's holiday here in Italy. Theholidays continue in August when12 families will be given theopportunity to rent summercottages in Denmark by the DanishAssociation of the Deafblind.

Our work with Denmark carrieson in September. One of our

specialists, who will head our newDiagnostic Centre will be visitingthe Audiological Department atAalborgskolen, to find out about theIatest technology and discuss futurework.

Two deafblind people will beattending the Weekend Away, inGreat Britain, which is Sense'sannual conference. Their visit willbe in recogrrition of theirpresentations on the future role ofthe Lega del Filo d'Oro.

As ever, 1992 promises to be abusy year for the Lega del Filod'Oro. Watch out for futher reportsin future editions of DeafblindEducation.

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In 1985 in our countrY we began towork towards the develoPment ofservices for deafblind people, withinthe structure ofthe SPanishNational Organisation of the Blind(ONCE). However, for about 40years there has been a unit devotedto the education ofdeafblindchildren"

One of our first stePs was ascreening campaign to get a betterknowledge about our deafblindpopulation. We have alwaYs beenguessing at figures and we go ondoing so by comparing statisticsfrom other countries where theYhave been working in favour ofthisgroup for many years.

As you may know, a generalstudy ofthe population is a verYdifficult task. In 1986, weimplemented our first survey and as

a result we identified 180 cases atthat time. By the end of 1987 wealready knew of about 340 PeoPle.

At present, our regisier includesabout 700 peoPle. This figure isincreasing continuouslY and weestimate that according to variouscountries' statistics, the totalamount of dealblind PeoPle inSpain, which has a totai PoPulationof about 40,000,000, must besomewhere between 3,500 and 4,000persons.

We know, for examPle, that inSweden, where they have one ofthebest surveys ofthe deafblindpopulation, they have identified1,200 cases among a totalpopulation of 8,500,000 PeoPIe.

We have done an aetiologicalstudy ofthe 700 cases we haveregistered up to now, because thisprovides very important informationwhen it comes to Planning servicesin the frelds of education andrehabilitation.

Another way of aPProachingstatistics was to make an estimationtaking into account figures from theSpanish National Federation of theDeaf. It considers that in ourcountry there are about 120,000deafpeople. Iffrom 3 - 67o ofthesehave Usher syndrome, we wouldhave from 3,500 to 4,000 cases.Supposing that they represent 50 ofaeitfnna people, then the deafblindpopulation would be twice as big aswe have estimated, ie about 8,000peopie.

These figures were talked aboutat the eleventh SPanish NationalCongress ofTeachers ofthe Deaf.

Spclnish stcltistics

Table 1: More frequent causes ofdeafblindness in the grouP 0-18years old

Total number ofcases: L20

Rubella 50Premature babies 11

Usher syndrome 10

Congenital malformations 6EncephalopathybYvirus 3

Hydrocephali 2

Polymalformation SYndrome 1

CongenitalEncephaloPathY 1

Retrolental frbroPlasY 1

Exantematic contact 1

Retinoblastoma 1

Meningitis by bacteria 1

Meningitis in newborn babY 1

Brain tumour 1

Marfan syndrome 1

Pierre Robin syndrome 1

Toxoplasmosis 1

Down syndrome tGoldenmar syndrome 1

Golft syndrome 1

Parents'consanguinitY X-

Demos Gustant syndrome L

Unknown etiologY 1

No data available 13

Table 2: More frequent causes of deafblindness in the group iE+

Total amount of cases

No data available

Age distribution18-3535-6565+

Etiology distributionUsher syndromeMeningitisAccidents, traumatism.RubellaPremature babiesTyphoid fever & no identified feverDiabetesCerebral palsyCerebral damageMarinesco syndromeNoonan syndromeLawrence Moon Bield sYndromeBehec syndrorneWolfran s;,ndromeRuckhinghansen sYndrornePolymalformation sYndromeOther pathoiogies not directly related to either deafness

or blindness (measles, scarlet fever etc')Other pathologies that cause either blindness or deafness

(cataracts, glaucoma, tympanum performation)Unknown etiologYNo data available as regards etiology

(Jsher syrudrome incidence in siblings2 siblings3 siblings4 siblingsFamilies with no Usher syndrome cases

571.).)

