AFB Press Publishes Collaborative Assessment: Working with Students Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired, Including Those with Additional Disabilities

For Immediate Release
Contact:

Brent Hopkins
(212) 502-7676
bhopkins@afb.net

New York—Developing a clear and detailed picture of all the special educational needs that are encountered with students with disabilities is never a simple matter. Accurate assessment becomes an even more complex affair, however, when working with children who are blind or visually impaired—particularly if they have multiple disabilities.

Collaboration is of paramount importance in the assessment process in these cases, since no one discipline or specialty has all of the tools necessary to understand a student. An alliance of family members and professionals can offer a well-rounded picture of the child by allowing each participant an opportunity to compare the findings of his or her discipline with those from other perspectives.

To assist educators with the implementation of the collaborative assessment model for their blind and visually impaired students, AFB Press—the publishing arm of the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB)—has released Collaborative Assessment: Working with Students Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired, Including Those with Additional Disabilities, edited by Stephen A. Goodman and Stuart H. Wittenstein. Based on successful techniques developed by the California School for the Blind, Collaborative Assessment shows how close collaboration among members of the assessment team enriches and ensures the effectiveness of the assessment process. The book is designed for all educators, families, administrators, and related personnel who are involved in performing educational assessments of students who are blind or visually impaired.

"One disability often masks another," said AFB president and CEO Carl R. Augusto. "For instance, a reading disability in a child with low vision might be hidden by vision issues until later in the student's academic life. That's why it's critical that professionals from several fields consult with the experts in vision."

To order online, go to www.afb.org and click on Bookstore. Orders can also be placed by calling (800) 232-3044 or e-mailing afborder@abdintl.com. Collaborative Assessment (ISBN: 0-89128-869-4, paperback; ISBN: 0-89128-870-8, ASCII disk) costs $49.95.

The American Foundation for the Blind—the organization to which Helen Keller devoted her life—is a national nonprofit whose mission is to eliminate the inequities faced by the 10 million Americans who are blind or visually impaired. Visit AFB online at www.afb.org.

August 2003