The CBA Teaching and Learning Committee has created a blog to help people become more informed about UEB and its implementation (bnobel.wordpress.com). This blog contains text and audio files that provide the background information about the development of Unified English Braille and some comments from stakeholders in Australia where the new code has been implemented.
A new section has been set up of resources for teachers, including a link to SET-BC's classroom teachers working with braille reading students.
Three documents are now online: one pdf of print calculus problems, one pdf of simbraille and one brf file of UEB transcriptions, available under UEB Resources for Transcribers.
Transcripts of meetings discussing braille in linguistic minority communities: Tuesday, March 3, 2009, Thursday, March 5, 2009.
The Braille Authority of North America announced today that it is making plans for the evaluation of the recently completed Nemeth Uniform Braille System (NUBS).
According to its developer, Dr. Abraham Nemeth, NUBS is an updated version of the Nemeth code, which has been in use since 1972. The new system has been in development for ten years and is capable of rendering both literary and technical texts.
"BANA deliberates very carefully before making even small changes to braille," said Judith Dixon, BANA chairperson. "We want to ensure that braille readers have access to the same information as do their print-reading counterparts in this age in which the norms for printed material are evolving rapidly. However, it is essential that we understand the impact of any changes on readability, writeability, space considerations, familiarity to current braille readers, etc. The benefits of making any change must be shown to outweigh the drawbacks."
The timeline and other details of the evaluation process are still being determined. The evaluation will involve the input of all stakeholders, and information on how those interested can provide input will be made available soon.
To view the completed code, or to read documents explaining the code, visit www.braille2000.com/brl2000/nubs.htm.
The mission and purpose of the Braille Authority of North America are to assure literacy for tactile readers through the standardization of braille and/or tactile graphics. BANA promotes and facilitates the use, teaching and production of braille. It publishes rules, interprets and renders opinions pertaining to braille in all existing codes. It deals with codes now in existence or to be developed in the future, in collaboration with other countries using English braille. In exercising its function and authority, BANA considers the effects of its decisions on other existing braille codes and formats; the ease of production by various methods; and acceptability to readers.
For additional resource information, visit www.brailleauthority.org.
CONTACT: Judith Dixon, Chairperson
Braille Authority of North America
PHONE: 1-202-707-0722
E-MAIL: jdix@loc.gov
The Braille Authority of North America (BANA) will hold its spring meeting in Burlingame, California, from March 15-17, 2009. This meeting is being hosted by the California Transcribers and Educators of the Visually Handicapped (CTEVH), a BANA member organization, and overlaps with their annual conference.
A centerpiece of the two and a half day meeting will be the Open Forum, which BANA holds during each of its semiannual meetings.
Saturday, March 14, 2009, 2:45-4:15 PM
BANA Open Forum -- Tell it to BANA!
Location:
San Francisco Airport MarriottJudith Dixon, BANA Chair, and the other members of the Braille Authority of North America are extending an invitation to this forum because we want to hear from braille readers (of all ages) and from educators, transcribers, proofreaders, and parents regarding their thoughts about braille. There will be plenty of opportunity for participants to learn more about how BANA functions and about current BANA projects. Don't miss this opportunity to ask questions and voice your opinions on braille by attending this Open Forum. To reserve your spot at the Forum and to help ensure accurate counts for handouts, contact Sue Reilly at 619-725-5651 or e-mail sreilly@sandi.net no later than Monday, March 9. If you are already attending the CTEVH conference, select session 805 to attend the Forum.
The spring meeting of the Braille Authority of North America will be held at the San Francisco Airport Marriott hotel. BANA sessions begin at 9:00 a.m. on Sunday, March 15, and end at 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday, March 17th. A highlight of this meeting will be the presentation of the first ever BANA Braille Excellence Award to Dr. Abraham Nemeth; the award will be presented at the CTEVH brunch on Sunday, March 15 at 10:00 a.m.
Guests are welcome to attend the BANA meetings and observe the deliberations. Space is limited, so to reserve a seat, please contact BANA Chair Judith Dixon to register your desire to observe any or all of the BANA sessions.
The mission and purpose of the Braille Authority of North America are to assure literacy for tactile readers through the standardization of braille and/or tactile graphics. BANA promotes and facilitates the use, teaching and production of braille. It publishes rules, interprets and renders opinions pertaining to braille in all existing codes. It deals with codes now in existence or to be developed in the future, in collaboration with other countries using English braille. In exercising its function and authority, BANA considers the effects of its decisions on other existing braille codes and formats; the ease of production by various methods; and acceptability to readers.
For additional resource information, visit www.brailleauthority.org.
