                            CHAPTER 8
                                
               TOUCH PERCEPTION WITH REFERENCE TO
                 SPECIFIC PROBLEMS PRESENTED BY
                READING IN THE MEDIUM OF BRAILLE

1.     COMPARISON OF VISUAL AND TACTUAL METHODS OF
READING

2.     QUALITY PROVISION
  Quality of Materials
  Size and Shape of Dots
  Spacing Variables
  Layout

3.     TECHNIQUES OF READING
  Use of Hands and Fingers
  Types of Hand Movement
  Characteristics of Movement by the Fingers
  Can the Use of Hands and Fingers be Taught?

4.     PERCEPTUAL FACTORS
  Analysis of Errors Within Words
  The Word Method of Learning to Read
  Recognition of Single-cell Braille Characters
  Effect of the Number of Dots in a Cell
  Position of Dots Within a Cell
  The Effect of the Use of Contractions
          The Effect of Word-length, Familiarity, and Orthography on
       Recognition Thresholds for Braille Words
          Unit of Recognition
  
  5. DEVELOPMENTAL FACTORS AND THEIR EFFECT ON
       BRAILLE READING
          General Development and its Effect on Braille Reading
          Short-term Memory
          Strategy Choices by Young Braille Readers
          Strategy Choices by Fluent Braillists
       
  6. STRATEGIES FOR IMPROVEMENT OF THE RATE OF
  READING
     Changing the Code
     Diagnostic Tests
     Training in Rapid Reading
  
  7. SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH
  
  8. CONCLUSION
         1.   COMPARISON OF VISUAL AND TACTUAL
       METHODS OF READING
       
  When comparing visual with tactual methods of reading Gibson (1962,
  488-489) wrote, "Succession enters into the operation of both senses. 
  The eyes normally fixate in succession just as the fingers explore in
  succession.  Both senses are active".  This statement needs qualifying
  because the manner of succession in the two methods is different.  It is
  commonly thought that visual reading takes place during a smooth, even
  focus of the eyes along the lines of print, and that touch reading is a
  similar process except that information is gathered via the nerve endings
  in the finger pads instead of using the eyes.  A better understanding of
  the mechanisms involved is necessary before the advantages and
  disadvantages of reading in the medium of braille can be recognised.
  
  According to Fry (1963) and Watts and Buzan (1973), movement of the
  eyes during visual reading takes place in a series of  jerks', that is, short
  movements from left to right interspersed with short pauses, and the
  amount taken in at a fixation is more variable than the fixation time
  depending on the ability of the reader.  Therefore, the more that can be
  taken in at a fixation, the fewer will be the number of fixations necessary
  and the quicker the reading rate.  Foulke (1982, 168-169) referred to "the
  relatively large field of view of the visual system, which makes possible
  the observation at one time, of a relatively large number of symbols"
  because of "the high compatibility between display and the perceptual
  system".
  
  The tactile system is not as well adjusted for reading as the visual sense
  in that the field of  vision' is much reduced because reading is a
  character by character succession without the fixations of visual reading. 
  In addition, the braille reader cannot glimpse ahead.  For example, "In his
  cap___" could become "In his capable hands" but could alternatively
  become "In his capacity as ...".  Visual readers may be aware of
  misprints, though often these are not picked up because content meaning
  is dominant.  In braille reading a missed dot can be crucial to the
  meeting.  For example, in a watery setting "The rush..." (first letter )
  may anticipate ideas such as tumbling waters, whereas if the lower dot
  is omitted () it becomes "The hush" anticipating possibilities of a silent
  pool or the evening calm.   It could also be most disconcerting to read
  "He is dead" instead of "He is deaf", caused by the sign for F being
  reversed in error.  These and other perceptual problems to be discussed
  later in this chapter contribute to some serious limitations for touch
  readers.
  
  Comparisons of rates of reading between samples are only reliable when
  variables such as age, intelligence and the effect of rate on accuracy and
  comprehension are taken into account.  However, average silent visual
  reading rates for adults are quoted by the de Leeuws (1965, p.28) as
  200-250 w.p.m. and by Foulke (1982, p.172) as 250-300 w.p.m.  Williams
  (1971, p.116) concluded from a nation-wide survey of braille reading
  pupils aged 10 to 16 years that "with narrative requiring to be read and
  not just skimmed, a braille reading rate of 100 words per minute can be
  considered average, and extending this on either side, a rate of 80-120
  words per minute can be considered as fairly normal".
  
  2. QUALITY PROVISION
  
  Whatever the skill, playing the violin or building a brick wall for example,
  two aspects need to be considered before successful results can be
  expected.  These are the quality of materials used and the techniques
  needed for execution.  The same is true for braille reading.
  
  
  Quality of Materials
  A badly produced text on poor paper, with unhelpful spacing and poor
  quality of printing, both in depth of inking and size of symbols, can all
  cause difficulties and irritation in visual reading.  Publishing embossed
  print has its own problems.  One abortive effort was the use of solid dot
  braille.  The intention was to use a stronger yet lighter weight paper with
  durable dots applied to the surface.  It was unpopular with adult readers
  because the hard surface of the dots was tiring to read (personal
  comment by braille users) and the dots could be accidentally removed;
  indeed, in the classroom the paper sometimes became torn and "fingers"
  enjoyed picking off the dots in idle moments, with disastrous results for
  the braille content.  Two weights of paper are currently provided by the
  RNIB for personal use, the lightweight one being more typically used for
  short term work and the heavyweight one for material of more lasting use. 
  "White rag" paper is used for production of "The Braille Radio Times"
  whose useful life can be little more than a week at most.  Brailon consists
  of plastic sheets used for the production of multiple copies from a braille
  master copy embossed on manilla paper.  It has lasting qualities, but is
  easily creased and hands tend to become sweaty in use.  In spite of a
  large amount of research on many aspects of the use of braille, nothing
  had been published on the detailed characteristics of these materials
  until 1986, yet to have the most suitable of materials is crucial to the
  braille reader and writer.
  
