Writing and Reading Skills of the Blind as an Aspect of Language Testing: An Overview

Abstract

This paper examines language testing in the writing and reading skills of the blind. The objective of the study is to examine aspects of teaching teachers need to consider while assessing the blind students. The paper looks at the types of writing system and their limitations during learning. It equally discusses basic strategies teachers need to adopt when teaching the blind students for effective teaching and learning. The paper adopts a descriptive analysis to give an overview account of basic skills of writing and reading of the blind which is largely neglected in linguistic discourse. The paper discovers that test selection, test administration and test interpretation are to be considered while assessing writing and reading skills of the visually impaired. Besides, the teacher needs a large dose of patience to inculcate these basic skills in the blind students given the limitations that theses category of students are not freely predisposed to getting and reading textbooks from the library coupled with other environmental challenges that inadequate facilities may impose on them. The study concludes that in other to teach the blind effectively, people around them will have to make some sacrifices to support them.