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Asuncion Leylon, Co-ordinotor onthe deofblinil progromme otONCE, hos senl DeofblindEducotion lhese ohoiooroohsshowing work with childrLn in theorgonisolion's deofblind unit.

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Fighring for servicesTony Best, of the Hilton Perkins Notionol Progrom, ot the Perkins School for the Blind in the USA

hos been investigoting servicei in other countries. This is his report.

lotin AmericoHilton Perkins has been involved inArgentina and in Cordoba, whereone ofour staffworks and wherethere has already been anassessment ofneeds carried out byHilton Perkins. Staff training wasidentified as a major problem, andthe countries that are involved -Argentina, Chile, Columbia, Br azil,Peru, Equador and Bolivia - areorganising a series of trainingevents taking place in May, Juneand September of next year. All thecountries are working together toprovide training for staffand toexchange information.

lndioHilton Perkins is also working inIndia, with staff visiting Nepal,Bombay and South Inclia wherethere are children offive years oldand programmes beginning to be setup. They have asked for technical

South Eost AsioQuite a number of children havebeen identifred in this area, and anumber of programmes have beenset up. In Korea, Singapore, HongKong, Thailand, Malaysia andIndonesia all have programmes fordealblind children and arestruggling against some difficultsituations. Twenty-five people from13 different programmes fordeafblind children asked for sometraining and for the opportunity tomeet with other people working inthe same freld.

The people on the course are nowworking on projects in curriculumdevelopment, assessmentprocedures and models ofservicedelivery. They are all meeting againsoon to discuss the development ofwork within South East Asia. Theyhave been given a modiflredcurriculum, but it needs changingfor it to be appropriate for SouthE..-a L^:..'ffiffiE.

so that these countries can developservices beyond the few childrenthey are already dealing with to tryto meet the needs of identifiedchildren within their own countries,which is a far greater number.

All these countries are developingservices and are supportingthemselves or each other. Sometimesthey receive external help - forexample, Hilton Perkins has a staffmember in Bangkok who networkspeople and enables them tocommunicate with each other.

It is very encouraging to see somany countries developing services.They are all solving problems withgeography, language differences andstage of development. In some ofthese countries, only halfthechildren go to primary schoolsanyway, and they are working invery different cultures withdifferent expectations. They will befinding solutions which are mind-clret-chlne-for fhers€.of 're-i-a-.r3i4!o-1- -- - -anil advice.

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Let's plqyLost June, Deofblind Educotion feotured o report on lhe woys in which deofblind

chitdren ploy, writien by Totiono Bosilovol Senior Scholor ot the lnstitute ofDefectoloEi in Mosco*. tn this edition, Jone Brodin, o PhD student in the

deportment ollducotion Xl**|;,S"r;;"ji,Illl"e;tisotes

ploy os o meqns of

In this article I describe thecommunicative interaction betweensix profoundly mentally retardedchildren and their parents/caregivers. The children aremultiply handicapped and functionat an early developmental level. Thefunction of play in these children'sinteractions with their mothers isalso examined.

Children with severe disabilitiesare a relatively small group of thetotal population in Sweden. Theliving situations of families withchildren with severe handicaps havechanged considerably during thelast twenty years. One reason forthis is the changing attitudes inSwedish society towards people withdisabilities. There has also been achange in ideology in the area ofcare for the mentally handicapped.Efforts have been made to offer allcitizens the same legal rights andopportunities in order to securefellowship and participation inactivities in society. Children withdisabilities, according to law, mustno longer be placed in aninstitution, except in extremelyspecial cases. This has resulted inan increase in family supportprogrammes. Today most childrenlive in their homes and grow upwith their parents and siblings. As aconsequence, parents have startedto formulate demands forintegration and different kinds offamily support. The living situationsofthe parents in this article have agreat influence on their children'spossibilities for play,communication and development.Play and communication, I find, areof great importance for thesechildren's total development.