  In 1986 Cooper, Davies, Lawson-Williams, and Tobin compared these
  three types of paper together with three synthetic ones for physical
  characteristics such as weight, thickness, bulk, porosity, smoothness,
  strain, and "burst".  Porosity is important for unless the air can pass
  through the paper the surface can feel sweaty in a warm atmosphere or
  occasionally if the reading is carried out in stressful circumstances. 
  According to the 16 subjects who took part in the investigation, there was
  no overall preference for all the circumstances tested, but in descending
  order heavyweight manilla, lightweight manilla, and white rag were
  preferred to the synthetic materials. Brailon was considered to have the
  smoothest surface.
  
  Though the study was not conclusive, the investigators felt that it would
  merit further work with a larger sample, longer reading passages, and
  some more accurate means of assessing the "feel" of braille.  The
  experimenters pointed out (ibid., p.327) that this more detailed
  knowledge is important "especially if new electronics and other devices
  are to be offered to blind people with braille as one of the major forms of
  output".
  
  Size and Shape of Dots
  In 1890 (p.11) Fowler wrote "It is the experience of many that the sharp
  conical dots, though very distinct at first, soon irritate and confuse the
  touch; the dots should therefore be made dome-shaped, so as to present
  a smooth surface to the finger".  The symbols of old braille books printed
  about the turn of the century by the British and Foreign Blind Association
  are sometimes colloquially referred to as "knitting needle braille" and
  have received very favourable comments by those blind people who have
  been able to see copies (personal comments).  The master plates were
  punched on copper sheets and the results probably approached the
  quality advocated by Fowler.  [The writer owns plates used for the libretto
  of one of the arias in Handel's "Messiah".]  Later machine printing shows
  dots that seem less wide in diameter though still adequate.  With the
  coming of computerised braille which can be easily and speedily
  replaced there has been a tendency to produce braille that is sometimes
  of inferior quality and less durable.  It is important that dot shape shall be
  of maximum comfort to the reader.
  
  It has also been found that some beginners and also some whose touch
  is less perceptive prefer to use the expanded cell, often referred to as
  "jumbo dot".  The height of the dots remains the same but the diameter
  of the base of the dots is increased as well as the spacing between dots. 
  It would seem that individual differences are important when deciding on
  the size of cell to be used.  For example, a person with less acute touch
  might prefer the expanded cell at the beginning stage.  Tobin (1982), in
  his self-instructional reading scheme for newly blinded adults, used the
  expanded cell type of braille for the first book, books 2 and 3 contain
  identical material so the learner can choose when to progress from jumbo
  braille to standard size braille, and book 4 is in standard size braille. 
  Young children starting braille have smaller finger pads to cover the
  symbols, and using the larger cell might encourage "scrubbing" instead
  of a smooth left to right progression.
  
  Spacing Variables
  No information exists to show how the three variables of spacing of dots
  within a cell, between cells along the line, and between lines, were
  determined by the BFBA when braille was first introduced into Britain.  A
  study of braille readability was carried out by the American Commission
  on Uniform Type in 1920, but no experimentation on spacing variables
  was carried out until that done by Meyers, Ethington and Ashcroft (1958). 
  Rate of reading in words per minute was the measure for testing 275
  blind children on the three variables of dot spacing within cells, between
  letters and the space between lines.  Three values for each variable were
  selected and material was read in all possible combinations.  The middle
  values for each were found to be the most readable and corresponded
  closely to the values already being used.  Comprehension was
  controlled.  It was suggested that the experiment should be replicated but
  with a considerably longer period of reading time and with values not
  included in the current investigation.
  
  Layout
  The layout of braille material is similar to that of inkprint in that the
  material is read from left to right and set out in paragraphs.  When books
  were expensive to produce, blank lines were never left but paragraphs
  were indented, each starting in the third space.  Whereas it is an easy
  matter for the visual reader to move quickly to another part of the text, the
  blind reader can at least find the next paragraph by running the reading
  finger down the left side of the page to find the indentations.  An indented
  paragraph preceded by an italics sign indicates a side heading.  With the
  coming of computerized braille the leaving of lines where appropriate
  may become more prevalent.
  
  An investigation was carried out by Hartley, Tobin, and Trueman in 1987
  to determine whether headings were helpful and in what form.  The
  findings were not conclusive.  The writer suggests that the content of
  headings merits attention.  Their purpose is to indicate the following
  subject matter, and therefore, depending on context, a single word can
  be meaningless and too long a heading wastes valuable reading time. 
  Braille's own view seems pertinent here: "Since our methods of writing
  and printing take up a lot of space on paper, we must compress the
  thought into the fewest possible words" (Coltat, 1853, p.16).
  
  3. TECHNIQUES OF READING
  
  Use of Hands and Fingers
  The most obvious external differences between braille readers are the
  ways in which their hands and fingers are used.  These variations include
  which hands are used, how they are held, characteristics of movement
  involving type of progression from left to right, regressions, scrubbing
  movements when difficulties are encountered, and even erratic
  movements employed when knowledge of the code and/or reading
  efficiency are insufficient.  It is not surprising therefore that studies of
  these aspects have received much attention (Holland and Eatman, 1933;
  Fertsch, 1946; Kusajima, 1961, 1974; Hermelin and O'Connor, 1971A,
  1971B) in the continuing hope that analyses might lead to improved
  techniques and ultimately an increase in the rate of reading.
  
  Types of Hand Movement
  Hand movement is a very individual matter depending on such factors as
  the effect of asymmetry in the brain (which determines which hand shall
  be dominant), the relative sensitivity of each finger, and possibly the
  training, if any, received at an early stage of learning.  Some read with
  the left or right hand alone, with one hand merely marking the place, and
  some use both hands at the same time.  It is usual for one or both the
  forefingers to be the reading finger(s). In 1982 (p.202) Foulke quoted his
  experiment of (1964) in which subjects read passages with each of the
  fingers alone on either hand while reading ability was measured against
  accuracy and time.  The results showed rapidly diminishing ability in the
  progression from the forefinger to the little finger.  All the fingers showed
  some sensory capacity.  Contrary to expectation the dominant hand had
  no connection with whether the reader is left or right handed in everyday
  activities.
  
