Orientation and wayfinding are critical skills for successful mobility of people with visual impairments. The inability to perform these skills successfully may result in a person becoming lost, injured, and discouraged from further mobility. At times, it may be impossible to maintain orientation. The person may temporarily travel without cues…

This study assessed the ability of people with visual impairments to reliably detect oncoming traffic at crossing situations with no traffic control. In at least one condition, the participants could not hear vehicles to afford a safe crossing time when sound levels were as quiet as possible. Significant predictors of detection accounted for a…

Using the five-stage model of skill acquisition originally proposed by Dreyfus and Dreyfus (1986), this study investigates the professional development of Rehabilitation Workers (RWs) in the UK through analysis of their practice in training people with a vision impairment in the area of orientation and mobility. From interviews with RWs a clearer…

This study evaluates the impact of using the software program AudioMetro, a tool that supports the orientation and mobility of people who are blind in the Metro system of Santiago de Chile. A quasi-experimental study considering experimental and control groups and using the paired Student's t in a two sample test analysis (pretest-posttest) was…

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a leading cause of vision loss in Americans aged 60 and older. The loss of central vision from AMD can decrease visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, glare sensitivity, color discrimination, and the ability to adapt to changes in lighting conditions. Older adults with vision loss often have other chronic,…

Although teachers consider the Expanded Core Curriculum (ECC) critical for students' success, they do not provide their students adequate instruction based on principles of the ECC. A minimum level of competence for assessment and instruction in the ECC should be established for novice teachers. Personnel preparation programs should evaluate how…

This article discusses the challenging process of developing a common data set for independent living programs serving older adults who are visually impaired. The three-year project, which included collaborative efforts among many stakeholders that encompass diverse program models, resulted in the development of the Internet-based Nationally…

Persons who are deaf-blind represent a heterogeneous, low-incidence population of children and adults who, at some point in life, regardless of the presence of additional disabilities, may benefit from formal orientation and mobility (O&M) instruction. Current national policies, such as the No Child Left Behind Act, which emphasize that…

Today, exceptional dogs that have been specially bred and socialized are paired with children who are blind or visually impaired. These dogs, called "K9 Buddies," are from Guide Dogs for the Blind, a national nonprofit organization with a mission to offer skilled mobility dogs and training free-of-charge to adults with visual impairments…

The authors constructed an 11 x 17 in. tactile map to teach routes in an outdoor play environment to a 5-year-old blind child. After learning the routes on the tactile map, the child independently navigated them in the outdoor play environment. With practice, the child reduced the time necessary to learn and navigate the routes. The authors…

This article presents the results of two single-subject experiments that were designed to determine consumers' ability to use a BrailleNote GPS. The participants decreased their mean orientation time from 6 minutes to 45 seconds and increased their target-location efficiency fourfold with BGPS than without BGPS. Additional results and implications…

This article reports findings from one aspect of a large scale research project funded by the Guide Dogs for the Blind Association, to investigate the mobility, independence and life skills education available to children and young people with a visual impairment between 0 and 19 years of age in Northern Ireland (NI). Here the focus is on the…

This study examined the mental effort required to monitor landmarks and the effect of the type of route on mobility-route training. The results revealed that the features of landmarks and competence in travel were significantly related, indicating that some environmental factors related to height and width are more easily learned when people can…

Tips are offered for use in an encounter with a dog guide and its blind owner. Tips include approaching the person from the right side, not taking hold of the dog guide's harness, not offering food to the dog guide, and not petting the dog guide without the owner's permission. (JDD)

This article describes the key differences between roundabouts and traditional intersections that have traffic signals or stop signs and discusses how these differences may affect the mobility of pedestrians who are visually impaired. It also provides a brief summary of the authors' research on this topic and suggests strategies for addressing the…