THE METHOD OF TEACHING AND EXAMINATION FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH VISUAL IMPAIRMENTS: THE SYSTEM IN INDIA AND JAPAN Ritwika LASKAR Department of Education Alipurduar Mahila Mahavidyalaya West Bengal, India

Вовед: Образованието на деца со посебни потреби е важно подрачје за истражување. Децата со посебни потреби имаат право на образование како и сите други луѓе. Во текот на годините, обезбедени се неколку одредби и закони што го поддржуваат образованието на деца со посебни потреби. Потребите и целите за учење на децата со визуелно оштетување не се разликуваат од оние на врсниците без нарушување на видот. Различни се само начините на постигнување на тие цели. Цел: Целта на ова истражување е да се споредат распространетиот метод на предавање и системот за испрашување на ученици со визуелно оштетување, коишто учат во посебни училишта за слепи во Индија и во Јапонија. Методологија: Истражувањето е разграничено на i) само слепи ученици и ii) посебни училишта за слепи во Калкута и во Токио. Беше користена техника за одбирање примерок со цел за да се одберат 50 наставници (по 25 од посебните училишта во Калкута и во Токио). Истражувачот спроведе интервју со наставниците. Беше користен полуструктуиран прашалник за прибирање податоци, а податоците беа анализирани само квалитативно. Introduction: Education of children with special needs is an important field of study. Children with special needs deserve to be educated like any other human being. Over the years, several provisions have been made and laws have been passed to ensure education of children with special needs. A visually impaired child’s needs and goals for learning are not different from that of his sighted peers. Only the means of achieving those goals are different. Objective: The purpose of this study was to compare the prevalent method of teaching and the system of examination for students with Visual Impairment studying in the special schools for the blind in India and Japan. Methodology: The study was delimited to i) blind students only and ii) the special schools for the blind in Kolkata and Tokyo. Purposive sampling technique was used to select 50 teachers (25 each from the special schools for the blind in Kolkata and Tokyo). The researcher interviewed the teachers. Semi–structured information schedules were used to collect data and the data were analyzed only qualitatively.

(2) According to the Law for the Welfare of Physically Disabled Persons in Japan, visual impairment is defined clinically in terms of: 1. Visual acuity (as measured in accordance with the International Vision Chart and measured degree of correctness; hereafter the same) of both eyes being 0.1 or less; 2. Visual acuity of one eye at 0.02 or less and the other at 0.6 or less; 3. Visual field diameter 10 degree or less of both eyes; 4. Visual field defect of more than 50% in both eyes. The educational needs of students with Visual Impairment are not different from any other seeing individual. Just as any other person, even a visually impaired individual deserves to be educated and made self-dependant so that they are able to establish themselves as contributing members of the society. However, their means of achieving those needs are different especially because one of their senses does not function properly. It is the responsibility of the teacher to address the needs and implement procedures and teaching methods that would help an individual in unfolding his/her latent abilities and potentials (3,4). From teacher's point of view, it is important to look not only at education in their own country, but also at educational practices in other countries and learning from each other by searching out information and exchanging opinions and expertise at global level (5,6). The present study is a comparative work between two metropolitan cities of India and Japan regarding their system of educating the blind. The researcher chose these two nations mainly because one is a Developing nation а другата развиена нација. Јапонија исто така има изградено своја препознатлива марка на полето на технологијата. Компаративното истражување ќе помогне да се анализира методот на предавање и испитување на лицата со визуелно оштетување во двете земји. Како технолошки напредна нација, генерално се пртпоставува дека во споредба со Индија, Јапонија би имала подобри методи и образовни можности за нејзината популација со визуелно оштетување. Ова истражување е значајно зашто ќе помогне да се дознае дали тоа е вистина; и ако е вистина, тогаш како и до кој степен може да се импровизира и да се имплементира методот во индиското сценарио. and the other a Developed nation. Japan has also made its mark in the field of technology. A comparative study would help in analyzing the method of teaching and examining individuals with visual impairment in both countries. Being a technologically advanced nation, it is generally assumed that when compared to India, Japan will have better methods and educational opportunities for their Visually Impaired population. This study is important because it will help finding out whether this assumption is true; and if it is true then how and to what extent the method can be improvised and implemented in the Indian scenario.
for the Blind. All three schools are run by the government. Purposive sampling technique was used. The sample included 25 teachers from the special schools in Kolkata and 25 teachers from the special schools in Tokyo. The survey was carried out during the academic year 2009-2010 in the period from December to May. Tools Semi-structured information schedules were used to collect data from the teachers. The schedules were first administered to the viceprincipal of the special schools in Tokyo and the teacher-in-charge of the special schools in Kolkata.
Based on their responses and suggestions the schedules were modified and the final schedule was administered to the teachers. Face-to-face interviews were conducted by the researcher and the responses of the teachers were recorded. The responses helped in 1. Determining the method of teaching blind students studying in the special schools in Kolkata and Tokyo; 2. Determining the system of examination adopted in the special schools. Analysis of the data The survey was conducted to collect data regarding the existing teaching practices (7). The collected data was analysed only qualitatively. The method of teaching and the system of examination followed in the special schools in Kolkata and Tokyo were compared on the basis of the data collected from the teachers during the survey. Since semistructured information schedules were used, the responses were detailed and comprehensive. The responses were descriptive in nature and permitted the researcher to understand the existing practices (7).

