January is Braille Literacy Month, a great time to consider how braille has brought written communication to countless people with blindness and low vision.
In celebration of Braille Literacy Month, this week’s blogpost will cover some braille basics.
1. What is braille?
According to the American Foundation for the Blind, “Braille is a system of raised dots that can be read with the fingers.…Braille symbols are formed within units of space known as braille cells. A full braille cell consists of six raised dots arranged in two parallel rows each having three dots. The dot positions are identified by numbers from one through six. Sixty-four combinations are possible using one or more of these six dots. A single cell can be used to represent an alphabet letter, number, punctuation mark, or even a whole word.”
2. Who invented braille?
Louis Braille, the creator of braille, was born in January 1809, in Coupvray, a small French town east of Paris. An accident when he was 3 years old caused Louis to become completely blind by the time he was 5. Though most blind children weren’t educated in those days, Braille’s parents were determined that Louis receive a good education. At first, Louis was taught by the town priest, but soon, he was mainstreamed and attended the local school. Eventually, the priest learned about the Institute for Blind Youth, a school for the blind in Paris. Louis, age 10, was accepted to the school and attended on scholarship. One day, French Army Captain Charles Barbier, visited the school to share a system he had created for soldiers who needed to communicate soundlessly at night. The system used raised dots to represent sounds. Louis and his teachers were intrigued by the system, but he believed it was too complicated and too limited to meet the needs of blind people. Using Barbier’s concept of raised dots, Louis spent the next several years creating a new code that was far easier to learn and use. Braille’s system was completed by the time he was 16.
3. How is Braille used today?
Nowadays, many people access books and other written materials through audio technology. In light of technological advances, some wonder if braille remains relevant. Paths of Literacy, an organization that provides information and educational materials for teachers and families concerned with the literacy of children with disabilities, answers that question as follows: “We think that the most helpful response is to ask if they think that sighted children should still learn to read print, now that audio books are available. What would a parent or administrator think if it were suggested that we could get rid of pencils and pens now that computers and digital devices are so readily available.”
Clearly, parents and administrators would not be pleased if their children’s schools did away with pencils, pens and books in print. Likewise, many braille users believe that braille has an important place alongside technology. For example, some users at Perkins School for the Blind find “they get more out of reading braille then listening to audio.” Others say that braille is a better way of learning math, science and languages. Still others feel that reading braille helps them with their writing.
So let’s celebrate! If you are interested in learning more about braille, Paths of Literacy has free resources available here. The American Institute for the Blind has information for parents of braille users here.