MethodsMy study looked at six children; twogirls and four boys, between one and10 years old. All six children are atan early developmental level, areprofoundly mentally retarded andhave five or six additionalhandicaps in addition to theprofound retardation. They are allmotor disabled, havecommunication disorders and areincontinent. Four ofthe children arevisually impaired, and four haveepilepsy. The study was based on

parental interviews, observations(naturalistic and video-recorded)and naturally-occurringconversations with parents,personal assistants and teachers.Data collection began in autumn1985, was intensified in 1988 andfinished at the beginning of 1990.A quantitative compilation wasdone ofthe childrens'communicative abilities, that isturntaking and initiatives, whichgave information about the child'sability to influence thecommunicative interaction. I choseto describe these children in theirdaily environments. The empiricaldata was presented as case studies,along with compilations of theresults ofall six children. I visitedthe children in their homes and attheir preschools or schools on five tosix different occasions. During eachvisit I video-recorded the childduring a meal and play time forbetween 15 and 40 minutes.

GonlexlPlay is often considered to beimportant for child development. Asa starting point I asked: 'Whatfunction does play serve forprofoundly mentally retardedchildren?'There is a general opinionthat severely multiply handicappedchildren are extremely passive andtake few or no initiatives bythemselves. Many researchers havesupported this hypothesis. However,I frnd that these children do notshow passivity in all situations. Ifthey can participate in play, theybecome more active. Context seemsto be of great importance for thechild's passivity/activity. Thesechildren are very dependent onadults in play situations. Play oftenmeans that an adult personactivates the child and plays withhim. Profoundly mentally retardedchildren have few natural contactswith playmates, and are more oftenreferred to play with adults.Profoundly mentally retardedchildren are fond of singing andlistening to music, of physical bodyplay and of games that stimulatetheir senses. They prefer to bephysically close to the mother/caregiver, and they prefer gamesthat offer visual, auditory and

tactile stimulation. The three oldestchildren in my study liked to sit andwatch (with great interest) whenother children played. They werenot interested in playing withtraditional toys, and most of thechildren preferred to play togetherwith their parents/caregivers.The six children communicated \ rithnatural reactions and signals, thatis body language, gestures andfacial expressions. Only two of thechildren used signals consciously.They all used gazeleye contact,sound.ivocalisations, facialexpressions, body position andbreathing to show what theywanted. Five of the childrenlaughed and smiled when they feltcomfortable, and four cried whenthey felt sad. The youngest child, agirl, was very quiet. She often sleptand never laughed, smiled or cried.All the children showed when theywere tired, four when they werehungry and three when they hadhad enough food. The childrenindicated when they were happy,sad or dissatisfied. Four ofthemalso showed rvhen they wereinterested in different objects. Someofthem couid attract a person'sattention. They all used theircommunicative ability to showfeelings and needs.

Play erndcommuniceilion

In order to focus on the relationbetr,l'een play, communication andder.elopment I would like to stressthe follordng. Play andcommunication are closely related toeach other and take place in thesame context. Like communication,play is a social process; participantsinfluence each other. The child learnsto communicate by social interactionand turn-taking in play. Feedback tochildren's signals is the foundationfor the development ofcommunicative ability. Even childrenat an early developmental level canlearn turn-taking through play.

Adults have an important role inplay and communication for theseseverely handicapped children. Playis a means of communication. Thevalue ofplay, per se, is discussed.Can play be regarded as an aim in

12

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itself and not only as a means forreaching competence in other areas?Play itself may be a reasonable aimfor the parents and caregivers oftheprofoundly retarded children.

An interesting aspect ofplay andcommunication is training. Parentsoften request training programmesfor their children and oftenparticipate in these programmes.The training usually involvesstimulation of fine motordevelopment of the ability tocommunicate and takes place inpleasurable play. However, there isa tendency to use normal childdevelopment as a basis, attemptingto train children with disabilities tobe as close to'normal'developmentas possible. From my work it seemsthat children with severedisabilities may not follow the samepattern of development as normallydeveloping children, because of theirvarious additional handicaps. Eachdifferent ability develops to someextent but not as quickly and not inthe same order as in standard childdevelopment. The combination ofmultiple handicaps seems to affecteach child differently.

