Putting theory into practice with visually impaired people

LOMÉ, Togo — A visit to a special school was the highlight of a week-long seminar which looked at market research techniques in the field of biblical materials for the blind and visually impaired. Mainly from West Africa, the 22 participants represented both Bible Societies and Christian organisations working in this field.

Workshop participants hear the views of a pupil at the school for the blind and visually impaired in Togoville. Photo: FrARSC/Maxime Bakiono (TOG03DJ-1.JPG)

People who do not have a visual impairment tend to take it for granted that they can make their own decisions about how to read or listen to the Scriptures. Until recently, this has certainly not been the case for the blind and visually impaired, who have often found that people fail to consult them about their preferences. This applies particularly to children and to those living in countries where products such as Braille and audio Scriptures are not readily available. As a result, the blind and visually impaired often feel marginalised by mainstream society, even in countries where, because of the persistence of certain diseases, they are found in relatively large numbers.

It was therefore very refreshing for the more than 100 children and young people who attend the school for the blind and visually impaired in Togoville, around 45 kms (30 miles) east of Lomé, to receive a visit from people who were eager to hear their views. Part of the seminar had been devoted to bringing together varying experiences of producing biblical materials for the blind and visually impaired in order to draw up draft questionnaires for use at the development stage. The participants saw the trip to Togoville as a valuable opportunity to test these questionnaires, and some continued to refine their questions even on the slow, hot journey along dirt roads.

“Do you prefer to read stories or listen to them?”

“What are your favourite sorts of stories?”

“What do you like doing in your spare time?”

“What are your main concerns for the future?”

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These are the sort of questions which Bible Societies and their partner organisations are now beginning to realise that they have to ask directly of blind and visually impaired people if they are to truly meet their needs. This is particularly the case in countries where no official information is available about how many blind and visually impaired people there are and how many of them are able to read Braille. In such countries, however, actually meeting with the blind and visually impaired to hear their views presents its own challenges: only a small proportion attend special schools or institutions, and many have few links with mainstream society.

Acknowledging the pressing need to gather accurate information about what sort of biblical materials blind and visually impaired people require and how such materials are used, a key theme of the seminar was collaboration. National Bible Societies cannot undertake all the necessary market research alone, nor do they have sufficient resources to effectively distribute biblical materials for the blind and visually impaired. In these circumstances, collaboration with specialised agencies, such as those running schools for blind and visually impaired children, is vital. The partnership approach also plays a key role in addressing problems associated with funding products such as Scripture cassettes and Braille Bibles, which are expensive to produce.

Eager not to replicate society’s marginalisation of the blind and visually impaired, five organisations sent blind delegates to the seminar. This proved a valuable learning opportunity for the other delegates, who were obliged at times to quickly rethink their usual ways of working but were also humbled by the speed with which their blind colleagues adapted to the surroundings and became full participants in the various sessions.

Interviews were conducted with these delegates in order to gain an insight into issues including blind and visually impaired people’s favourite Bible passages, whether parts of the Bible offend them and what they consider to be the main Scripture needs of the blind and visually impaired (see related comments). The blind participants were able to make significant contributions in other areas, especially the identification of suitable questions for the questionnaires, and all the delegates acknowledged that the seminar would have been less successful without them. In the words of one participant, “Your presence has taught us a lot about exclusion and integration.”

The participants returned to their own countries greatly motivated by the theoretical knowledge and practical experience they gained at the seminar. They took with them a strong awareness of the urgent need to systematically gather data about the requirements and preferences of the blind and visually impaired, thus avoiding basic errors such as investing heavily in Braille Scriptures which many blind and visually impaired people cannot read, or producing audio Scriptures for distribution in countries where cassette players are not readily available. By providing an opportunity to exchange experiences and knowledge, the seminar also promoted a collaborative approach to this work.

(WR 378/1 - 7/8.03)