  There is also variety when both hands are used at the same time. 
  Beginners sometimes hold both forefingers side by side sometimes
  touching or having a short space between them.  It has been
  hypothesized that for left handed readers the right hand may pick up
  some information that is confirmed by the following and dominant hand. 
  For right handed readers the role of the left hand may be to check and
  reinforce what has been sensed.  In both cases the less active hand can
  be used to mark the beginnings or ends of lines.  The most efficient
  method seems to be the use of both hands but working independently. 
  The left starts reading, the right takes over somewhere along the line,
  and while it completes the line the left finds and then starts the beginning
  of the next line.  Most readers have one hand slightly more dominant and
  this will determine how far along the line the right hand takes over.  The
  most obvious advantage of this method is the time saved in the return
  sweep to find the next line and obviates the consequent interruption in
  the sense of what is being read.  The loss of 6-7% (Fertsch, 1946) of
  reading time taken up by return sweeps is a serious matter and no doubt
  is one of the factors that leads to braille being a slower reading medium
  than print.
  
  Characteristics of Movement by the Fingers
  Moving picture records of fingers reading braille (Holland and Eatman,
  1933; Fertsch, 1947) demonstrated characteristics of the less able
  readers which, though intended to help, may in themselves cause further
  problems.  When the reader is not sure if a word or words have been
  interpreted correctly it is natural to regress for one or more words before
  continuing.  It is usually found more convenient for this to be carried out
  by the left hand while the right hand keeps the place, but both hands
  being used together for the purpose can be regarded as more typical of
  performance by a poor reader.  Sometimes regression becomes a habit,
  particularly by the more hesitant reader.  If the letter or word presents
  difficulties the reader may resort to "scrubbing" the symbol or symbols. 
  More pressure is used, some loss of direction may occur as the usual left
  to right progression is interrupted and often there is a break in
  concentration.  There is also a tendency for beginners to lose the line. 
  This is sometimes due to the fact that it is a more natural movement for
  hands to move in a curve equidistant from the body and learners
  therefore need to become used to working along straight lines.  Good
  readers show an even, steady progression.
  
  In 1978 hand movements of school children aged 10 to 12 were filmed
  for a demonstration by the writer to show different methods of hand use
  at a braille workshop for teachers of blind children.  It was not conducted
  under experimental conditions, but was used as a talking point to show
  that there are considerable individual variations in techniques of reading,
  in addition to knowing which hand or hands are employed.  It is the
  writer's belief that teachers are sometimes so involved in checking the
  accuracy of oral reading that they sometimes leave little opportunity to
  observe individual differences of technique.
  
  From a total of approximately 24 children aged between 10 and 12, 7
  were selected showing a variety of reading behaviour and some of their
  performances are briefly described here.  It was noticeable how
  techniques were affected by the size of hand and more particularly the
  length of fingers.
  
  Lee had very large hands which he found difficult to adapt to the reading
  of small symbols.  The screen seemed filled with fingers and thumbs and
  the thumbs were sometimes used under the fingers as props to propel
  the hand along, resulting in rather jerky reading.  He was not alone in
  using the thumbs in this way.  At other times the left thumb was held
  higher than the other fingers.  Sometimes readers hold the fingers not
  being used above the reading finger so that the whole hand is slightly
  tilted towards the thumb.  It seems a tiring position but could be caused
  by the portion of the finger pad nearest the thumb being the most
  sensitive part.  Lee's reading fingers kept in contact with each other even
  when moving to a new line.
  
  By contrast, Amanda had short fingers with the pads held very flat on the
  page making the most of this surface of sensitivity.
  
  Toni used only the right hand, yet according to her previous teacher she
  was helped during a whole year to use both hands on different lines very
  successfully.  It is interesting that she had reverted to the use of one
  hand, probably because the habit was more fixed or she may have found
  using the addition of the left hand slowed her down.  It darted across to
  help if there was a difficulty.
  
  Jean Pierre's method was unique.  He was a left handed reader and the
  hand was rotated 90  so that the reading finger, the second in this
  instance, pointed towards the right.  Fingers 3 and 4 rested lightly on the
  page above the line being read and finger 1 was below the line.  All the
  fingers travelled lightly towards the right hand which indicated the end of
  the line.  The pupil had presumably found his own best method, and
  though unorthodox it seemed successful.
  
  Jane showed two-handed reading, both hands reading to the mid part of
  the line, the right ending the line while the left moved to the next line. 
  She did not read the first part alone with the left hand so had apparently
  developed the most economical method for a reader using both hands,
  the left one being less capable.
  
  Enough has perhaps been included here to show that some movements
  are helpful and some provide difficulties which hinder not only speed of
  reading but are also liable to contribute towards inaccuracies.
  
  Can the Use of Hands and Fingers be Taught?
  It has been shown in Chapter 7 that in several experiments carried out
  concerning hand use, the results showed conflicting evidence over which
  hand would give the best results in reading braille.  In 1984 Millar
  suggested that a pattern could be seen showing that there appears to be
  a tendency for beginners to rely on texture and show no hand advantage;
  while still attending to spatial coding and physical characters of the signs
  readers tend to use the left hand; and highly proficient readers who use
  verbal strategies prefer the right hands.  Her experiments (1984, p.85)
  showed that "the notion of a generally  best hand' for braille is untenable"
  and that (ibid., p.84) "two-handed reading is superior to reading by each
  hand alone".  This information has been repeated here because it shows
  the dilemma for those attempting to teach hand use, bearing in mind
  Fertsch's findings (1946, p.131) that "reading habits become established
  about the time a pupil has reached the third grade and do not change
  noticeably with increase in reading experience".  This finding puts the
  onus on teachers of young pupils and the process is more complex than
  would at first appear.
  
  Hand-use training seems to be a neglected aspect which teachers often
  leave children to discover for themselves.  It needs to be carried out with
  a proper understanding of what is involved or harm can be done.  For
  example, when the writer selected another group of pupils again for
  filming of hand-use a few years later, it proved very difficult to select a
  suitable left-handed reader.  This was so unusual that enquiries were
  made, leading to the knowledge that one conscientious teacher had been
  training the young children to use their right hands because right hands
  were used for most activities by children with vision.
  