For parents this way of lifeconsumes a great deal of time andeffort. They often have to give upmany of their own life projects.Despite all legal rules and laws,family support from society does notfunction as well as it could. Manv

children with disabilities areintegrated in preschools andschools, but there are greatdiffrculties as the integration seemsto be physical more than social.

lnlerprelotionThe communication of the sixchildren in my study was non-verbal. This meant that theirparents must interpret their signals'as if the child had a specialintention. All parents interprettheir children's signals, althoughthey are not always aware of it.They look at the sounds/vocalisations, body position, facialexpression and gestures andinterpret these signals from thechild. The most commoncommunicative actions involve thechild's well-being and the child'swants and needs. Parents relyheavily on their own intuition andability to interpret intentionthrough the child's signals.However, their interpretationinvolves a great degree ofguesswork. The repertoire ofwhatthe child can express is limited toonly a few topics. One problem forthe parents is to forwardinformation about their child'scommunicative ability to otherpeople in the environment. Theyoften hear from other people that

they over-interpret the child andtheir comprehension is only anexpression of wishful thinking.

Several researchers consider thatthe parent's ability to interpret achild's sigrrals is genuine. Theinterpretation is to a great extentcontext-dependent, and the contextin connection with common sense isused to judge the meaning of thechild's intentions. Other researchershave shown that in normal childlanguage development parents oftensay that their children canunderstand more than thev do inreality. For parents ofprofoundlymentally retarded and multiplyhandicapped children the situationis almost the reverse. These parentstone. down what they see and thiscan rn some cases result in anunderestimation of the child'sability. Parents have a uniquecompetence in knowing theirchildren and understanding theirchildren's communication.

For these children's developmentit is absolutely necessary thatparents answer them even whenthey give weak and limited signals.I would suggest that there arehigher requirements incommunication for parents ofmultiply handicapped children andthat a positive and sensitiveenvironment is a basic necessity forcommunicative development.

t3

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Studying deeiflolind childrenwilh qddirionql hcrndiccrps

Voleri Chulkov, of the Scientific Reseorch lnstitub oI Defectology, in Moscow,. Russio,

deroils the I'otest reseorch into communicotion disorders in deofblind children.

According to L. Vygotsky's theory onchild development, sensoryimpairment or mental defrciencymay result in a series ofdevelopmental delays.

Studies by G Bertyn and otherresearchers show that amongst thedeafblind population there aremany children with primaryadditional handicaps: mentaldeficiency, motor disorders andunderdeveloped physical structure.Understanding the developmentalpeculiarities of these childrenwithin the framework of specialeducation has a twofold effect. Ithelps the teacher to respondadequately to the child's needs andstimulates research on specific waysof meeting these needs.

Figures compiled in this countryin 1986 by M. Pevzner, G. Bertynand R. Mareva show that 30Vo ofmentally disabled children aredeafblind. More accurate frgurestaken from a wider population placethis number at 40 per cent.

According to our observations,adventitiously deafblind childrenusually have the intact potential forfurther mental development. Wemay speak about the developmentalbackwardness in these children as asecondary handicap caused byinadequate provision for the child'sintellectual development.

Unfortunately, the exact numberof children with motor disorders,including children with cerebralpalsy among the population withmultiple sensory impairments is notavailable. But our observations showthat the number of these childrenamong the dealblind population issignificant and at the presentmoment our institutions for thedeafblind are not really ready fortraining this particular category ofchildren. The work with thesechildren is only at its very beginning.

Theoretically, all types ofprimary handicaps known in specialeducation may be reflected in thedea{blind population. For thesechildren to progress in theirdevelopment, they must be givenspecial provision and support. So, indeafblind education we mustconcentrate especially on themethods of educating deafblindchildren with mental deficiency,challenging behaviour, cerebralpalsy and so on.

Recently, we have been payingspecial attention to deafblindchildren with primary speechdisorders and with severe autisticbehaviour - so calledcommunication disorders. Inmeeting the educational anddevelopmental needs of thisparticular group of children, we tryto use knowledge from the relevantadjacent branches of specialeducation. Besides these, we lookfor specifrc educational methodswhich take into account thisparticular defect structure.

