Expanded core curriculum
Last updated
The expanded core curriculum is nine skill areas, beyond academics, that students who are blind or visually impaired need to learn directly.
Topic: Vision and hearing
In plain terms
The nine areas are compensatory access (including braille), orientation and mobility, social interaction, independent living, recreation and leisure, career education, assistive technology, sensory efficiency, and self-determination. Sighted students often learn these by watching others; students with visual impairments usually need them taught directly and practiced in real settings, often by several specialists.
How it shows up in an IEP
IEPs for students with visual impairments often include goals from several ECC areas, taught by the TVI, the O&M specialist and others, alongside academic goals.
Example
A middle schooler's IEP includes ECC goals for using a screen reader (assistive technology), ordering at a restaurant (independent living), and explaining their vision to new teachers (self-determination).
Related terms
- TVI (teacher of students with visual impairments)A TVI is a certified special education teacher who specializes in teaching students who are blind or have low vision.
- Orientation and mobilityOrientation and mobility is instruction that teaches students who are blind or visually impaired to travel safely and independently.
- BrailleBraille is a tactile system of reading and writing in which letters, numbers and symbols are formed by patterns of raised dots in cells of six.
- Visual impairment including blindnessUnder IDEA, visual impairment including blindness is a vision loss that, even with correction, adversely affects a student's educational performance.
- Self-determinationSelf-determination is a person's ability and opportunity to make choices, set goals and take action toward the life they want.
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