  Hands are usually held slightly arched and the forearms should bear their
  weight.  Children will generally choose to use their most dominant finger
  for reading and a few may use the second finger held close to the
  forefinger.  This presumably checks or adds more information but,
  depending on the relative length of the fingers, may cause a less relaxed
  way of reading.  this is because the extra length of the second finger
  causes it to be more arched so that more of the tip rather than the pad is
  in contact with the paper.  Each hand could be temporarily tried out on
  its own to see if two-handed reading might eventually be possible thus
  eliminating the time used for return sweeps.  If the dominance of one
  hand is very marked the other should still not be neglected, for being
  able to read even one word at the beginning or end of a line would save
  valuable time.  However, this method is not suitable for all readers. 
  Some children start one way and never try any other method, so a little
  encouragement while the teacher and child are finding the best method
  should be very worth while.  Allowance has to be made for the effect of
  hand dominance (see previous chapter) and also the possibility that the
  sensitivity of the forefingers may vary.  There are many varieties of hand
  use and the individual's best must be sought, for, apart from comfort, it
  is imperative to find the way that will promote the best rate of reading. 
  Late beginners, including adults should benefit from similar training.
  
  4. PERCEPTUAL FACTORS
  
  Analysis of Errors Within Words
  Any analysis of braille reading problems should include a knowledge of
  the mental and perceptual abilities of the reader and problems presented
  by the medium itself.  Ashcroft (1960) considered that the physical
  mechanisms are extremely important in reading braille, for in part it is a
  tactual-kinaesthetic process, "However, the most important aspect of the
  problem would seem to be the accurate perception of ideas from the
  printed page.  No matter how good the mechanics of reading, if errors
  plague the reader, the result can be neither efficient nor effective in
  obtaining ideas from his reading" (ibid., p.22).
  
  Ashcroft provided 12 paragraphs of increasing difficulty, each forming a
  story to be read orally.  Specific interest was centred on pupils in Grades
  2, 4, and 6, but data were also obtained from pupils in Grades 3 and 5 so
  that trends could be monitored.  728 pupils took part in the experiment
  and each child read until 10 successive errors had been made  Oral
  reading errors were examined in terms of orthographic features in the
  code with the following results shown in descending order of frequency
  of errors (ibid., p.53):
  
     Rank    Title
     1       Shortform words.
     2       Multiple cell contractions.
     3       Combinations of orthography.
     4       Lower contractions.
     5       Upper contractions.
     6       Full spelling.
     7       Simple upper wordsigns.
  
  Some of the shortforms were unfamiliar because of infrequent
  occurrence, and because some had so many letters excluded that they
  became a burden on memory causing a slow-down rather than a means
  of increasing speed of reading.  This is reminiscent of the similar problem
  included in the reading of Lucas type (see Chapter 3).
  
  Multiple cell contractions seem to have caused problems in two ways. 
  The extra dots sometimes caused perceptual problems, and mistakes
  were made because of the varieties of position of dots in the previous
  half cell making different meanings which had to be learned, e.g.  
  work,   word,   world. 
  
  Lower contractions proved to be the most difficult of the single-cell
  contractions.  They can be confused with the same signs occurring in the
  upper part of the cell but which have different meanings; the dots occur
  in the lower part of the cell and these, as will be discussed later, seem to
  be the ones most likely to not be sensed; and they represent a multiplicity
  of meanings according to position in a sentence.  For example:
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ,
  ;
  :
  .
  
  !
  ()
  "
  
  "
  
  
  
  
  
  deci-mal
  point
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ?
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ea
  
  con
  dis
  en
  
  
  
  in
  
  
  
  
  
  
  bb
  
  dd
  
  ff
  gg
  
  
  
  
  
  
  The sign for COM and the apostrophe sign are made from the lowest
  dots in the cell.  Ashcroft recommended that the double letter signs
  should no longer be included in the code.  However, one aspect seems
  important to the writer.  By their inclusion a word can become less
  cluttered with dots, and therefore may be more legible.
  
  The upper contractions include whole and part-word signs.  AND, FOR,
  OF, THE, and WITH are frequently occurring words but Ashcroft found
  that they caused more errors when used in words.  Perhaps this is
  because they contribute to the clutter of dots in a word, or they are so
  frequent as words that they are not always recognised at once as
  partwords.  Partwords, nevertheless, did not cause much difficulty.
  
  The words in full spelling caused little difficulty and words represented
  by a single alphabet word were the easiest of all, though some were not
  recognised because they occur so infrequently, e.g.  for
  KNOWLEDGE.  The fact that individual letters are recognised more
  easily emphasises the fact that though contractions can save a lot of time
  when familiar to the reader, it is the multiplicity of meanings which seems
  to cause problems.
  
  In addition, Ashcroft categorized the error types and the following table
  (ibid., p.43) should be useful to teachers, particularly those engaged in
  remedial work.
  
  Table 4.  Table to Show Distribution of Eight Braille Error-type Groups. 
       (Ashcroft (1960), p.43, Table 6).
       
  
  Error Group
  Number of Errors
  Percentage of Errors
  
  
  Missed Dots
  Ending Problems
  Reversals
  Added Dots
  Association
  Gross Substitutions
  Up and Down Alignment
  Left and Right Alignment
  1702
  1599
  1434
  1392
  1358
  1335
  1140
  973
  15.6
  14.6
  13.1
  12.7
  12.4
  12.2
  10.4
  8.9
  
  
  Totals
  10,933
  99.9
  
  
  To get a clearer understanding of the problems involved these errors
  may be classified as follows:
     Perception:    missed dots, added dots, ending errors;
     Orientation:   reversals, vertical alignment, horizontal alignment;
     Meaning:   association errors, gross substitutions.
  
  The results showed that space-saving devices contributed substantially
  to the difficulties encountered, also the failure to suspend judgement until
  the whole of the symbol had been sensed, and perceptual errors,
  particularly of missed dots.  By using continuous prose in the form of
  short stories Ashcroft's subjects were likely to have been well-motivated,
  and the better readers would have been able to make use of context
  cues which is not possible when single letters or words form the test
  material.  His analysis of errors provided a wealth of insights into
  problems encountered by young learners when reading braille.  In
  addition, he suggested ways of improving the code, gave ideas to help
  teachers, and made suggestions for future research.  These included
  (ibid., p.89) a consideration of the effectiveness of different approaches
  to teaching; evaluation of space-saving devices in terms of reading and
  comprehension; development of means of increasing the rate of reading
  by scientific evaluation of the code itself; and recommendation of the use
  of controlled testing of progress in reading.
  
  The Word Method of Learning to Read
  The word method of reading (a recognition of whole words rather than a
  synthesis of individual sign meanings to make a word) was the
  acceptable practice of teaching braille reading in America on the advice
  of Maxfield (1928).  Nolan and Kederis (1969, preface) set out "to study
  factors in braille word recognition in order to delineate more clearly the
  cues that make braille reading by the whole word method possible" for
  blind pupils in a series of 9 related studies.
  
