Protection or Restriction: An Analysis of the Blind Massage Policy for Employment Rights of Persons With Visual Impairments in China

Introduction The United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities identified the Chinese blind massage policy as “reserved employment” in its Concluding Observations in 2012. In response, this paper reviewed the policy on blind massage in China and discussed its effectiveness and social impact. Methods: Adopting a historical perspective, this paper describes the development stages of the blind massage policy in China. It reveals the social construction process of the blind massage policy. Government data were provided to help analyze the positive and negative effects of the policy according to the United Nations’ Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Results: The blind massage policy is a national strategy involving semi-reserved employment to improve the low employment rate of people with visual impairments in China. It promoted employment of people with visual impairments at the start, but, as the system of the blind massage gradually took shape, it restricted these individuals from choosing a career freely. The blind massage policy has resulted in deep-rooted social prejudices, and it demonstrates disability-based discrimination and charity-oriented practices. Discussion: The Chinese blind massage policy is discriminatory and does not reflect the modern concept of disability rights advocated in the United Nations’ Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Implications for practitioners: The Chinese government needs to promote institutional reforms to provide better education and employment for people with visual impairments to change the limited content of vocational training and eliminate discriminatory policies.

Physical Activity and Quality of Life in People With Visual Impairments: A Systematic Review

Objective This systematic review aimed to investigate the relationship between physical activity and quality of life (QOL) in people with visual impairments. Methods: Electronic searches were performed in PubMed, SPORTdiscus, CINAHL, Embase, and Web of Science. Observational studies describing the relationship between physical activity and QOL in adults with visual impairments were included. The Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS) adapted for cross-sectional studies was used to assess the quality of the studies. Results: Overall, 327 studies were identified, and eight met the inclusion criteria. All studies had cross-sectional designs and seven were performed in developed countries. Physical activity was assessed objectively by one study, and five studies used the International Physical Activity Questionnaire. The World Health Organization Quality of Life Questionnaire was the most used instrument to measure QOL. Six studies reported a positive relationship between physical activity and QOL domains, as follows: life satisfaction, activity limitation, fair or poor health, physically and mentally unhealthy days, psychological health, and overall QOL. Conclusion: People with visual impairments who are engaged in physical activity are more likely to have better QOL outcomes.

A Qualitative Inquiry of a Three-Month Virtual Practicum Program on Youth with Visual Impairments and Their Coaches

Research has shown that the practicum experience for professional preparation students in physical education teacher education programs related to teaching youth with disabilities can improve self-efficacy. It is not currently known if a virtual program can be effective for the professional preparation students or the participants. The objective of this study was to determine the experiences of the participants of a three-month virtual practicum program. In this phenomenological study, thirty youth with visual impairments and 1:1 professional preparation students (coaches) took part in a three-month virtual physical activity program. A total of 11 coaches took part in 2 focus groups, and 10 of the participants were interviewed about their experiences in this unique practicum. Findings in this three-month program revealed four themes: (1) friendship, (2) self-determination, (3) goal setting, and (4) barriers. The results of the qualitative inquiry indicate that a virtual practicum program can have a positive effect on both the participants and the professional preparation students. Virtual programs should also be aware of barriers to implementing an effective program to benefit all parties.

Communicating Photograph Content Through Tactile Images to People With Visual Impairments

Millions of people with a visual impairment across the world are denied access to visual images. They are unable to enjoy the simple pleasures of viewing family photographs, those in textbooks or tourist brochures and the pictorial embellishment of news stories etc. We propose a simple, inexpensive but effective approach, to make content accessible via touch. We use state-of-the-art algorithms to automatically process an input photograph into a collage of icons, that depict the most important semantic aspects of a scene. This collage is then printed onto swell paper. Our experiments show that people can recognise content with an accuracy exceeding 70% and create plausible narratives to explain it. This means that people can understand image content via touch. Communicating scene foreground is a step forward, but there are many other steps needed to provide the visually impaired with the fullest possible access to visual content.

Access to exercise for people with visual impairments during the Coronavirus-19 pandemic

People with blindness and visual impairments have reduced access to exercise compared to the general population during typical societal functioning. The Coronavirus-19 pandemic completely disrupted daily life for most individuals worldwide, and in the United Kingdom, a stay-at-home order was enforced. One of the sole reasons an individual could leave their home was for the purpose of daily exercise. Here, we examined how the UK national lockdown impacted access to exercise for people with blindness and visual impairment. We used a mixed methods design, collecting quantitative data from two established measures (the Exercise Barriers and Benefits Scale and the International Physical Activity Questionnaire), and qualitative data from open-ended questions. We found that, during the initial stages of the lockdown, perceived barriers to exercise increased compared to pre-pandemic levels, driven by factors, such as the closure of exercise facilities and additional difficulties posed by social distancing. Interestingly, during the later stages of the UK Coronavirus-19 response, perceived barriers decreased to lower than pre-pandemic levels. Thematic analysis indicated that this may have been due to participants finding new online methods to exercise at home, in combination with the tentative reopening of facilities.

