I agree that one of the biggest problems on campuses today is how the
disabled students services offices OVER help their students.  By the time a
student gets to college they should have excellent mobility and notetaking
skills so they don't need assistance.  I went to school when a student did
their own work or didn't go to college.  I learned to order my own books and
make arrangements with the professors to take tests etc.

I have taken classes recently and I have been called 'uppity' by disabled
student office staff for turning down their help.

Students graduate from college now with no independent skills and they can't
figure out why they aren't employable.

I've written a brief article on the subject which you are welcome to use.

JODY

  WHAT IS INDEPENDENCE?
   By Jody W. Ianuzzi

What is independence?  Seems like an obvious question.  I'd say it is the
ability of a person to do things for themselves.  The reason I ask this
question is because I see a trend in providing assistance rather then
teaching independence to blind students.

On one extreme is the world I grew up1960s  as a legally blind child
mainstreamed in the public schools.   in the It was before an laws
pertaining to disabled children in school.  The philosophy was in those days
was 'sink or swim'.  There were vision teachers, but it was a world where
'normal' was the rule.  Braille and cane travel were discouraged as
stereotyping blindness which was avoided at all costs.  Sometimes the cost
was literacy and safety in travel.

There were no aides, special buses, or any accommodations at all.  You
traveled on your own, found your own bus (or waited for the late bus because
there fewer to pick from)  You took your own notes and took tests as best
you could.  You were expected to order your own textbooks because there wan'
t anyone else who would do it for you. Mobility instruction was not
available for children under 16 years old.  You might have been taught never
to ask for help as it was a sign of dependence.  You either worked as a
sighed student or you could expect to be sent away from your family to a
school for the blind.

Now things have gone completely in the other direction.  Blind students are
not expected to be able to do anything for themselves.  Braille is still a
last option and even for those students who learn it, is it taught at grade
level?  Technology is assumed to replace Braille with literacy being the
ability to listen to tapes or look at letters on a CCTV blown up 60 times
their normal size.  A blind student is provided with a note taker, again the
assumption that the task is too difficult.  An aide sits a second grader on
her lap and turns the child's head for them in appropriate directions.   An
aide is assigned to escort the student around the school, justified by
safety issues.  Blind students are not allowed to walk home on their own in
the name of safety.  Rather then taking the regular bus with neighborhood
friends, the blind student rides the special needs bus and is stigmatized as
belonging with mentally handicapped students.   Asking for help is routine
and trying things on your own is just a sign of being stubborn.

This dependence on assistance in the name of independence extends to the
college level where offices for students with disabilities will provide note
takers, special test taking arrangements, escorts, and even someone to type
up your papers. Textbooks are always ordered for the student, even through
college.  This is just one of the jobs that the assistance system does for
the student.  The office doesn't like students who are independent and take
their own notes and make their own arrangements with professors to take
tests. The students who do these things for themselves are 'uppity' (a
quote) and  don't  appreciate the help that is being offered to them.  (Do
these independent students threaten the job security of the able bodied
providers?)

After graduation the office for disabled students will even help find you a
job? Is it a wonder that there are so many disabled  students graduating
from school who can't keep a job because they don't have the skills?  They
don't know Braille, how to take notes or how to travel independently.  They
expect their work to be done for them just like it was done in school.  To
add to the situation, there are students who are considered disabled who are
slow readers, who can't spell or have some other 'hidden' disability.  The
needs of these semi-disabled students dilute the real assistance that is
needed by the truly disabled students.

So where is the happy medium between the first scenario and the second?
True independence is when a blind student has the skills they need to do
things for themselves.  This includes Braille, at grade level (use of the
slate and stylus too) Note taking skills, computer skills, knowing how to
order their own textbooks in alternative formats, orientation and mobility
skills, being able to take public transportation, knowing how to hire and
use readers and drivers as the need arises.  Another ability is having the
confidence to know when to try something yourself or when to ask for help.
The most valuable  skill is self advocacy.  Knowing when to say 'no thank
you, I can do it myself'.

How do blind students develop these skills?  A blind child should be raised
with the same expectations and goals as a sighted child with the
understanding that blindness is not to be used as an excuse or denied but
that the scope of education should include alternative techniques.  This
starts with  Braille and mobility training.   Blind kids are not exempt from
the responsibility of taking out the garbage and washing the dishes either.
Special interest activities and sports are excellent ways to build
confidence by learning new things and a great way to meet new friends.  In
school the child should have the skills to do their work independently at
grade level.

Be open about blindness, it is not a secret to be hushed up about.  At the
same time blindness is not the center of everything.   Blind children should
reach for the stars, maybe they can't see them, but that never stopped
anyone.