Orientation and Mobility
Diane Brauner and Brook Smith have expertise in working with people who are
blind. Diane is an Orientation and Mobility (O&M) specialist who works with
people aged 3 to 21 years. Brook is a Teacher of the Visually Impaired (TVI).
Diane instructed us in some of the basics of orientation and mobility and gave
us the opportunity to try for ourselves.
Part One: getting the facts
Cane Travel
- Extend index finger along length of cane for greater leverage
- Extend arm
- Center the cane at midline
Two Point Cane touch technique
- Sweep in arc low to the ground
- Tap at each extreme end of the arc
- Arc should be approximately the width of the body
Cane Tips
- Pencil tip – rounded end
- Rolling tip – constant contact, requires less strength to use, won’t stick
in cracks
- Marshmallow tip
Clues and Landmarks
Sound
- From impact of object with cane
- Open space or confined area
- Kitchens, bathrooms, classrooms, cafeterias may be identifiable by the
sounds associated with them
- Cash register sounds indicate front of store
Touch
- Carpeted or tiled floor
- Rug at entrance to school or store
Protection
- For low objects place arm with palm facing in. Fingers will bend
back upon contacting an object.
- For high objects place arm in front of chest with palm facing out.
- If unsure of object location, use both types of protection.
Sighted guide
- Guide puts hand next to visually impaired person so he/she doesn’t have to
reach
- VI person holds guide’s arm just above elbow
- Guide puts hand on chair to show VI person
- Narrow space – Guide brings arm around behind back, VI person can sense
the movement and slides hand down to grasp wrist.
- Doors - Guide places hand on door to show VI person so he/she doesn’t get
slammed in the face.
Trailing
- Slide hand along edge of wall
- Use pinky and the back of your hand
Animals
- Children are not provided with guide animals
- Dogs require constant retraining and are distracting in a school situation
- Personality must match that of the owner
Part 2: practicing what we learned
We were then given the opportunity to try what we had learned. Diane provided
us with canes and blindfolds. Something as simple as traveling in a familiar
hallway or walking up steps suddenly became a challenge for us. For the last few
minutes of class Diane critiqued our performance and we discussed the
experience.
How we did
- Our posture became unnatural and tense when we put on the blindfolds. Most
of us hunched forward and a few leaned backwards. Our gait was altered
dramatically as well and the majority tended to use “baby steps”.
- We did not use our proper protection techniques, but rather when our cane
ran into an object we flailed our arms about. We failed to realize that the
cane extends our reach and the object was still a step and a half in front of
us.
- Instead of tapping the cane from right to left we had a tendency to tap
from midline to the side holding the cane. This left half of our bodies
unprotected.
- We need more practice before we become people who are blind.
How we felt
- We became immediately disoriented, confused and a bit nervous.
- We felt more secure in the narrow hallway as opposed to the open entrance
area.
- We were much more in tune to the sounds, for example, one student
mentioned that he heard the hallway open up to the left.
- We were happy to have our sighted partners warn and direct us.
Thanks to Diane and Brook for this experience. As students we are very used
to listening to lectures and walking away feeling that we understand. However,
all bets were off when those blindfolds came on. We quickly forgot what we had
learned about proper protection and cane technique. We all came away with a much
greater appreciation for the students who confidently make their way down
crowded hallways.
Pictures
More Pictures:
Navigating with
confidence?