Blind Students from Idaho Put Their Skills to the Test at Braille Literary Event
On Monday, February 4th through February 29th, 2008, blind and visually impaired students from across the state of Idaho will met with their (TVI) Teacher of the Visually Impaired to take the “2008 Braille Challenge” – This is the only academic competition of its kind for blind students in the United States. This unique competition, sponsored by Braille Institute of America, Inc., serves to encourage blind students of all ages to fine-tune their Braille skills, which are essential to their success in the sighted world.
During this preliminary round of the national competition, participants – ages 6 to 19- will compete in five challenging categories which require them 
to transcribe type and read Braille using a device called a Perkins Brailler. Each category is designed to test their Braille skills in several areas-reading speed and comprehension, Braille spelling, chart and graph reading, proofreading and Braille speed and accuracy. The top 60 students from across the U.S. and Canada, who are joining these students and more than 300 others in the preliminary round in their own regions, will be invited to Los Angeles in June for the national finals. There they will compete for prizes, including savings bonds and adaptive devices for the blind and visually impaired.
Of all the literacy issues in America, Braille literacy is the most underrated and overlooked, but advances in technology have not replaced the need for blind children to learn to read using this vital medium, created by Louis Braille in 1824. The National Braille Challenge was created to motivate blind students to continue their study of Braille. Studies show that only 30 percent of blind adults gain full-time employment, but 90 percent of those who beat the odds are Braille readers. The students in Idaho have participated the last two years in this National Challenge. Idaho had the opportunity to have a student in the Idaho Falls area go to Los Angeles and compete in the National competition last summer.
The “Idaho School for the Deaf and the Blind” is the sponsoring agency. We gratefully acknowledge the generous support of our Regional Braille challenge sponsors:
* Perkins Products at Perkins School for the Blind-(Gift certificates totaling $425 per
site, and the opportunity for one contestant to enter a drawing to win one of 5
electronic braillers)
* Seedling Braille Books for Children- (Gift certificate for 1 braille book or t-shirt per
region, students use the certificate to order from the Seedling catalog)
* Freedom Scientific- one copy of their FS Reader Daisy book software per site
* At First Sight Jewelers- one silver braille bracelet per site
If you would like additional information about this event,
email: jan.zollinger@isdb.idaho.gov
phone: 208-934-4457
For more information on The National Braille Institute visit their website:
http://www.brailleinstitute.org/Home.htm
