CISLL Publications
Author ORCID Identifier
Lindsay N Harris: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8573-6153
Allison Gladfelter: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2573-2035
Alecia M. Santuzzi: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9384-4223
Iwona Barbara Lech: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0213-4198
Dawn Soto: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8561-8605
Document Type
Article
Publication Title
International Journal of Psychology
Abstract
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) affirms a right to education for disabled persons and aims to ensure braille instruction for blind individuals. However, there is evidence that braille instruction is often circumvented or abandoned early in CRPD nations because it is perceived as an inefficient learning medium for blind students. This perception persists despite insufficient empirical evidence and a lack of understanding of the efficiency of reading versus listening for learning in sighted individuals. We therefore investigated the efficiency of learning written versus spoken words in blind and sighted samples. Participants (23 blind, 20 sighted) studied the written definitions of 70 rare English words in successive rounds, presented in conjunction with written or spoken wordforms. Blind participants learned with equal efficiency across modalities, whereas sighted participants learned spoken words more efficiently. The findings indicate the inefficiency argument against teaching braille is groundless, both because braille word learning is not less efficient than auditory word learning for blind individuals, and because reading is valued in the education of sighted individuals despite its apparent inefficiency in that population.
DOI
http://doi.org/10.1002/ijop.12879
Publication Date
9-20-2022
Department
Center for the Interdisciplinary Study of Language and Literature| Department of Leadership, Educational Psychology, and Foundations (LEPF)| Department of Psychology| School of Allied Health and Communicative Disorders
Special Interest Group
Diversity and Language Processing
Recommended Citation
Harris, L.N., Gladfelter, A., Santuzzi, A.M., Lech, I.B., Rodriguez, R., Lopez, L.E., Soto, D. and Li, A. (2022), Braille literacy as a human right: A challenge to the “inefficiency” argument against braille instruction. Int J Psychol. https://doi.org/10.1002/ijop.12879
Original Citation
Harris, L.N., Gladfelter, A., Santuzzi, A.M., Lech, I.B., Rodriguez, R., Lopez, L.E., Soto, D. and Li, A. (2022), Braille literacy as a human right: A challenge to the “inefficiency” argument against braille instruction. Int J Psychol. https://doi.org/10.1002/ijop.12879
Sponsorship
This research was supported by a Great Journeys Assistantship from the Northern Illinois University Graduate School and two Proposal or Pilot Awards from the Northern Illinois University Center for the Interdisciplinary Study of Language and Literacy to the first author.
ISSN
1464-066X
Publisher
Wiley
Rights Statement
© 2022 International Union of Psychological Science
Included in
Cognitive Psychology Commons, Disability and Equity in Education Commons, Educational Psychology Commons, Human Rights Law Commons
Comments
This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Harris, L.N., Gladfelter, A., Santuzzi, A.M., Lech, I.B., Rodriguez, R., Lopez, L.E., Soto, D. and Li, A. (2022), Braille literacy as a human right: A challenge to the “inefficiency” argument against braille instruction. Int J Psychol. https://doi.org/10.1002/ijop.12879, which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1002/ijop.12879.This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Use of Self-Archived Versions. This article may not be enhanced, enriched or otherwise transformed into a derivative work, without express permission from Wiley or by statutory rights under applicable legislation. Copyright notices must not be removed, obscured or modified. The article must be linked to Wiley’s version of record on Wiley Online Library and any embedding, framing or otherwise making available the article or pages thereof by third parties from platforms, services and websites other than Wiley Online Library must be prohibited.