In honor of the 200th birthday of Louis Braille, The Braille Authority of North America (BANA) has created the Braille Excellence Award. This award will be given to people or organizations that have developed or contributed to a code, have developed code materials, or software that supports codes, and/or who represent the highest standards of braille production. The first award is being given to Dr. Abraham Nemeth for his contributions making math and science accessible for blind people around the world.
Abraham Nemeth was born completely blind in 1918, in New York City, where he spent most of his life. Although mathematics instantly became a passion for Nemeth, he was encouraged by his counselors to pursue a degree in psychology at Brooklyn College. Following his bachelor’s degree, he continued his education at Columbia University, where he earned his master’s in psychology, while attending evening classes in physics and mathematics. As the math courses became increasingly more difficult, Nemeth proceeded to develop his own system of braille mathematics, adopted in the U.S. in 1952, named the Nemeth Braille Code for Mathematics and Science Notation. Shortly after the development of his code, he joined the Department of Mathematics at the University of Detroit, where he created a system of communicating mathematical formulas, called MathSpeak. During this time Nemeth received a Ph.D in mathematics from Wayne State University. Abraham Nemeth’s contributions have made math and science accessible for blind people around the world.
The Braille Excellence Award will be presented at the Spring BANA Board meeting to be held in conjunction with the California Transcribers and Educators of the Visually Handicapped (CTEVH) conference in March, 2009. The award will be presented at the CTEVH brunch on Sunday, March 15 at 10:00 a.m.
BANA will meet from March 15-17, 2009 at the San Francisco Airport Marriott Hotel. This meeting is being hosted by CTEVH, a BANA member organization, and overlaps with their annual conference.
The mission and purpose of the Braille Authority of North America are to assure literacy for tactile readers through the standardization of braille and/or tactile graphics. BANA promotes and facilitates the use, teaching and production of braille. It publishes rules, interprets and renders opinions pertaining to braille in all existing codes. It deals with codes now in existence or to be developed in the future, in collaboration with other countries using English braille. In exercising its function and authority, BANA considers the effects of its decisions on other existing braille codes and formats; the ease of production by various methods; and acceptability to readers.
For additional resource information, visit www.brailleauthority.org.
Job posting: Braille proofreader, Ottawa, with T-Base Communications.
The first of the secret messages for the School Braille Challenge has been posted.
The document, Learn the Unified English Braille Code, is now available.
The CBA launches the Braille Challenge.
The September 2008 CBA newsletter has been released in HTML format. Follow this link, or the "Current Newsletter" in the navigation bar above.
Also, the CBA announces the establishment of a scholarship in memory of Edie Mourre.
Braille Authority of North America (BANA) has completed a revision of the literary braille code used in North America. These revisions, which are effective January 1, 2008, can be found on the BANA website at: http://www.brailleauthority.org/update07.html.
Vancouver BC, April 26, 2007—The Canadian Braille Authority, (CBA), has received a grant of $191,800 from the Government of Canada's Adult Learning, Literacy And Essential Skills Program, to conduct a two-year feasibility study for the Unified English Braille Code.
The Canadian Braille Authority (CBA) is a non-profit organization that promotes braille as the primary literacy tool for people who are blind.
Currently, braille users must learn different versions of braille to indicate words, math, computer notation or chemistry. Unified English Braille (UEB) may facilitate access to various types of information with a code that is consistent across subject areas.
UEB has been adopted in Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. The United Kingdom, Canada, the United States and Nigeria, have endorsed UEB for international use, but have not officially adopted the new code.
The goals of the CBA's research project are:
"The funds we received will allow CBA to do some much-needed research and to prepare for the implementation of UEB in Canada if that is recommended. This is an important time in the history of braille, because what we decide to do will significantly influence the education of people who are blind," says Betty Nobel, President of the Canadian Braille Authority.
The Canadian Braille Authority (CBA) was established in 1990 as a non-profit organization promoting braille as a primary medium for persons who are blind.
Braille is a tactile system of raised dots representing letters of the alphabet. To read braille, the fingers move over braille dots that have been embossed onto paper or refreshed line by line on an electronic braille display. For note taking, a stylus is used to punch out the dots on paper held in a metal slate. The readable raised dots appear on the other side of the paper. Invented by Frenchman Louis Braille in 1829, braille allows people who are blind to read and provides essential access to information.
For more information, please contact:
Betty Nobel
Department Head
Vancouver Community College
Program for the Visually Impaired
1155 East Broadway Vancouver BC, V5T 4V5
Phone: 604-871-7339
Email:bnobel@vcc.ca
Website: http://vi.vcc.ca
Canadian Braille Authority votes to move forward with Unified English Braille Code implementation
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