  A tachistotactometer was used which was capable of exposing
  characters for controlled periods of time.  The braille characters were
  punched on plasticized paper and they could be pushed up through a
  line of holes corresponding to 36 braille cells.  The use of the
  tachistotactometer could be criticized in that it does not conform closely
  enough to the braille reading situation.  Instead of the reading finger
  getting stimulation from the progress along the line of characters the
  machine raised the dots up to the fingers, so reduced finger movement
  occurred.  This view is supported by Foulke (1982, p.184).  The dot
  locator (the 6-dot cell) was included for testing single cell signs to help
  distinguish lower signs from the same shapes in the upper position of the
  cell, but for some readers the resulting conglomeration of dots may have
  been confusing until they became used to this method of presentation.
  
  Recognition of Single-cell Braille Characters
  The investigation carried out by Ashcroft in 1960 had provided
  considerable information concerning the difficulties in recognition of
  individual characters within words.  Nolan and Kederis (1969) also
  measured the time taken to recognise single cell signs.  Only the total
  times were recorded which represented times for recognition of the
  character plus its naming.  36 subjects in Grades 4 through 12 took part. 
  The exposure times were gradually increased by steps of .01 sec. until
  all the characters were recognised by all the participants.  The results
  were tabulated in ascending order of mean recognition times (ibid., p.61)
  and the range was from .02 to .19 sec.  Though taking longer time, the
  slow readers (study 8) showed a similar difficulty order.  Foulke (1982,
  p.178) pointed out that it was not possible to adjust the
  tachistotactometer used by Nolan and Kederis to measure the threshold
  values for a few of the characters which required the shortest recognition
  times.  The minimum time possible by the apparatus of .02 sec. was
  therefore given in these instances.  The order of difficulty was found to
  be similar to that found by Ashcroft both for fast and slow readers.
  
  The Effect of the Number of Dots in a Cell
  The recognition times for characters increased according to the number
  of dots in a cell.  This is demonstrated in the following short table:
  
           Table 5.  Table to Show Recognition Times of Characters
         Grouped According to Number of Dots (Nolan and Kederis,
         1969, p.62).
         
  
  Number of Dots
  1
  2
  3
  4
  5
  6
  
  
  Time (secs.)
  .030
  .033
  .058
  .091
  .128
  .190
  
  
  Position of Dots Within a Cell
  Excluding the 2 dot configurations, it was found that "characters having
  a greater space at the bottom and/or the right required 22% more time to
  be recognised", the lower signs requiring 55%, and dot 6 was missed
  more than those in other positions in the cell (ibid., p.63).  No
  suggestions were made as to why this should be.  Braille is read
  sequentially from left to right so the finger reaches the left hand dots first
  and information gained from the left side of the cell must be held over
  until the whole of the cell has been covered.
  
  Another possibility is tentatively suggested by the writer: braille is set out
  in straight horizontal lines but it is natural for the hands to move in a
  curve equidistant from the body; the reading finger is shorter than the
  middle finger, and these factors result in the fingers being held in a
  slightly arched position at approximately 30  from the page.  There must
  therefore be a tendency for the finger pad to be held sloping slightly
  downwards which may result in a more definite recognition of the upper
  position of the cells and the lower parts of the pads hardly touching the
  page or not making contact.
  
  The signs seemed to be recognised as dot patterns and when dots were
  omitted the sign was confused with another one with some similarity. 
  Table 8 (ibid., 65-66) is very revealing.  For example, X  was
  confused with M , ING  with U , and Q  is shown to be
  confused with its parts  and .
  
  It is interesting to note that these tactual aspects were taken into account
  by Louis Braille approximately 170 years ago when he was first
  considering the make-up of his code.  It has been shown (Chapter 2) that
  when he selected 10 characters from the 15 that were possible using the
  top four dots in the cell, he omitted , , and .  In addition, when
  he added dots in the lower positions to make further symbols the only
  alphabet letter to be made with the addition of dot 6 was W .  The
  remaining signs of the first line with dot 6 added were used for accents. 
  These signs were used for one-space upper wordsigns incorporating dot
  6 when the code was adapted for the English language in 1870.
  
  The Effect of the Use of Contractions
  Contractions were invented to save space and therefore reading time,
  and also the cost of production.  If the learning load is not too great and
  if they are sufficiently known, their use is of great benefit, even though
  the wisest allocation of meanings was not always made (see Chapter 6). 
  A main difficulty is the insufficiency of meanings that are possible using
  the 2 x 3 matrix.  Solutions have been the use of the same sign in the
  initial, medial and final positions of a word, each with a different meaning;
  if a sign is 2 dots high it can be used in the upper or lower position; and
  a third device is the placing of a dot or dots in the half cell immediately
  preceding the sign.  These strategies all present extra learning compared
  with visual reading where only 26 letters have to be remembered in their
  upper and lower case forms.  Two examples will demonstrate the extra
  learning involved:
    
  
  
  
  do
  
  
  day
  
  
  dis
  initial
  
  dd
  medial
  
  fullstop
  final
  
  4
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  every
  ever
  ance
  ence
  5
  
  
  
  It will be noticed that the 33 composite wordsigns (beginning with dot 5,
  dots 4-5, or dots 4-5-6) include the first "sound" in the string of letters. 
  However, the final signs, now known as composite group signs
  (beginning with dots 4-6, dots 5-6, or dot 6) use the last "letter" of the
  string.  This divergence from the norm may cause confusion to some
  readers, perhaps because they may be anticipating the composite group
  signs to also begin with the first sound of the string: for example:
  
  
  
  Composite Wordsigns
  
  Composite Groupsigns
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  PART
  
  WORD
  
  MANY
  
  
  
  
  
  
  ANCE
  
  NESS
  
  ALLY
  
  
  
  These examples are included to show the precise knowledge that needs
  to be acquired before contractions can provide the intended help. 
  Contractions concentrate more information per character and thus in
  principle speed up reading.
  
