Interview with Frank Strong
Dr. Kirk, Here is my responses to your student’s thoughtful questions.
I hope they are helpful. fs
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Q: Do people who are blind get scared when they hear noises from people or objects near them if they didn’t know they were there (that’s when I was most scared during the simulation of being blind and using a cane). How do they not get hurt on a daily basis? (Christina)
Frank Strong: Yes, people who are blind are often startled by loud and unexpected noises. However, surprises startle anyone. Blind people are not necessarily more easily frightened than others. I haven’t noticed a lot of unusual responses to loud or unexpected noises from blind people.
In answer to your second question, blind people do not experience accidents as a result to these startling noises. However, one problem that does confront blind people is when someone who had been near a blind person quietly leaves the area. In situations as this, a blind person could be talking to a person who is no longer there. This can be rather disconcerting and embarrassing. Also a person who is blind may have difficulty identifying someone simply by their voice. It is usually good manners to identify oneself when you approach a blind person. Some blind people have a remarkable skill for voice recognition. However, many other blind people do not have this particular gift.
Q: Is it rude to stop and help someone who is blind or in a wheelchair with whatever is in his/her way? (Heather)
Frank Strong: No, it is not rude to assist anyone who needs help. A blind person with good travel skills should be able to avoid whatever obstacles are placed in front of them. A person in a wheelchair might need an object moved to clear a pathway. When in doubt about whether an action is rude or not, it is usually good manners to ask the person with a disability if they want or need assistance. In other words, by asking the blind or otherwise disabled person whether they need help empowers the disabled person to decide whether they want the help. This interaction empowers the person with a disability and initiates a dialog.
Please bear in mind that a person who declines your help may feel they wish to do this particular task on their own. Offering to help someone is a good thing, accepting the response and respecting the wishes of another person is even better.
Q: How do people cope with being blind day after day without being depressed? (John)
Frank Strong: The way that blind people overcome the tendency or the trap of depression is by overcoming the barriers they encounter. Through training, employment and advocacy blind people like other minority groups have united to deal with and surmount the problems that they encounter. Organizations of and for the blind help blind people achieve success, independence, and life fulfillment.
Anyone can suffer from depression. The temptation toward discouragement and despair can be overwhelming, however, with a positive attitude people have and do overcome the challenges they face. It is often the case that those who encounter the greatest challenges are those who succeed the most. People like Ben Franklin, Louis Braille, Ed Roberts (the father of Independent living), and Abe Lincoln began from humble birthrights. However, their determination outstripped the widely held view that they couldn’t succeed. Perhaps the reason they succeeded was due in large part to the challenges they overcame.
Dealing with blindness is a daily and often minute to minute challenge but many blind people have succeeded in their lives. Success is perhaps the most powerful antidote to depression.
Q: Do disabled people ever get used to having a disability or are they constantly challenged? (Allison)
Frank Strong: Yes, people with disabilities become accustom to their challenges and design techniques which help them successfully perform activities of daily living. Although people with disabilities use different ways to achieve the same task, we still figure out ways which work for us.
Q: Is there a way to combat dyslexia or is it something over time people learn to recognize and then change their thought process? (Kim)
Frank Strong: I believe that people who have dyslexia often identify techniques which help them decipher printed materials. In addition, people with dyslexia may use techniques which help them avoid situations which require reading. Although this may not be a reading technique, it may be a coping and survival mechanism.
Q: How can people with dyslexia focus on printed material to take college tests? Do they get extra time to take tests? (Jeremy H.)
Frank Strong: I believe, in some cases people with dyslexia are given additional time to take tests. However, if they are given extra time this can skew the results of the test for the overall group of individuals taking the examination. Sometimes accommodations like live readers or recorded tests can be given to people with dyslexia. These techniques often help the person with dyslexia understand and compete on equal footing with other students
Q: Do people with dyslexia take medication to help with reading? (Jeremy M.)
Frank Strong: No, I do not believe that people with dyslexia take medications to help with reading.
Q: How do those that are visually impaired cross busy streets and travel around busy roadways? (Erika)
Frank Strong: People with severe visual impairments cross the street by listening to traffic. The noise of cars going in a direction parallel to the path being followed by the blind person is the usual technique. Listening to cars idling means that a traffic light has been illuminated so therefore traffic has been stopped until the light changes.
Blind people use guide dogs and white canes to identify themselves as people who cannot see traffic. White cane safety laws are in existence throughout the United States to educate the public about the need for respecting the rights and safety of blind people traveling independently in the community.
Safe travel is a training topic which surmounts other training areas. If a blind person can travel independently, their likelihood of success is much greater than those who cannot. We in this country prize our independence and promote the independence of others.
