Justifying O&M Instruction in the Community Sarah D. BusseY – TVI, COMS, CVRT Valery Herring – TVI, COMS, Juris doctor

School Administration How many of you have had School Administration hesitate to allow you to teach O&M in the community?

How many of you have had School Administration tell you NO you cannot teach O&M in the community?

Federal Law under IDEA 2004 Subpart section Part 300 /A/300 Federal Law under IDEA 2004 Subpart section Part 300 /A/300.34 {c} 7 under Related Services, Orientation and Mobility is: “(7) Orientation and mobility services-- (i) Means services provided to blind or visually impaired children by qualified personnel to enable those students to attain systematic orientation to and safe movement within their environments in school, home, and community; and (ii) Includes teaching children the following, as appropriate: (A) Spatial and environmental concepts and use of information received by the senses (such as sound, temperature and vibrations) to establish, maintain, or regain orientation and line of travel (e.g., using sound at a traffic light to cross the street); (B) To use the long cane or a service animal to supplement visual travel skills or as a tool for safely negotiating the environment for children with no available travel vision; (C) To understand and use remaining vision and distance low vision aids; and (D) Other concepts, techniques, and tools.” (retrieved from http://idea.ed.gov/ retrieved 9/25/16) In theory, the State and Federal Law should be equal in language, interpretation and in implementation.

PRIOR TO 2007, Illinois law mirrored IDEA law Section 226.310 Related Services: Services provided to a blind or visually impaired child to enable the child to attain systematic orientation to and safe movement within the environments in school, home and community. Includes teaching a child: “Spatial and environmental concepts and the use of information received by the senses (such as sound, temperature and vibrations) to establish, maintain, or regain orientation and the line of travel (for example, using sound at a traffic light to cross the street); The use of the long cane to supplement visual travel skills or as a tool for safely negotiating the environment; The use of remaining vision and low vision aids; and Other concepts, techniques, and tools deemed appropriate for the child.” (Section 226.310 Related Services, Volume 30 Issue 6 February 10, 2006 Pages 1550-1936; 2006 Illinois Register Rules of Governmental Agencies)

Illinois NOW has the following rules for O&M instruction under Related Services umbrella: TITLE 23: EDUCATION AND CULTURAL RESOURCES SUBTITLE A: EDUCATION CHAPTER I: STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION SUBCHAPTER f: INSTRUCTION FOR POPULATIONS PART 226 SPECIAL EDUCATION SPECIFIC STUDENT Section 226.310 Related Services “Each school district shall ensure that related services (defined in 34 CFR 300.34) are provided if necessary to assist an eligible child in benefiting from his or her special education.” (Source: Amended at 31 Ill. Reg. 9915, effective June 28, 2007)

What happened? What is being done now? How can this be changed? So in Illinois the state and Federal Law were the same, as related to O&M instruction What happened? What is being done now? How can this be changed?

Instruction in the Community May Include: Image Description: O&M instructor teaching a child how to travel on an escalator, courtesy google images Instruction in residential neighborhoods, including the address system; instruction in street crossings, small business areas, and cities such as Chicago Instruction in the use of the public transportation system, including the city bus,light rail, or subway so that the person can get to college or work; Instruction in store familiarization at grocery stores, instruction in traveling around a mall, and shopping centers, instruction on how to ride an escalator and elevator

How can community instruction and related concerns be promoted and addressed in the school system? SOME IDEAS: Educate peers, school administrators & students Collaborate with parent groups (NAPVI- National Association of Parents with Visual Impairments Join professional organizations such as: AER Division #9 Hire a lobbyist to advocate for bills to return to the original IDEA law Be active in Illinois Association of O&M Specialists (IAOMS) www.iaoms.education HOW ELSE CAN WE PROMOTE THIS FORM OF INSTUCTION?

WHAT ABOUT O&M INSTRUCTORS NOT ACVREP CERTIFIED? Under ISBE 23 ILLINOIS ADMINISTRATIVE CODE 226 226.850 SUBTITLE A SUBCHAPTER f Section 226.850 List of Qualified Workers, Orientation and Mobility Specialists must be ACVREP certified; in other words, O&M specialists who work in the school systems have an ethical, but not legal, obligation to adhere to the Code of Ethics set forth in Section 5 in the COMS Handbook ACVREP CERTIFIED COMS COMS disseminates information to parents and other educators about the importance of community instruction (Commitment to Learner, #5) COMS determines whether to keep or accept a job dependent on whether the school district has abandoned the principles of O&M, unless the COMS is willing to promote change or modification to the practice. (Commitment to Professional Employment #1) WHAT ABOUT O&M INSTRUCTORS NOT ACVREP CERTIFIED? Not ethically bound to ACVREP BUT should work to change the position of the school district Get parents on board as well… https://www.acvrep.org/ascerteon/c ontrol/certifications/coms-code

It’s ALL About YOU!!!

Choose a Role Facilitator: Keep an eye on the time and keep the discussion flowing Scribe (Poster): record discussion points on the provided poster paper Scribe (Electronic): record discussion points in electronic format and email to presenters sbussey@alliedinstructional.com valeryherring@yahoo.com Reporter

IDEA 2004 states “qualified personnel”. What does “qualified” imply? What is “Community based Instruction” in the world of O&M, and how to put this language back into Illinois law? What key words would get the attention of School Administration? What modes of transportation or loopholes have you used to get your students out into the community?

sbussey@alliedinstructional.com valeryherring@yahoo.com Thank you for participating in Justifying O&M Instruction in the Community Presentation. Please feel free to contact Valery Herring or Sarah Bussey at the emails below: sbussey@alliedinstructional.com valeryherring@yahoo.com