FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
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STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION
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JOHN L. WINN
Commissioner of Education
F. PHILIP HANDY,
Chairman
T. WILLARD FAIR,
Vice Chairman
Members
DONNA G. CALLAWAY
JULIA L. JOHNSON
ROBERTO MARTÍNEZ
PHOEBE RAULERSON
LINDA K. TAYLOR
January 21, 2005
M E M O R A N D U M #05-08
TO:
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Exceptional Student Education Directors
District Contacts for Visually Impaired Programs
FROM:
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Bambi J. Lockman
SUBJECT:
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Orientation and Mobility Instruction for Students who are Blind or Visually Impaired
Orientation and Mobility (O&M) training enables individuals who are blind or visually impaired to navigate
their environments safely and independently. As part of the educational programming for a student who is
blind or visually impaired, it is crucial that the instructor of this set of very specialized skills has acquired the
knowledge and expertise necessary to assist students in becoming independent adults. It is critical that
teachers who are responsible for teaching personal safety, street crossing, business area travel, and other
skills of independence be qualified to teach these skills for the benefit and the safety of Florida’s students
with visual impairments.
In order to ensure that students are being served by appropriately qualified instructional personnel, beginning
July 1, 2007, instructors who are hired to teach or who are currently teaching O&M to students in the school
setting, as per Rule 6A-6.03014(5), Florida Administrative Code (FAC), Special Programs for Students Who
Are Visually Impaired, must have the endorsement for orientation and mobility, as described in Rule 6A-
4.01794, FAC, Specialization Requirements for the Orientation and Mobility Endorsement--Academic Class.
This requirement is indicated in the course code directory for the following courses:
o
7763060
Orientation and Mobility: PK-5
o
7863060
Orientation and Mobility: 6 – 8
o
7963060 Orientation and Mobility Skills
The provision for the courses to be taught by a teacher of the visually impaired will be removed, as per the
Florida Course Descriptions, Exceptional Student Education, 1999 Revisions
of courses 7863060 and
7963060. Both state:
Due to safety considerations, training students with visual impairments for independent travel
requires a fully trained orientation and mobility instructor.
Teachers of the visually impaired (TVI) who are not endorsed have the opportunity to participate in
orientation and mobility training funded through the Bu
BAMBI J. LOCKMAN
Chief
Bureau of Exceptional Education and Student Services
325 W. GAINES STREET • SUITE 614 • TALLAHASSEE, FL 32399-0400 • (850) 245-0475 • www.fldoe.org
Memorandum #05-08
January 21, 2005
Page Two
and offered by Florida State University. This program enables TVIs to earn their endorsement during
weekends in a location near their home or district. TVIs who participate in this training program are enrolled
at Florida State University and receive six (6) credit hours upon completion of both the beginning and
advanced orientation and mobility for courses. TVIs may then complete either a 120-hour internship in order
to complete the endorsement program or a 350-hour internship in order to fulfill the requirements toward
certification by the Academy of Certification of Vision Rehabilitation and Education Professionals
(ACVREP), a national certifying body for orientation and mobility specialists. Upon completion of the
courses and the internship, teachers would be eligible for Florida’s endorsement in orientation and mobility.
For more information about the program, please contact Dr. Sandra Lewis, by telephone at (850) 644-8409 or
by electronic mail at lewis@coe.fsu.edu.
If you have any questions about the contents of this memorandum, please contact Ms. Dawn Saunders,
Program Specialist, by telephone at (850) 245-0478 or by electronic mail at Dawn.Saunders@fldoe.org.
BJL/dsr
