Constructing and improving tactile and sonorous didactic material aiming at the integration of blind people in basic education

• Grant number: 05/03446-3
• Support type: Regular Research Grants
• Duration: February 01, 2006 - August 31, 2008
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Geosciences
• Principal researcher: Maria Isabel Castreghini de Freitas
• Grantee: Maria Isabel Castreghini de Freitas
• Home Institution: Instituto de Geociências e Ciências Exatas (IGCE). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Rio Claro. Rio Claro , SP, Brazil

Abstract

One of the current priorities of the public policies involving the Infantile Education and Basic Teaching mentions the integration to it of the student with special educational necessity in the developed daily activities in classroom. However, it is observed how much still it is incipient the didactic material and methodology to guarantee to the teacher security and autonomy in the application of the relative contents to geographic sciences, cartographic and ambient for blind or visually-impaired. With intention to contribute for make pleasant of this fact it appeared this proposal of research. The main objective of this work is to extend the possibilities of use of Mapavox software in the generation of tactile didactic material of Geography and Cartography, as well as, to deepen the methodology procedures of construction and use of tactile and sonorous didactic sets (didactic maquettes, maps and games) to be used for professors in integrated lessons and/or conventional. This work will be developed through a partnership between researchers of Unesp and UFRJ. Its methodology procedure has as base the experience of the Team of the Unesp in the area of the Tactile Cartography and the Team of the UFRJ in the system of synthesis of voice-DOSVOX. The quality of the generated tactile didactic material will be evaluated through practical lessons with blind and visually-impaired. The development of this research will be able to result in didactic material that provides to the professor the necessary autonomy for the elaboration of maps, tactile maquettes educative games having as reference its local reality. (AU)