We have noticedunderdevelopment of speech insome of our students in theExperimental Group at the Instituteof Defectology and the ZagorckRehabilitation Centre. This couldnot be overcome, despite intensiveremedial work with the children,who were all mentally abie.

Special scientific investigation ofthis problem is now being done bythe speech therapist M.Podoprigorova. Our hypothesisabout primary speech disorders inthese children is conflrmed. Wediscovered that some children weresuffering from a disorder ofthemorphological structure of thespeech apparatus (the destruction ofthe dental jaw system) cleft palateand so on. In other cases weidentified dysarthria, sensory alaliaand childhood aphasia.

Here we need a very deepinvestigation and examination. TheEEG test indirectly confirmed ourdiagnosis. In psychologicaleducational diagnosis of thisdisorder it is very important toapply the test of speech memory inwritten and flrnger-spelled speech.The identification of aphasia andother speech disorders in the case ofhearing loss is complicated, as thesecondary speech disorders maymask the primary ones.

After the diagnosis, the speechtherapist modi{ies his or her workwith multiply sensory impairedchildren with primary speechdisorders. This work consists mainlyof special exercises aimed attraining and the development ofspeech apparatus and correctpronunciation skills. In the case ofaphasia the speech therapist usessig:n language as a non-verbal formof communication, changes speech

material in exercises and prolongsthe period of its mastering bychildren.

Some years ago we paid ourattention to the absence in somechildren ofthe need forcommunication, that is, autisticbehaviour. Sometimes, this autisticisolation remained in adolescence,despite progress in cognitive andspeech development. Afterexamining some rubellahandicapped children, the problemof commurrication disorders becameclearer to us.

It is knoirn that autistic childrenare characterised by problems inemotional relationships with thepeople rvho surround them, eventheir near relatives. They displaystereotl-ped forms of behaviour,ar.oidaace of new situations and fearof the un-l<rio11an, narrow interests,withdrari-a1 and mental retardationcaused b1- decreased emotionalcontact rrith the environment. Thisis *'h1' studies on early child autismtV Lebedinskl-. K. Lebedinskaja) arebecoming increasingly important todeafblild education.

The scientists above have workedout an approach to the pathology ofthe emotional system based on aseries oflevels. The frrst covers freldreactiritl-, the second stereotypes,the third expansion and the fourthemotionai control. Defrciency in anyof these levels determines the groupto u.hich an autistic child belongs.Since 1989 in Zagorsk School,teacher R. Burlakova has beencarrying out experimentaleducational work on this problem.

Geise studyLena, a girl aged 13, has been inZagorsk School (see grey box) for sixyears. She is rubella handicapped,has congenital cataracts, aphasiaand a hearing loss of more then70Db.

She has mastered everydayliving skills and self-care, andfollows a timetable every day. Herlevel of academic achievementscorresponds to the preparatory formand the first form ofthe specialdeafblind programme. In lessonsshe is willing to undertake onlycertain assignments, copying wordsand sentences, selecting tables with14

written words and matching wordsto pictures. She fulfrls reading,writing and number assigrrmentsmechanically and indifferently,without showing any interest.

The girl seldom asks the teacherfor help. If she wishes to gain herattention, she pulls the teacher'shand to the object she wishes toobtain or have removed. If theteacher turns her attention fromLena, she laughs quietly and shakesher palms and fingers in front ofher.

Some time ago, she did not likeschool. She cried, counted the daysbefore she couid go home, liked torepeat the same signs, that is, "aday", "to sleep", "a car" and "ahouse". The number of words like "a day" and "to sleep" exactlycorresponded to the number ofdaysleft before Sunday. The only personto whom the girl is attached is hermother, who now works at theschool to help her daughterprogTess.

While working with the girl, wedecided to change and modify theusual programme and filI thelessons with positive emotionalexperiences. Our work aimed toestablish better contact with theteacher.

This was improved by imitatingthe child's contact with her mother,using touch, kindness and care. Thegirl was placed in more comfortablesituations and in less unknownones, the form of the child'streatment was changed from directinducement to kind encouragementwithout pressure. In communicationwe returned to former methods - tosigns instead of fingerspelling,because some signs had a personal

meaning for her. We noticed thatthe girl was very interested in herbaby brother, so we changed herreading texts to new ones devoted toher family. Lena started drawingpictures about her brother andother near relatives. In her picturesshe tried to reproduce the furniturearrangement in her room and eventhe exact colour of her familymembers' clothes.

