I would just like to posit to the list that the title of the two research articles are “Crip for a Day” and “Stumbling in their shoes”. The titles alone really make me question the awareness of the authors and tainting of the data through researcher perceptions. A review article in our field just looking at methods and researcher perceptions would be a read I would enjoy! The more recent article’s methods and focus was purely social perception and the there was no context shared about training or personal perceptions from early ages shaping behavior and capability. I think we need quality research on this subject that speak to our use of the methods as a training tool and perhaps pits individuals with visual impairments compared to sighted individuals where the sighted individuals can self-reflect on their own ‘lack’ of ability to use their other senses. Basically, let the individual with a visual impairment outpace the sighted person with a simulator. Simultaneously demonstrate the challenge and the fact that it can be overcome. Sean Tikkun stikkun@niu.edu<mailto:stikkun@niu.edu> Assistant Project Director Project VITALL & UEBOT Team Northern Illinois University uebot.niu.edu [cid:image001.png@01D2CFD6.CBB3B9B0] -Sean From: AERNet <aernet-bounces@lists.aerbvi.org> on behalf of Ike Presley <ipresley@afb.net> Date: Wednesday, May 17, 2017 at 8:25 AM To: "aernet@lists.aerbvi.org" <aernet@lists.aerbvi.org>, "ga-vi@googlegroups.com" <ga-vi@googlegroups.com>, Quality Indicators for Assistive Technology <QIAT@LSV.UKY.EDU>, "'visionrehabtherapist@freelists.org'" <visionrehabtherapist@freelists.org> Subject: [AERNet] Simulation Activities, Part 2 Hi All, If you are interested, I received some very nice replies to this message. Our colleague, Maureen Duffy, pointed me to a blog she did for VisionAware back in 2015 on this topic citing another research study that had a similar outcome. You can check it out below. New Research: "Blindness Simulation" Activities May Do More Harm than Good http://www.visionaware.org/blog/visionaware-blog/new-research-blindness-simulation-activities-may-do-more-harm-than-good-1746/12 I think it would be awesome if our field could get together, along with people who are blind or have low vision, and put together some good activities to do with sighted people (or “sight dependent people” as I like to call them sometimes, LOL) that will help raise their awareness of the competencies of blind people and people with low vision. Hopefully we can include some activities about how things are made inaccessible because of poor planning and lack of knowledge like website accessibility. Could this be a project that might get started at the consumer conferences (NFB & ACB) this summer and then continue next summer at AER? We all know that the general public’s awareness has been tainted by the media and common misconceptions throughout history. I personally think that this is one of the biggest reasons we see such low employment because potential employers have no idea and cannot imagine how someone with limited or no sight can do the jobs at their business. A good awareness and educational program might go a long way to improving this situation. Please share your thoughts & ideas, and if you are interested in such a project, please let me know. I’m not exactly sure what I can do about it now, but maybe I’ve just found my project for my retirement in a few years. Thanks for your consideration, Ike Hi All, I know that there are varying opinions about simulation activities like dining in the dark. If you are interested in this topic please check out the link to the article below. Finally, many of us have noticed that simulation activities (such as Dining in the Dark) are popular ways to raise awareness about disabilities. However, they often can be more harmful than positive. The following link helps explain why (and is also a great example of why knowledge is so important): https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/04/170411151019.htm. Ike Presley, TVI, CLVT, CATIS National Project Manager American Foundation for the Blind 739 W. Peachtree St., Suite 250 Atlanta, GA 30308 404-525-2303 www.afb.org<http://www.afb.org/>