Blind as Bat

Bruce Long, a highly appreciated and revered staff member of Dallas Christian College has probably the worst vision I've ever heard. I don't mean he doesn't want to move his department forward in the future, I mean his eyesight is astoundingly bad. Bruce came in on Friday morning and freely shared with the ACCESS students some of his struggles and stories as a student with a learning disability. Bruce's eyesight at its worst was 20/1200. He has since had corrective surgeries and has many devices that help him drive, read, and carry on with normal life. The best he can hope for is 20/80, give or take. However, this was not always the case.

Bruce's poor eyesight is congenital, and it reached its peak (or valley) in the early elementary grades; which also happened to be the time when students were learning to read. Bruce not only struggled with observing and noting what was on the board, but had trouble seeing what was on the pages of a book in his hands only a few inches from his face. He was eventually able to receive corrective lenses later in elementary school, but seeing or reading what we take for granted was still an uphill battle.

What does this mean for me, or for us as teachers? Well, perhaps the biggest kink in the chain is that Bruce KNEW something was "wrong" or "different" about him, and he would risk not being able to see or read well if it meant fitting in. He did all that fitting in required, which, ironically, meant doing very little. A teacher, if checking for understanding, asking about questions the class had, or grading papers COULD have noticed Bruce's condition. It is difficult that Bruce never admitted he needed help, and, even further, made efforts to hide it. However, based on what we heard that day, it's amazing that NONE of his teachers realized his condition and the huge impact it was having on his ability to learn. Perhaps Bruce, an intelligent, driven person could have gone farther with his education, done better in school, or simply had an easier time growing up if only a teacher would have noticed and helped.

Bruce may have terrible eyesight, but it was the people on whom he depended the most for help who seem to be blind as a bat.