Obviously individuals who are employed need to travel independently and this usually requires travel in the community. Traffic is therefore a major issue for blind people and, for all pedestrians. As the number and speed of vehicles increases, the danger for all non-drivers increases as well. Remember safety is no accident.
Q: How can we make this campus more accessible? (Allie)
Frank Strong: The way you can make the campus more accessible is by presenting trainings like this Disability Awareness Training (that Dr. Kirk did in class). Also work with the disability resource center to make them aware of barriers facing people with disabilities. You may also make a personal commitment to help blind and otherwise disabled students on your campus. Many of the accommodations are at no cost and actually increase the accessibility for everybody. The campus general services agency would be a place to address specific accessibility problem areas.
Q: How do some people who have real difficulties communicating because of a speech disability function in their daily life? (Andro)
Frank Strong: People who have speech disabilities often use alternative methods of communication. Devices such as augmented communication systems generate a computer like speech to communicate to others. Alternatively, a simple flip chart with pictures or hand writing can be used to communicate with others. Gestures and body language also work for people with speech disorders.
Q: Is it easier to be born disabled then it is to have this happen to you in your adult life? (Michelle)
Frank Strong: I think it is an individual experience for each person. People with disabilities come in groups of one. It is difficult to determine whether being born with a disability or becoming disabled is easier. Some people have uncanny talents for adapting to their environments and succeeding where others fail. Adapting and succeeding are dependent upon the individual, his or her environment, and the expectations and acceptance of the able-bodied community.
One area that is a major concern for people with disabilities is a lack of social skills. This lack of social skills comes from a lack of opportunity and a lack of integration in the community. Without integration and social activities, people with disabilities become more socially and physically isolated. Often social skills are mentored to young people but sometimes young people are not given the opportunity to learn these skills. These skills are not learned in a vacuum. Stimulation, experience, and expectations play major roles in developing valuable social skills.
Social skills are one of the priorities for centers for independent living. The training of these skills help people with disabilities become better able to interact with peers, employers and the general public. If a person with a disability has good social skills, their potential for success in the community at large is greatly enhanced.
Q: What are some ways to help a blind individual get around easier without a guide? Is there special training or is it just all experience? (Ben)
Frank Strong: To help a blind person travel about in an area, it is usually best to allow the blind person to grasp the guide’s arm at about the elbow area. By taking this manner of travel, the sighted person will naturally avoid barriers and, when approaching steps either going up or down, will telegraph these movements to the blind person. This sighted guide technique usually works well for assisting a blind person. Before any help is provided, please ask the blind person if they wish to be assisted.
Q: How do people with loss of physical dexterity count change? How do people
with dyslexia see writing on a paper/how do they read it? (Nicole)
Frank Strong: People with fine motor- skill impairments count change with some difficulty due to their disability. Many times they prepare for purchases by having the funds ready for exchange to the store clerk. Sometimes the person with the fine-motor skill impairment will be assisted by another person or the store clerk.
How do people with dyslexia see items on paper, they often see writing as garbled or laid out in an awkward or jumbled fashion. Sometimes their disability is so severe that they cannot read print. However, people with dyslexia often can decipher printed material through concentration and practice. Keeping messages simple is always a plus.
Q: How does someone with a sight disability know they are in the right place?
(Kelly)
Frank Strong: A person with a vision disability knows they are in the right place by
asking someone or being familiar with the environment’s landmarks. I recall one blind individual who needed to find a particular house in an older part of town. This individual used landmarks like sidewalks, steps and even the siding on the house to identify the proper home. Sometimes sounds like street traffic and gentle breezes in the environment serve as landmarks. A reliable landmark is a set of wind chimes.
Q: What services are available for someone with a disability? (Audra)
Frank Strong: The services for people with disabilities are nearly as varied as people with disabilities themselves. People with disabilities can receive a relatively small number of services such as medication management and housekeeping chores to live independently. In other situations, individuals may receive many, many services throughout their lives. Services vary widely from independent living services to training to job placement services.
People with disabilities receive training which helps them learn activities of daily living. In addition, people with disabilities are served through state funded Department of Vocational Rehabilitation programs and also through the veteran’s administration. These programs are eligibility based and are dependant upon a person’s severity of disability, likelihood of success in a job and, availability of funds. Originally vocational rehabilitation programs were designed for soldiers returning from World War II. These programs have been expanded over the decades to serve people who have not had military experience. Some of your taxes go to support these programs. These programs help people with disabilities return to or achieve gainful employment so that they can live successful independent and fulfilling lives.
Independent Living centers provide services which include peer support, advocacy, information and referral, and independent living skills training. Centers for Independent Living were created on a college campus and are primarily training and advocacy programs for people with all kinds of disabilities. There are 600 centers for independent living in the United States.
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