Best blind schools in Australia – It is important to care for blind and visually impaired people. One of the best ways to care for them is to enroll them in a blind school. If you are around Australia and looking for the best blind schools in Australia, this article is meant for you. It consists the best blind schools in Australia. In order not to waste time, let’s go to the point.
Best Blind Schools In Australia
- Insight Education Centre for the Blind and Vision Impaired
- Narbethong Special School
- Statewide Vision Resource Centre
- William Rose School
- St Lucy’s School, Wahroonga
- Royal Society for the Blind
- Kenmore State High School
- Vision Australia
- Ballarat High School
- The Hutchins School
- Stretton State College
Best Blind Schools In Australia
- Insight Education Centre for the Blind and Vision Impaired
- Narbethong Special School
- Statewide Vision Resource Centre
- William Rose School
- St Lucy’s School, Wahroonga
- Royal Society for the Blind
- Insight Education Centre for the Blind and Vision Impaired
Insight is the only Specialist Primary School and Centre of Excellence for the education of visually impaired or blind students in Australia. They work together with the mainstream education system to make sure all visually impaired and blind students’ needs are met, by giving them the most appropriate setting and curriculum.
They are established to educate, support, and empower blind and vision-impaired Australian children and young people so that they can get to their potential, independence, and self-worth.
The Insight Education Centre for the Blind and Vision Impaired is a new Specialist P-8 School and Centre of Excellence for young people who are visually impaired or blind. Insight is the center of explicit education programs for visually impaired and blind children, irrespective of where they live and go to school.
Till Insight opened its doors in February 2013, there was no longer a school for the visually impaired and blind anywhere in Victoria, Australia. Yet there are over 1000 vision impaired and blind children and young people Victoria-wide, ranging in age from 0–18.
About 70% of Australia’s vision-impaired children will be unemployed as adults. These children need help. They strive daily to gain self-confidence, self-esteem, and life skills and more pertinent, the early building blocks of education – numeracy and literacy. Lots of vision-impaired students do not have full and equal access to the same academic and extra-curricular activities as their peers.
For more information, visit: https://www.volunteer.com.au/
- Narbethong Special School
This is a unique, small special school located at Woolloongabba and provides specialist teaching for vision impaired or blind students. Many families have moved to the location so that their children can have the opportunity to attend school.
Eleven of the teaching staff of Narbethong special school have specific university qualifications in teaching blind and vision impairment. Other teachers of the school have gained much understanding through guidance and professional development over the years of working in the school. They cater to students from birth with their Early childhood Development Programs.
Students from prep to year 12 in Narbethong special school-age programs are also diagnosed with an intellectual impairment. They will require adjustments for autism or hearing and physical impairments.
Narbethong special school takes great pride in showcasing braille teaching, deaf/blind programs, braille with students with additional impairments, and auditory scanning for students with significant vision impairments.
For more information, visit: https://narbethongspecs.eq.edu.au/
- Statewide Vision Resource Centre
Located at 370 Springvale Road, Statewide Vision Resource Centre is established to ensure inclusion and achievement for all students who are vision impaired or blind. They give students specialized teaching, support, materials, and technologies. Not only that, but they also give training, personalized advice, and resources to school staff, visiting teachers, and families across Victoria. It is a service of the Victorian Department of Education and training, giving state-wide leadership in vision impaired and blind education. Statewide vision resource center support about 500 eligible learners in government, catholic, and independent schools. They improve effective and inclusive teaching practices by giving specialized training and support for education. They are looking forward to inclusion and achievement for all students who are vision impaired or blind. The Statewide vision resource center is committed to the value of integrity, accountability, responsiveness, impartiality, leadership, and human rights. These help them shape their work every day, strength to meet the needs of students who are vision impaired or blind. Their families, teachers, and communities are not left out in helping them too.
Victorian Department of Education founded the Visiting Teacher Service for the blind in 1973. It was based at the Carronbank School for Partially Sighted Children and supported by learners in government.
Statewide Vision Resource Centre support for visiting teachers of the blind was founded in 1983. They came from the visiting teacher service when their first dedicated braille transcriber was employed.
For more information, visit this page: https://www.svrc.vic.edu.au/
- William Rose School
This special school gives excellence in sensory and special education for learners through unique, and innovative educational programs. These sets of programs are individualized to fit the learning and sensory needs of every student which may include students with learning impairments, vision, hearing, and students who are blind.
William rose school’s state-of-the-art program prepares its students for the future and motivates them to be happy and productive members of their community. Staffs of the school are professional and highly qualified in the areas of hearing, vision, and special education.
William rose school is dedicated to creating a dynamic, supportive learning environment for kids and is improving their skills through quality learning and development. To learn more about William rose school, visit their website here: https://williamros-s.schools.nsw.gov.au/
- St Lucy’s School, Wahroonga
St. Lucy came into existence in 1938 by Dominican sisters. It has requested to establish a school for children who were blind. St. Lucy was created under the patronage of the traditional proprietress of the blind (St. Lucy). St. Lucy has worked to move from the education of blind children to taking care of students with a wide range of disabilities, including, Austim, intellectual disability, and sensory impairment.
St. Lucy had doubled the number of students. To achieve its aims, new purpose-built amenities have been provided, with a brand new building in the second half of 2020.
In 2019, the school enlarged its service to include high school education, starting with two years and 7 classes. St. Lucy school will be fully kindergarten by 2024.
They have recently expanded their facilities to include a new building in their Wahroonga Campus with 16 classrooms. Each classroom has enhanced technology and sound system that connect to cochlear implants to make sure all students have equal learning opportunities.
The outside and sports areas have a large, imaginative, and challenging background, a ball court, and an indoor gym. All students of St. Lucy school enjoy the physical resources, support required, and technology at their fingertips to see, explore and extend their talents. For more information about St. Lucy school, visit their website using this link: https://www.stlucys.nsw.edu.au/
- Royal Society for the Blind
This is a non-profit making organization providing services to Australians who have blind and vision impairment disabilities. These services are executed by a committed, highly qualified, and professional team supported by volunteers from all age groups and walks of life.
Royal Society for the blind is always ready to assist people to overcome their vision impairment and participate freely in the community.
Their services are evaluated annually through independent client surveys. Royal Society for the blind’s Independent living services provides people with vision impairment with the important skills, equipment, and strategies to live safely and as free as possible.
It has a team of trained Allied Health Professionals who can check the needs of people with vision loss, an make necessary recommendations and teach them how to maximize a wide range of aids and techniques to assist in their day-to-day activities such as washing, meal preparation, house cleaning, gardening, ironing, personal grooming, and money management.
If you wish to know more about the Royal Society for the blind, visit their website here: https://www.rsb.org.au/
Conclusion
Blind schools are established to make visually impaired and blind children live independent life. They play a good role in society. If you have someone around you that has visually impaired disability, these best blind schools in Australia are the perfect place you can take the person to.
Frequently Asked Questions
A person is considered legally blind if they cannot see at six metres what someone with normal vision can see at 60 metres or if their field of vision is less than 20 degrees in diameter.
One out of every 2,500 children born in Australia will be diagnosed with severe vision loss.
Reference(s)
– volunteer.com.au – Insight Education Center for the Blind and Vision Impaired
– svrc.vic.edu.au – Statewide Vision Resource Centre
– williamros – a.school.nsw.gov.au – William Rose School
– stlucy.nsw.edu.au – St Lucy’s School, Wahroonga
– rsb.org.au – Royal Society for the blind
Recommendation(s)
