VIDBE-Q 2025 Volume 70 Issue 3
master's degree in special education. When I started my program, I realized the
best way to become an effective educator was to step down from being a classroom
teacher so I could devote adequate time to learning from my coursework and
practicum experience. However, I still needed a job and concluded the best option
was taking on a paraprofessional vacancy for a specialized autism spectrum
disorder (ASD) Pre-K classroom at a public elementary school. This decision
steered the course of my journey toward the visual disabilities field.
As a paraprofessional, I met Leo (pseudonym), a triplet with profound
autism and blindness. Leo was five years old and had just recently moved to
Florida with his family. As a result, he did not know the language and felt anxious
in unknown environments with adults he also did not know. He was very sensitive
to textures, voices, and touch. He was nonverbal and expressed his frustration
tactilely by pinching or scratching. He had a hard time sleeping (so no naptime)
and wasn't toilet-trained. Leo did not enjoy his clothing or a dirty diaper, so he
constantly removed all of it. He had an early childhood classroom teacher who was
endorsed to work with children with ASD, who knew some strategies to support
students with visual impairments (VI). But her voice was a challenge for him. Leo
also had a great teacher of students with VI (TSVI) who came to the school a few
times a week to support him with orientation and mobility skills and consult with
the classroom teacher. These two professionals exposed me to practices and
