Resources and References

With advances in technology and information sharing, studying critical need languages is within reach for students with low vision or who are blind. The suggestions and resources shared in this informational guide provides a starting point to put in place the necessary combinations of assistive technologies, accessible materials and services for a foreign language course to be accessible.

Additional Resources through the National Clearinghouse on Disability and Exchange

The other component of access focuses on adaptations foreign language teachers can make in designing their methodologies and curriculum. The National Clearinghouse on Disability and Exchange (NCDE) has available tipsheets, resource links, and teletrainings online for teachers to learn some of the techniques to improve universal access for students with disabilities in their classrooms.

The A World Awaits You journal on accessing foreign languages also provides information for making foreign language classes inclusive both in the United States and overseas.

Students who are going abroad to learn a language, can also browse the NCDE website about:

• How to find a language program or professional opportunity in a country where the foreign language is commonly spoken
• Logistical questions in preparing to go abroad, such as traveling with diabetes or a guide dog
• Contacts with blind organizations in the host country
• Ways to connect with others who share the student’s international interests.
  

The NCDE, which is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State and administered by Mobility International USA, provides free informational services by emailing clearinghouse@miusa.org, calling 541-343-1284 (tel/tty), or Windows instant messaging clearinghouse_miusa. The NCDE seeks to increase people with disabilities participating in international exchanges, and provides information for people with disabilities interested in international careers through a free online publication.

Critical Need Language Scholarships

The U.S. federal government’s National Security Language Initiative provides many scholarships for people to learn foreign languages both in the United States and by going overseas. People with and without disabilities are encouraged to apply for these opportunities as part of their study abroad programs or as separate experiences. The NCDE website also lists overseas scholarships that could be used towards language learning.

Learning More about Critical Need Languages in Braille

Many of the critical need languages include thousands of written characters like in Japanese or a script with more consonants than the English language like in Hindi/Urdu. How does the braille system work for these languages considering the standard six-dot cell only allows for 64 different combinations to make unique codes? The answer is transliteration (i.e. writing complex languages phonetically).

In 1953 UNESCO developed the World Braille Usage guide, which was later updated in 1990 with support from the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped. This guide represents the International Phonetic Alphabet and sounds in most foreign languages using six-dot braille codes. (Read pages 3-7 in the online PDF.) It explains, “Braille symbols have typically been developed for particular sounds rather than for letters, especially for languages whose tradition is oral instead of written or whose language contains a large number of complex signs.”

Bharati braille is based on mapping Hindi characters to Latin braille with the assumption the reader will understand and interpret the language (words and structure) because they are familiar with the language.  

“Bharati braille (the braille scheme adopted by India and some South Asian countries) has taken the best approach to presenting Indian language text through conventional braille [six-dots] by using phonetic equivalents from standard English braille to the extent possible. However, since there are only 63 different combinations available, only the basic vowels and the consonants of the Indian languages, about fifty in number, have been accommodated. Medial vowel representations are not possible and in Bharati braille, just the consonant followed by the vowel is written and this is acceptable as a representation for a syllable….Bharati braille achieves uniformity in a remarkable way and the recommendations apply to all the regional languages of India along with Urdu and Sinhalese.”

In Japan, the six-dot standard braille code is typically used also with some modifications. The basic coding is to use the three dots in the upper left corner to represent a vowel and those in the lower right corner to represent a consonant. These are combined to give a syllable and prefixes are used to modify the consonant value. For full information, click here.

Japanese braille is a purely sound-based (phonemic) script; there is no attempt to write kanji using braille. Learners will find similarities between the conventions for Japanese braille similar to those of English and other European languages. Japanese braille is explained further online. In order to transcribe Japanese sentences to braille, two levels of work must be done. First, change Kanji to Kana. Secondly, transcribe Kana to braille based on Japanese braille code. Click here for full details.