A year later we observed thepositive results of our work. Thegirl's attitude to schooling waschanged; her relationship with herteacher was improved. She stoppedweeping and resisting schooling.

The next level, that is, the abilityto expand upon this, is not yetaccessible to Lena. The realobstacles are connected withdiffrculties in mastering painting,writing, reading, self-care andhousekeeping. Lena still has noemotional relationships with otherchildren, but her emotional status ischanging very slowly, as weexpected. The fact that thesechanges have occurred gives usgreat hope.

Translated bySvetlana Vishnevskaja

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During the 1970's, with our societalfocus upon attainment and scienti{icprecision, we assessed deafblindchildren through standardisedpsychometrics, resulting in theassignment of an IQ. In the later70's, practical developmental scalesfor assessing deafblind childrenwere written, such as the Callier-Azusa and the MichiganAssessment Scales. These compareddeafblind children againstthemselves, and against normaldevelopment. In the 80's, as the'hippie' generation was enteringtheir own adulthood, ourassessments shifted focus towardassessing functional life skills, usingassessments such as the FunctionalLife Skills Screening Inventory.Today, in the 90's, our focus is onthe quality of life and our worldenvironment, so it is not surprisingthat our assessments have shiftedfrom the individual to looking at thewhole environment, the'ecological'approach.

In assessing ecologically, weconsider the child's history,

residential environment, socialspheres, closest relationships, andhis various ways of communicating.We review what adaptations we canmake in the surroundings, in thehome schedule, in the schoolschedule, to better benefrt learning.We consider the child's future. Inshort, we use the traditionalassessments and tests to look atwhat the child can and cannot do,but then we look beyond the resultsand ask ourselves why.

One concern which I wish to raiseis our'bandwagon' approach tospecial education. We tend, in ourenthusiasm for the latest strategiesand practices, to jump on this newbandwagon'and forget that we knewanything previously. No scienceaccrues knowledge in this manner,and our profession is then reduced toa series of changing beliefs, ratherthan increasing wisdom. Inassessing, we need to integrate ourecological approaches of today withthe best past practices ofpsychometry and functional scales, inorder to be accurate and thorough.

As we think about the quality oflife and apply this to assessment, Ithink it is helpful for us to considerthe quality oflife indicators asdevelopmental. That is, quality oflife indicators change as a personmoves from infancy to childhood toadulthood. For infants, basic care,eomfort and nurture are clearly themost relevant factors. In earlychildhood, education, choices,friendships, a sense oforder andpredictability to life, are all ofhighimportance. However, we too oftenforget those things which we highlyvalued as children, such as wonder,surprise and fantasy.

I would offer one major caution:let us not develop another damnedformula on what makes up quality!Quality for each of us is a reflectionofour personal values, amongstprofessionals, and with families, ifwe are to understand eaeh other'swishes for the child. We need toteach with our own values clear,and the values of our familiesrespected. Values are not right orwrong, and change slowly, fromwithin the person. We cannotimpose our value systems on eachother: we can only engage indialogue, in order to graduallyinfluence each other and graduallymove toward those which aremutually held.

AssessmenlMichoel Collins, Director of the Hilton/Perkins

Notionol Progrom, ot Perkins Schoolfor the BIindin the USA, offers some words of odvice.

t5

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fhe lnlernctionalAccoclollcn lorIhe Educollcn ofDeclblind Pecple

CHAIRMANlqcques SouriouCESSA LornoyBiord8600O PoiiiersFRANCE

VICE-CHAIRMAN

Michqel CollinsPerkins Schol for the BlinCI75 N Beocon StreiWotertown, MA 02172USA

SECRETARY/TREASURER

Rodney ClorkSense3l I Groy's lnn RoodLondon WCIX 8PT, UK

IMMEDATE PASTCHAIRMAN

lohn MclnnesCDBRA20 Scotiq AvenueBroni{ordOntorio N3R 5RlCANADA

Nclionol Gonloclc

ARGENTINA

Griceldo Collegorilnsiiiuto Helen KellerAv. Velez Sorsfield 2 1 00Ciudod Universiicrio5000 Cordobo

