by Sarah J. Blake
The slate and stylus is the oldest, most portable, and most dependable tool for writing in Braille. It has been compared to the sighted person's pen or pencil (Schroeder, 1989). It allows a blind person to function independently in any environment.
Unfortunately, use of the slate and stylus is often seen as difficult and unnecessary. Technological advances such as the Perkins Brailler and the various electronic Braille input devices are seen as appropriate replacements for the slate and stylus. Teaching of the slate and stylus is neglected. Students who do not have access to the popular note-taking devices and who wish to avoid disturbing others in class by using the Perkins brailler rely heavily on memory, tape recording, or other students' notes. Yet with motivation and thoughtful planning, teachers can provide these students with the skills and desire to use the slate and stylus well and thus become more independent.
Sighted people may find it difficult to learn to write in Braille using the slate and stylus because they think of it as writing backwards. When teachers communicate this belief consciously or unconsciously to students, the students may easily become unmotivated to learn a skill which can make the difference in being able to collect and organize information independently in any situation, just as a sighted person would do with a pen or pencil.
Jody Ianuzzi wrote a note about this on the Blindkid listserv on August 25, 1999. She said:
A study was done by giving a 3D object to blind people and sighted people and asking them to describe the top and bottom of the object. The blind people felt the top of the object and the bottom of the object without moving the object. The sighted people (who were blindfolded) felt the top of the object and TURNED THE OBJECT OVER and felt the bottom of the object (now on top) Sighted people find writing Braille with a slate and stylus confusing because they visually turn over the Braille and 'see' it as up side down. A blind slate and stylus user will picture writing Braille with a slate without this problem.
Edwin Zehner also noted that the print version of the Braille transcriber's manual produced by the Library of Congress and used in many teacher training programs presented two visual examples of Braille. One is an example of Braille written on the Perkins Brailler and appears as it would be read on a page. The other is a representation of slate writing and is reversed. He noted that these presentations have a profound impact on the development of attitudes about the slate and stylus and proposed that instead of relying on them students use dot numbers to compose their work and check it after removing the paper and placing it Braille-side up.
Slates come in various types and sizes. They have a varying number of lines and cells. Some types include:
Types of styli include:
Some people load their paper so that the hinge of the slate is on the left as they write. Others load it so that the hinge is on the right. If there are holes in the paper, they should be on the right side while the student is writing.
To load the paper, place open slate on the table and insert the paper so that it is standing straight up. Close the slate. The edge of the paper should be aligned exactly with the hinge of the slate.
Some slates have pegs at each of the top and bottom corners which hold the paper in place. When moving the slate down, the top pegs can be inserted into the holes previously made by the bottom pegs, and the alignment of the paper will be preserved.
When teaching a student to use the slate and stylus, it is important to build a positive attitude as well as skills. The following lesson plan is adapted from plans presented by Willoughby and Duffy (1989) and Mangold and Jones (1995).
In the beginning, practices should be short. Mangold and Jones (1995) suggest that two to five minutes is a good amount of time for beginners. As students become more confident and proficient in using the slate and stylus, they will be able to handle longer practices and, with good motivation, they will be able to use the slate and stylus to take notes in class and complete assignments.
To minimize frustration while learning to use the slate and stylus, try the following suggestions:
These activities may help students build interest in using the slate and stylus.
If the student is tiring easily, try changing the writing position or the paper being used.
Allman, C. B. (1998). Braille communication skills: What teachers teach and visually impaired adults use. Journal of visual impairment and blindness; 92(5), 331-337.
Mangold, S. and Jones, L. (1995). Pocket tools are never out of style! Presented at Getting in touch with literacy. Austin, TX.
Willoughby, Doris M. and Duffy, Sharon L. M. (1989). Handbook for Itinerant and Resource Teachers of Blind and Visually Impaired Students. Baltimore: National Federation for the Blind.
This document is copyright 2003 by Sarah J. Blake. For permission to reprint, please email Sarah at sarah@growingstrong.org.
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