High School Students with Visual Impairment in Hong Kong: Overcoming Obstacles Associated with Other Learning Experiences and School-based Assessment

This report identifies obstacles that high school students with visual impairment experience in the curriculum areas of Other Learning Experiences (OLE) and School-based Assessment (SBA) in mainstream secondary schools in Hong Kong. The report explores and recommends various solutions for overcoming or minimizing these obstacles in the context of the new Senior Secondary Curriculum. Twenty-five participants were interviewed, based on a structured questionnaire. They were asked to describe all the obstacles they have encountered in school-based assessment and OLE. They were also asked to suggest how teachers could minimize their difficulties and help them cope with obstacles. It was found that most participants encountered difficulties in OLE. Problems were specifically related to community service, aesthetic development and physical development. School-based assessments also presented difficulties, particularly in three compulsory subjects (Chinese Language, English Language, Liberal Studies) and the elective subjects of humanities. Suggestions are made related to increasing and improving training for teachers, making Braille / soft copies of reading materials available earlier,