AUSIRATIAHmther HewiitUniversity CollegeUniversiiy of MelbourneColleoe Crescenlporkv'ille 3052Viciorio

BETGIUM

Morlene DoelmonK. MPI SpermolieSnoggoordstroot 98000 BruggeBELGIUM

BRAZIT

Anoelo RibeiroEscilo de Educocoo Especiol

'Anne Sullivon'Av. Conde de Porto Alegre 820S. Vqeiono do Sul

ES Poolo 09500

BUTGARIA

Vlodimir RodoulovResorch lnstituie for EducqtionCul. Tzokio '125

Fl. 5I1l3Sofio

CANADASlon MunroeConodion Dmblind ond Rubello

AssociolionBox i 625MofordNOH I YO Oniorio

CHILE

Clqudio Pumorino CidNuestro Senoro del Rosorio #426

Depto.42I as Condes

Sontiogo

cotoMBtAMorio Viclorio de Mendozolnstituto Nocionol poro

SordosCorr 47 # 65A - 28Bogoto

DENMARK

Birthe laustrupAolborgskolenKollegievei I9000 Alborg

FINLAND

Morio-Leno SoorinenRehobilitotion Cenhe for

Dofblind ChildrenKukkum<intie 2740600 jyvoskyl6

FMNCEJocques SouriouCESSA LornoyBiord86000 Poiiiers

GERMANYDiekich BunckBildunoszenhum-ltir-TqubblindeAlbertlschweitzerHof 27D'3000 Hqnnover 71

GHANAMorion N ObengCenhe for Deohlind Child.enPO Box 33Mompong-Akwopim

ICETAND

Bryndis Viglundsdotti rPO Box 5086Skiphoh 3lI 05 Reykiovik

INDIABeroz N VochoHelen Keller lnst. for fte Deof &

Deoblindc/o Municipol School, Nmr'S'

BridgeNM Joshi Morg, Bycullo (West),

Bomboy 40001 i

INDONESIA

Nicolo CrewsD/A RowinoloJL. lnerbong 38Botu Ampor, Kromol JoiiJokorio '13520

IREI.AND

Roy McloughlinThe Anne Sullivon Foundotion40 Lower Drumcondio RoodDublin 9

ISRAEI.

Ruth RosenbluthKeren OR INCEliezer Holevi 32Jerusolem

ITATY

Rossqno BortcliLego del Filo D'OroVio Monlecerno 1

60027 Osimo"Ancono

JAMAICA

Germoine LynchThe Solvotion Army Schol lor

the Blind57 Monnings Hill RoodPO Box 562

NEW ZEATAND

Elsie PurdueHomoi College, Browns RoqdPrivote BogMonurwo, Aucklond

NORWAYLive FuglesongThe Notionol Cenirql Teom for

the DeoblindPB 43740402 TorshovOslo 4

PHIUPPINES

Donte CopisironoPhilippines Notionol School for

the BlindGolvez Corner FiiguerooPosoy City 1 300

POLAND

Jozef MendrunPolski Zwiozek NiewidomychZorzod Gkowny00"216 Worqszowo

PORTUGAL

Antonio RebeloCoso Pio de LisboRuo d. Fronciso de Almeido No 1

I 400 tisboo

SENEGALGilbert TendinoEMPPI Cenre Verbo-tonol de

Enfonts SourdsBP 3883 Dokor R.P.

SINGAPORE

Koh Poh KwongSingopore School for the Visuolly

Hondicopped5l Too Poyoh Rise

I 1 29 Singopore

SOUTH AFRICA

Dr Johon vqn der PoelPion*r Schol for the Visuolly

Hondicopped20 Adderley Sheet6850 Worcester

SPAINAsuncion levlonDeportment6 de Sordo-CiegosCentro de Rsuros 'A-V.

