HYDERABAD: A team from Ethiopia that wants to replicate the education facilities available at Devnar School for The Blind to aid visually impaired students to pursue academics, has visited the school here on Tuesday.
The representatives of Gudina Tumsa Foundation said that though there is one school back in their country where blind students study, they are poorly furnished and that they will work with the government there to establish exclusive schools dedicated to visually challenged.
Lensa Gudina, founder and managing director of Gudina Tumsa Foundation, said, “We have one school that is dedicated for the blind students where only music and few other skills are taught. We will work with the Ethiopian government to establish schools for the blind in the future.” “The experience shared here will help us to replicate, and multiply in Ethiopia,” said Tsegaye Gerba, special needs education coordinator at the foundation.
Meanwhile, founder and chairman of Devnar Foundation for the Blind, Dr A Saibaba Goud said that with 550 students from Class I to Intermediate, their is the largest school and the facilities available there are of international standards. The school uses screen reading software to help the blind as well as partially blind students to learn to operate computers while a machine called ‘Clear view plus speech’ helps those with low vision to read.
Providing braille ballot papers
The facilities available at the Devnar School for the Blind are used to print braille ballot papers and number stickers, which are pasted on Electronic Voting Machines to help visually challenged to cast their votes. In 2016, the school extended this service during GHMC elections, printing braille ballot papers in Telugu, Urdu and English. The school’s administration said they would provide the same service during Assembly polls upon receiving orders.