  In study 4 Nolan and Kederis (1969) studied the influence of contractions
  upon recognition thresholds for words.  Lists of words were provided
  containing one or two contractions in familiar and unfamiliar words. 
  Upper and lower contractions were included.  Although lower
  contractions can cause problems, Nolan and Kederis found that "familiar
  words having lower contractions are recognised more easily than familiar
  words having dots in all the rows of the braille cells" (ibid., p.99).  It is
  suggested that this is probably due to the fact that a more open space
  occurring between signs containing more dots makes for easier
  recognition.  Unfamiliar words with lower contractions were found less
  easy to recognise.
  
  The position of the contractions is also important, for Nolan and Kederis
  (ibid., p.99) found that in familiar words contractions in the medial
  position are the easiest to recognise and those at the ends of words the
  hardest.  It is suggested that this may sometimes be due to Ashcroft's
  finding (1960, p.66) that meanings are sometimes guessed before the
  whole word has been sensed.  In unfamiliar words the difficulty
  diminishes as the position of the contraction moves from the beginning
  to the end of the word.  A likely explanation may be that the meaning is
  being synthesized as the word is being covered but no guessing occurs. 
  It would seem that recognition of words with the help of contractions is
  more complex than many have recognised.
  
  The Effect of Word Length, Familiarity, and Orthography on
  Recognition Thresholds for Braille Words
  High school students from three residential schools who read braille with
  above average comprehension were selected by Nolan and Kederis
  (ibid., p.72) and then ranked for fast to slow performance.  From these,
  15 students were selected from each of the upper and lower thirds of the
  distribution.  A multivariate design was necessary.  Students read
  separate characters and also familiar and unfamiliar words of 3, 5, and
  7 letters in length, the presentation times being systematically increased
  until each subject could recognise all the words.  In addition, the cover
  time (time taken until at least one finger had encountered all the letters),
  and the synthetic time (the sums of recognition times for all the letters in
  the word) were recorded.
  
  The following (ibid., p.25) were among the findings: the effects on word
  recognition times of increase in word length and decrease in familiarity
  augmented one another; the single and combined effects of the variables
  were proportionately greater for slow readers; and the order of legibility
  of braille characters was the same for the fast and slow readers.  It was
  also found (ibid., p.81) that of the 36 words read by 30 students (total
  1,080 words) 111 words or 10.27% were recognised before the reading
  fingers had covered all the letters in the word.  Other cues must therefore
  play a part in recognition.
  
  The experiment was replicated with elementary-aged pupils (Study 7)
  and with pupils with lower intelligence (Study 8), so comparisons could
  be made demonstrating the development of reading skills at this level. 
  It was found (ibid., p.43) that "the development of reading skills is
  retarded and reading, even at the upper elementary level, may proceed
  in a fairly mechanical manner.  Once this basic maturational process has
  been concluded, the child is free to make rapid growth".  This overall
  picture was later to be refined in experiments carried out by Millar (1984;
  1985; 1988) which will be referred to later in this chapter.  It needs to be
  remembered that the Nolan and Kederis experiments described above
  were carried out with the use of the tachistotactometer which does not
  provide the natural reading situation so the results need to be interpreted
  with caution.
  
  Unit of Recognition
  The most striking result was the difference between the synthetic times
  and the times required for recognition of these words.  To take one
  example (ibid., p.79, from Table 15): the mean recognition time for an
  uncontracted familiar five-letter word by a fast reader was .63 sec. and
  .42 sec. for synthetic recognition time.  The corresponding times for slow
  readers were 1.11 sec. and .79 sec.
  
  The last result had a profound effect on teaching method for it implied
  that "the process of word recognition appears to be a sequential one in
  which word recognition is the result of the accumulation of information
  over a temporal period (ibid., p.39) and that "whole word reading" is not
  characteristic of the braille readers studied and that the perceptual unit
  in word recognition is the braille cell" and this seemed to be the answer
  that Nolan and Kederis had set out to discover.  It was to be remembered
  that all the experiments carried out by Nolan and Kederis (1969), except
  for Study 9 on the effect of character training, involved testing by means
  of the tachistotactometer involving oral reading under rigid timing
  conditions.  It would seem that more natural conditions of reading might
  have given more flexible conditions for strategy choice.
  
  Nolan and Kederis (ibid., 47-48) added the suggestion "that below a
  certain level of mental ability, braille ceases to be an effective medium
  for education" so that "for students whose IQ is below 85% it is an
  extremely inefficient medium of communication".  In the opinion of the
  writer the suggested level of IQ 85 can be taken liberally, for there are a
  small proportion of readers who may have a comparatively low IQ, who
  show poor evidence of recall, as evaluated in answers to comprehension
  questions, and yet who seem to gain much satisfaction from reading. 
  Their rates of reading may be faster than their intelligence would
  suggest.  Such children will progress slowly in education, but their sense
  of achievement and enjoyment of reading is remarkable in the
  circumstances.  Braille readers show many individual differences in
  coping with a complex medium.
  
  5. DEVELOPMENTAL FACTORS AND THEIR EFFECT
       ON BRAILLE READING
       
  General Development and its Effect on Braille Reading
  Gomulicki (1961, p.51) found that "at the age of 5 the blind child was at
  a distinct disadvantage as compared with the sighted one, taking
  decidedly longer to produce results that were markedly inferior", but "by
  their mid-teens or thereabouts, the blind children became ... as good as
  the sighted children of the same age".  He regarded this catching up from
  a slow start as being "at enormous cost of prolonged effort of the
  intellect" (ibid., p.52).  Gomulicki was writing in more general terms than
  in the sphere of braille learning, but nevertheless, this background needs
  to be taken into account in any review of the blind child's reading
  development.
  
  It is well known that many of the experiences that contribute to reading
  readiness for sighted children are necessary for the blind child too. 
  However, because the surroundings are less accessible in the absence
  of sight, many have to be deliberately brought to the notice of the young
  blind child, and emphasis laid on the remaining senses in order to help
  concept development.  As a result, reading by means of the braille code
  has a slow start too, intelligence being an important factor.
  
  As a direct result of Gibson's enquiries (1962; 1968) and researches
  carried out in the  70s and  80s, the type of research into braille reading
  began to have a different slant.  Instead of stressing reading behaviour,
  researchers were concentrating more on why and how.  That is, how
  does mental development affect braille learning and use, what strategies
  are used for discrimination and recognition of symbols, and at what stage
  of development?  Because these factors are all interrelated the problems
  posed by braille reading are seen to be more complex but need to be
  probed so that a greater understanding can ultimately help the braille
  reader.
  
