VIDBE-Q Volume 68 Issue 1
connecting language to their broader lived experiences or conceptual knowledge
(Dominic & Tobin, 1995). Nonetheless, despite these differences, language skills
are considered a strength for students with visual impairments (Pijnacker et al.,
2012).
Generally speaking, literature shows that reading development for students
with visual impairments is similar to students who are sighted. That is to say that
the same foundational literacy skills are required of reading, regardless of the
reading medium (Manuel, 2016). Phonological and phonemic awareness, fluency,
and language comprehension are core skills sets, for example. However, students
with visual impairments may read in braille or large print, or they may benefit from
using optical aids. Compensatory skills such as visual and tactile efficiency may
impact access and learning.
Braille reading research indicates that tactile reading skills develop similarly
at early elementary ages, but in comparison with typical readers, students with
visual impairments in later grades begin to fall behind their peers (Wall Emerson et
al., 2009). Authors hypothesize that foundational skills have a heavy emphasis on
phonological awareness, primarily aural in nature, which is a strength for student
with visual impairments. However, in later grade levels, students who read braille
may have slower reading rates than students who read print (McCarthy et al.,
2009), and they may lag behind in academic vocabulary skills, which could have
