An Approach for Learning Polish Braille Mathematical Notation by Sighted Teachers Based on Liblouis Converters

Abstract

Teaching mathematics to blind students is not an easy task. To read and write formulas, the blind students use the Braille alphabet and special Braille mathematical notations that are different forms in different countries. Such notation encodes mathematical symbols and whole structure of the formula in the form of Braille point signs. Teachers in mainstream schools usually encounter various problems while teaching the blind to math. One of these difficulties is their lack of knowledge of the Braille alphabet and, in particular, of Braille mathematical notation. To facilitate their cooperation with blind students, we propose a solution by which these teachers can learn the basics of Polish Braille mathematical notation (in short, BNM). It was implemented as a web application and tested by four sighted users. The application received positive feedback, although a solution must be improved and more deeply tested.