  Short-term Memory
  As shown in Chapter 7, short-term memory is a major factor leading to
  the recognition of braille characters and words, but little experimental
  work has been carried out in this area.  Recall may involve tactual
  memory or verbal memory, or both occurring concomitantly.  Millar (1975,
  p.194) conducted an enquiry to test the effects of tactual and
  phonological features of braille consonants on tactual recall by blind
  children.  Lists were compiled containing up to 6 braille letters (ibid.,
  p.195), which were:
  1. heterogeneous in feel and in name sound (K, L, M, S, H, Y);
  2. phonologically similar, but dissimilar in feel (B, C, D, V, P, G);
  3. tactually similar, but phonologically dissimilar (W, R, T, N, Q, Y).
     (There is a misprint in List 1 for H () is shown as F ().) 
  
  The set size, that is number of items, for each child was determined by
  a test showing the number of serial items which produced a score of
  60%-100% correct responses.  The results showed that recall of braille
  letters by blind children is affected by both verbal and tactual features
  and that this interacts with the number of letters on which they were
  tested.  Further experiments are needed to determine the proportion of
  these features affecting recall, but the findings, so far, indicate that
  verbal coding is associated with high levels of total recall (ibid., p.200).
  
    Strategy Choices by Young Braille Readers
  Ashcroft (1960) and Nolan and Kederis (1969) thought the perceptual
  unit of reading comprised outline shape of the characters, as helped by
  recognition of dot numerosity.  For many years teachers have based their
  teaching methods on these findings.
  
  Because braille characters are read sequentially the first half of the cell
  comes under the reading finger pad before the second half can be
  integrated with it, and during this process the relative positions of dots
  and spaces have to be registered before recognition can take place. 
  This must be a slow process if not helped by other strategies.  In 1984
  (p.568), Millar posed the question of whether "shape can actually help
  with coding, or whether it relates to coding by sound and meaning at
  different levels of reading efficiency".  As a result of observations on a
  retarded blind child's use of sound in memorising how to write braille
  characters, Millar suggested that phonological strategies may not only
  help retarded blind children, but may also be used in the early braille
  learning of normal children.  She therefore carried out investigations
  (1984) to determine which of phonological, shape, dot numerosity and
  semantic strategies were used at different levels of reading ability, by
  retarded and normal children.  Two hypotheses were tested (ibid., p.569):
  1. that coding strategies change with reading rate level, and
  2. that coding strategies differ between normal and retarded readers.
  
  For hypothesis (1), subjects were divided into 3 groups according to
  reading rates, and for testing hypothesis (2), reading age relative to
  mental age norms were used (ibid., 569-570).
  
  For the first experiment Millar selected four-letter words from which the
  subject had to choose the  odd man out'.  The words were carefully
  chosen so that the choice would reveal which strategy or strategies had
  been used.  For example, for semantic versus phonological choice, the
  selected words were GIRL, CURL, and LADY, where CURL is odd
  semantically, and LADY is odd phonologically.  In the second experiment
  the same strategies were tested, but the critical stimulus word was given
  as well as the coding instruction to be used.  Pseudo-words were also
  included to assess whether the coding instructions could be maintained.
  
  The results showed that for all types of readers shape was the most
  difficult of the strategies - a radical change from previous thinking.  Dot
  numerosity could be used as additional help.  In general the results
  showed a  mixed model' of processing, that is more than one type was
  used.  The retarded reader tended to ignore the harder strategies, such
  as determination by shape and to rely more on phonology.  The
  differences in coding suggested an interaction with mental age
  differences.  It would seem that some readers may need to be helped to
  adopt additional strategies, thus leading to greater enjoyment of reading
  with an improved rate of reading.
  
  In 1985, Millar backed up these findings by mounting two experiments on
  matching braille characters in dot pattern and in outline shape
  respectively, followed by an analysis of subjects' drawings of braille
  outline shapes.  It was found that even the fastest readers were better at
  dot patterns than outline shapes and that "subjects were less accurate
  and slower at matching outline shapes than dot patterns at all levels
  efficiency".  In fact (ibid., 16-17), "facilitation from shape coding is more
  a matter of individual differences in coding strategies rather than either
  the cause or effect of faster reading as such".  It will be remembered that
  Ashcroft included errors of orientation in his list of braille difficulties. 
  Here (ibid., p.17), Millar suggested that some readers seem to depend
  less on confusing mirror image shapes than on confusing small
  differences in spatial positions of dots within a letter, and also on
  confusion about the main reference axis in reading.  She considered
  these factors to be more important than practice in detecting global letter
  shapes (ibid., p.17).  Millar's findings on strategy choices by young blind
  children (1984; 1985) as extended and developed by further research,
  should have a far reaching effect on their education.
  
  Strategy Choices by Fluent Braillists
  To understand more about the strategies used by faster, more fluent
  readers, three assumptions can be made (Millar, 1988, p.89):
  1. in a "letter-by-letter" method a small change, such as a missed
       dot, is likely to be registered and so produce significant results;
       2. if speed depends on use of context, contextual changes will be
       registered, but a small change in a letter in a word should not be
       registered in overall reading speed; and
       3. if prose reading involves a number of component strategies, which
       may relate in a compensating manner, both mis-spelling and
       context changes will be registered.
       
  Millar (1988) demonstrated these variables by measuring their effect on
  speed as shown by hand movements during oral reading.  For this
  measure of performance a detailed and exactly timed mechanism was
  needed, much in advance of the more primitive apparatus used by
  Holland and Eatman (1933) and Fertsch (1946).  Hand movements were
  video recorded from below a transparent reading surface, and
  synchronised with cumulative timing and voice output.  Details of text
  showed up against the finger pads of the reading finger.  Critical words,
  involving mis-spellings and context changes were included in the
  narrative, and problems caused by them were indicated in the oral
  reading and, more particularly, by a change in the tempo of reading.
  
  Theories about the rate of braille reading include fast letter recognition,
  the fast coding of shapes, the use of context cues, and a knowledge of
  syntax.  The hypotheses to be tested by Millar (1988, p.89) were:
  1. braille reading is slowed down if the critical words are spelt
  incorrectly; or
  2. physically degraded; or 
  3. if the prior context is inappropriate; and
  4. reading is slowed significantly more by context change in
       conjunction with physically degraded words.  (Words were
       degraded by using a braille eraser to depress the dots to a level
       that made discrimination difficult for experienced braillists, that is
       60%-70% correct recognition.)
       
