Education and Early Childhood Development: Services for Students who are Blind or Visually Impaired

Services for Students who are Blind or Visually Impaired

The PEI Department of Education and Early Childhood Development supports the philosophy of inclusion of students who are blind or visually impaired with their peers who are sighted in their community schools.

Services provided through the inter-provincial agency, APSEA, the Atlantic Provinces Special Education Authority, make it possible for each child to receive an appropriate educational program designed to meet the student's individual needs and assist schools in providing the necessary adaptations required by the student.

A student who is diagnosed legally blind or partially sighted by a medical practitioner or optometrist is eligible for APSEA service. Legally blind is defined as having a corrected visual acuity of 6/60, (20/200), or less in the better eye, or a visual field of no more than 20 degrees. Partially sighted is defined as having a corrected acuity of 6/24, (20/70) or less in the better eye.

In Prince Edward Island, APSEA staff include itinerant teachers who offer direct support to students in inclusive settings, a preschool specialist, an orientation and mobility instructor who monitors travel training in the province, and a transition facilitator who assists students and families in the transition from school to adult life.

The majority of these services are provided to students in their local communities, however, requests can be made for 'Center Based Services' which may include short term programming and/or assessment at the APSEA Center in Halifax.

For further information, please contact:

Myretta Farrell,
PEI Provincial Supervisor for Students who are Blind or Visually Impaired, APSEA
c/o Itinerant Services,
3 Brighton Road
Charlottetown, PEI
C1A 8T6
Phone: 902-368-4694
Fax: 902-569-7532
Email: mpfarrell@edu.pe.ca

This information has been taken from website "Education and Early Childhood Development"
URL: ?number=1027837&lang=E
PLEASE NOTE: The inclusion of or reference to any business or organization on this page is not meant to be an endorsement by the Government of Prince Edward Island of the services offered by any particular business or organization. Further, the Government of Prince Edward Island advises that individual entries are based on information supplied by the business or organization in question. Therefore, while InfoPEI is updated to correct errors as appropriate, the Government of Prince Edward Island does not warrant that the information is accurate.