Табела 2. Вид испитување спроведно во посебните училишта во Токио
pass/fail criterion. Students had to score a minimum of 25-30% of the total marks to pass. Passing Braille was compulsory. In one special school (BBA) passing Physical Education was compulsory. But in Tokyo, in all special schools there was no strict pass/fail criterion. Importance was attached to attendance. Education, being free and compulsory from class I to class IX in Tokyo, all the students had to enrol themselves in class I and finish the compulsory school going stage. The semester examinations were mainly conducted to see how much the students had been able to understand and also to identify the slow learners.
In the schools of Kolkata, it was seen that a student was allowed to continue in the same class for two consecutive years. In case of repeated failure in the same class, they were given transfer certificates. In Tokyo there was no strict pass/fail criterion. So, if a student was unable to cope with the standard of a particular class, then he was taught according to his ability. All the students had to complete the stage of compulsory education (Classes I to IX).
keyboards as they were gradually taught to use those.
In the schools in Tokyo, blind students should be introduced to the normal keyboard along with Braille key boards in order to reduce their dependence on the latter. Objective II All the schools in Tokyo followed a uniform system of examining the students. So, even if a student moved from one special school to another, he did not face any problems in adjusting to the system of examination. But, in Kolkata, the system of examination was not uniform and in case a child shifted from one special school to another he had to get himself accustomed to the system of examination followed in that particular special school. In Tokyo, there was no formal system of examination till class VI. In Kolkata, on the other hand, examinations were compulsory. Both oral and written examinations were prevalent in Kolkata.
The method of examination for subjects like Physical Education and Craft was similar in both places. There was no system of theoretical or practical examination for the subjects like Mobility Training or Daily Living Skills in Tokyo. In Kolkata examinations were held for these subjects.
All the schools in Kolkata should follow a uniform system of examination. Instead of conducting unit tests, half-yearly and annual examinations the schools should shift to semester system to reduce the burden on students.
Exemption of examination till a particular class (as is prevalent in Tokyo) depends on the policies of the government. Therefore, the schools in Kolkata will not have any say in this matter. Even if examinations are exempted, yet the progress and level of students' learning should be regularly monitored.
In the schools of Tokyo, along with observation, practical examinations can be conducted to check the progress of the blind students in the subjects of Independent Activity.
teaching blind children was very similar in many aspects. Differences in the system of examination were evident. The differences existed mainly because in Kolkata all the special schools had their independent administration.