Mosquetle'o.N.c.E_Poseo de lo Hobono 20828036 Modrid

SWEDEN

Elizobeth AboudoEkeskolonBox90245-700 09 Orebro

SW]ZERIANDStihung fur ToubblindeHeim TonneFuhrsirosse I 58l 35 Longou o A

TAIWAN

Fronk ChonoNorionol Toi"won Normol

UniversiivDeportmeni of Speiol Educoiion162 Hoping Eost Rood, Sect. 1

Kingston 8

JAPAN

Sodoko lmomuroYokohomo Christion Schol for

the Blind1 8l TokenomoruNokoku, Yokohomo

KENYA

Bonifqce lentoimqgqKobernet Schol foi Deofblind

ChildrenPO Box '128

Kobernel

MATIA

lrene Schembri8 Mqnnorino Roqd

B'koro

NETHERTANDS

Ton Visserlnsiitule voor DovenSchol RofoelTherestroot 425271 GD St Michielsgestel

Toipoi

TANZANIAClemens MkooliMinistry o[ Educotion ond CultureSpeiol EducotionPO Box 9l2'lDor Es Sqloom

TOGO

c/o Morion ObengCenke lor Deolblind ChildrenPO Box 33Mompong-Akwopim

UNITED KINGDOMRodney CIorkSENSE31 1 Groy's lnn Roocl

tondon WC1X 8PT

URUGUAY

Cqrmen CirintqnoZufriotegui 990Montevido

USA

Michoel CollinsPerkins School for the BlindI75 N Bmcon StretWotrertown, MA 021 72

RUSSIA

Voleri Chulkovlnstitute of DefectologyAcodemy of Pedogogicol

Sciences of the USSR

1l9l2l MoscowPogodinskoio St. 8

NORDIC REGIONATOIFICER

Morioono SuosolmiNUDSlotsgode 8DK-9330 DronninglundDENMARK

portiol funding for this publicotion wos mode possible by Perkins School for the Blind, Wotertown, Mossochusetts .

ond the Conroi N. Hilton Foundotion, Los Angeles, Colifornio. The IAEDP is indebted to them- for their support ond

would olso wish to ocknowledge the support-received from the United Notions towords Deofblind Educotion ond

towords providing expert qssistonce to developing countries.

Deofblind EducotionDeablind Educotion will oppeor twice yeorly,the two edilions will be doied Jonuory'Juneond Julv-December.

The'ditor will be oleosed io receiveodicles, news ilems, letiers, nolices of booksond comino evenls, such os conferences ondcourses, co-ncerning the educotion ofdeofblind children ond young odults.Photiogrophs ond drowings ore welcome;thev *ill be cooied ond returned.

All wrinen moieriol should normollry be inthe English longuoge ond moy be ediHbeforaoublicotion. lt should be sent brpublico'lion lro orrive by mid-Jonuory ond mid'iulv for the ffrst ond second onnuol edifions.

'Ooinions exoressed in orticles ore lhoseof thd outhor orid should not be understroodos represenling the view of the IAEDP.

Editon Molcolm Motthews Assistont ditor: Helen Motson

Editoriol Office: Sense, 31I Groy's lnn Rood, London WCIX 8PT, UK.lel:O71-278 1OO5 Fox:071-837 3267

(Moving to: I l -13 Clifion Terroce, London N4 3SR in September)

Ediroridl Boord:

Mr Keith Wotkins3 Duff StreetTurromurroNSW 2074Austrolio

Mr John MclnnesCDBRA20 Scotio AvenueBrontfordOntorio NR3 sRIConodo

Miss Christine long60 Hollowell RoodNorthwoodMiddx HA6 I DS, UK

Miss Joon Shields2 Priorv RoodStomfolrdLincs PE9 2ES, UK

Miss Morioono SousolmiNUDSlotsoode 8DK 9"330 DronninglundDenmork

Mrs Beroz VochoHellen Keller lnstitute for theDeof ond Blindc/o Municipol Secondory SchoolN.M. Joshi'Morg - neor

iS' BridgeBycullo (West),Bomboy 40001 'l

, lndio

Mr Kevin LessordDirectorPerkins' School for the Blind1 75 North Beocon SlreetWoteriown 02172Mossochusetts, USA

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