ENCANTOS E ENCONTROS DA BIBLIOTERAPIA PARA PESSOAS COM DEFICIÊNCIA VISUAL = BIBLIOTHERAPY CHARMS AND MEETINGS FOR PEOPLE WITH VISUAL IMPAIRMENTS

A leitura possui um vasto significado na vida do ser humano, independentemente do ambiente ou da forma como aconteça. Especialmente por meio da Biblioterapia, ela pode representar grandes transformações e, para as pessoas com deficiência visual (de forma congênita ou adquirida), pode oferecer oportunidades de identidade, integração e expressão, despertando possibilidades importantes que podem ser trabalhadas e incluídas por bibliotecários em seu ambiente informacional. Com o objetivo de descrever sobre a prática e essas possibilidades, realizou-se uma breve revisão de literatura, somada à descrição de duas sessões de Biblioterapia realizadas na biblioteca de um instituto especializado mediado por uma Bibliotecária, na Paraíba, em João Pessoa. Assim, foi possível identificar como a leitura auxilia a pessoa com deficiência visual a desvendar, recordar e se encantar com um mundo cheio de descobertas, imaginação e diversão, mesmo de forma diferente. Resultados apontam inúmeros benefícios e demonstram o quanto a Biblioterapia favorece a inclusão das pessoas com deficiência visual nas sessões desenvolvidas nas bibliotecas e amplia os horizontes profissionais do bibliotecário em relação aos seus usuários.AbstractReading has a vast meaning in human life, regardless of the environment or the way it happens. Especially through Bibliotherapy, it can represent great transformations and, for people with visual impairment (congenital or acquired), it can offer opportunities for identity, integration and expression, awakening important possibilities that can be worked on and included by librarians in their informational environment. In order to describe the practice and these possibilities, a brief literature review was carried out, together with the description of two Bibliotherapy sessions held in the library of a specialized institute mediated by a Librarian, in Paraíba, João Pessoa. Thus, it was possible to identify how reading helps the visually impaired person to unravel, remember and be enchanted by a world full of discoveries, imagination and fun, even in a different way. Results point out numerous benefits and demonstrate how bibliotherapy favors the inclusion of people with visual impairments in the sessions developed in libraries and expands the librarian's professionalhorizons in relation to their users.

ASSESSING THE EFFECTS OF DIFFERENT TRAINING PROGRAMS FOR PHYSICAL PREPARATION AND SPORTS PERFORMANCE IN POWER LIFTERS WITH VISUAL IMPAIRMENTS OF HIGH QUALIFICATION

Systematic overload, which is a training characteristic of powerlifters with visual impairments of high qualification has a negative impact on the functioning of body systems and the course of the underlying and comorbidities. This determines the relevance of the scientific substantiation of training programs for athletes with visual impairments as the most important component of ensuring the achievement of sports results in powerlifting. This study aimed to experimentally substantiate the effectiveness of the impact of various training programs on physical fitness and athletic performance of powerlifters with visual impairments of high qualification. To solve the goal we used methods of analysis of scientific and methodological literature, pedagogical observation, pedagogical experiment and methods of mathematical statistics. The study involved 16 visually impaired athletes who were members of the national powerlifting team. The pedagogical experiment was based on testing the effectiveness of two training programs, which differed in the parameters of the load components in the annual training and macrocycle periods. After the pedagogical experiment, the experimental group showed reliable indicators of growth on all tests and improvement of sports results, and athletes of the control group increased physical fitness in three tests out of five and sports results are available only in squat and bench press. In both groups, the highest growth rates in the level of development of physical qualities were found in tests aimed at determining the level of development of strength and flexibility. Comparing the results of the introduction of various training programs in the training process of powerlifters with visual impairments, we can conclude that the performance of the experimental group is much higher than among the powerlifters of the control group.

Experiences of Students with Visual Impairments at an Open Distance and e-Learning University in South Africa: Counselling Perspective

The purpose of the qualitative study on which this article is based was to explore the experiences of students with visual impairments registered at an Open Distance and e-Learning University in South Africa, through a phenomenological research design. Literature was reviewed on student support in distance education and concepts from the critical disability theory, biopsychosocial model of disability, connectivism and affect theories formed the conceptual framework for the study. Telephonic semi-structured interviews were used as a technique to collect data from seven participants. Data were transcribed and then coded employing ATLAS.ti. The emerged themes centred on students’ counselling experiences, the synergy between the departments, and accessibility of services. It was also determined that students lose academic time due to the lack of resources and study materials in alternative and accessible formats. While policies and implementation plans were claimed to be in place, they do not address the reality on the ground due to a lack of coordination of disability issues, and late referral of students to counselling services. The study recommends the prioritisation of disability issues, and it needs to be incorporated in the wider university’s strategic plan to accelerate its implementation. This will translate to (i) training ICT staff on various computer software programs needed to support students with visual impairments, (ii) developing alternative formative and summative assessments, (iii) developing a graduateness and job readiness intervention programme to empower the students financially and add value to the university’s employment equity agenda, and lastly (iv) putting the disability unit at the centre of all disability matters for coordinating purposes.