       The subjects read braille prose passages aloud.  Each of the 6 stories
  was presented in 6 versions according to the 6 test conditions.  These
  were:
  1. control story;
       2. story with degraded critical words;
       3. story with incorrectly spelt critical words;
       4. story with context change;
       5. story with incorrect critical words plus context change;
       6. story with degraded critical words plus context change.
       
       Each subject read 6 different stories bringing in 6 different test
  conditions, the stories being counterbalanced across the subjects.  It was
  found that stimulus quality, coherence in the text, and mis-spellings
  affected overall prose reading speeds, but their full effect in reading
  words and full text on speed is not yet fully understood.
  
  Using the same apparatus, Millar (1987) had shown that when two hands
  are used in prose reading, they do not process different parts of the
  prose simultaneously.  The left hand, when moving to a new line, does
  not start reading until the right hand has completed reading the previous
  line.  The evidence suggests (ibid., p.120) "that fluent reading depends
  to a considerable extent on fast intermittent alterations in function
  between two hands".
  
  Millar's comments (1984, 74-75) in connection with hand use, and the
  development in braille reading shown in the above experiments, are
  summarised when she wrote "highly proficient reading depends mainly
  on verbal strategies and skill ...; less proficient reading demands
  attention to spatial coding of the physical characters ...; whilst early
  learning subjects rely on non-spatial  texture' (e.g. dot density) features
  of braille characters ...".  Clear cut stages are not apparent, for children
  develop at differing rates and, as has been seen (Millar, 1984), use a
  variety of strategic choices, but the main trend can be recognised.
  
  6. STRATEGIES FOR IMPROVEMENT OF THE RATE OF
  READING
  
  Changing the Code
  Ever since 1870 attempts have been made to change the code so that it
  would become easier to read and to use.  These attempts have been
  chronicled in Part 1 as far as the London conference of 1978.  Current
  work on the code will be discussed in the next chapter.
  
  Diagnostic Tests
  Few alterations have been made to the braille code since the British
  revision of 1905.  Teachers have always known that the medium is less
  efficient and more difficult than visual reading, so great efforts have been
  made to improve methods of teaching as demonstrated in books, articles
  in journals and in presentations during conferences.  By observation it
  was known that the development of blind children was slow compared
  with that of their sighted peers.  Comparisons with the development of
  sighted children at any age are difficult and this must be particularly so
  when the complexities of braille reading are being considered. 
  Standardized tests for sighted children have been converted in the
  absence of anything more appropriate, but braille reading especially
  needs to be assessed by tests standardized on samples of blind children.
  
  The Tooze Braille Speed Test (1962).  The test is intended to assess the
  child's attainment in "actually reading braille symbols" for children of
  primary school age.  It consists of 120 three-letter words that contain no
  contractions.  Reading is timed and the raw scores obtained in one
  minute can then be used with chronological age to transform the scores
  into reading ages and standard scores.
  
  Lorimer Braille Recognition Test (1962).  In 1962 (p.5), Lorimer, J., wrote
  that when reading tests of comprehension were attempted, "there was no
  way of knowing if or to what extent results were affected by difficulties
  with braille contractions".  It was for this reason that he provided a
  standardized test based on a population of 332 children of primary
  school age, which was intended to measure "the braille factor".  174
  unrelated but carefully chosen words were provided, each containing a
  contraction.  For example, too much familiarity with a word would mask
  whether the contraction was recognised, so less familiar words were
  chosen.  The test was terminated after 10 successive failures, and norms
  are given for each half year from 7.0 to 12.6 years.  The test was
  diagnostic in that it determined the types of errors likely to be made when
  reading braille, and it could also provide guidance in the construction of
  teaching material and for remedial help.
  
  Neale Analysis of Reading Ability, adapted for use with blind children
  (1977).  Neither the Tooze test (1962) nor the Lorimer test (1962) was
  intended to test comprehension, and Lorimer, J., felt that "there was an
  urgent need for a test which not only provides reliable quantitative
  measures of accuracy, comprehension and rate in reading ... but also
  yields diagnostic information which reveals specific difficulties and
  indicates the type of remediation needed" (1977, 1-2).  The blind
  population in Britain is comparatively small and therefore it would not
  have been possible to find sufficient numbers needed for trials and final
  versions of a new test.  It was therefore necessary to use a well-tried test
  for sighted pupils and standardize it for braille-reading pupils.  The Neale
  test for sighted pupils provided 3 parallel forms, which were of
  comparable standard to make retesting possible.  Each form consisted
  of 6 graded reading passages with questions provided to test
  comprehension.  Based on a sample of 299 blind children, the Lorimer
  adaptation has proved successful not only in testing accuracy,
  comprehension, and rate of reading, but also in having diagnostic value. 
  Testing provision is made for recognition of the error types typified by
  Ashcroft (1960) as well as fundamental reading difficulties specific to the
  braille code.  The test is currently being restandardized and will be
  referred to again in the last chapter.
  
  Training in Rapid Reading
  Having determined that the braille character is the perceptual unit for
  braille reading, Nolan and Kederis (1969), investigated the effect of
  training on the rate of reading.  They used 3 types of training, the rate
  and error scores in oral reading of individual characters and in words,
  and the rate and comprehension in silent reading.  12 students took part
  in each of Grades 3 through 6.  Pre- and post-tests were administered
  and after training the results revealed that for the experimental group, an
  increase in time of 42% for individual characters and 15% for words, and
  for error scores a decrease of 83% for individual letters and 28% for
  words.  The corresponding scores for the control group were an increase
  of 15% on time for individual letters, with a decrease of error scores of
  19% but the scores for rate and error for words changed hardly at all. 
  Unfortunately, the scores for comprehension were unreliable because
  some of the students were so highly motivated by monetary rewards that
  comprehension suffered.  The results were encouraging but a replication
  would have been desirable because the sample was so small.  Other
  training programmes to increase rate of reading included those by
  Flanigan and Joslin (1969) and Umsted (1972).
  
  At the beginning of this chapter reference was made to the work of Fry
  (1963) and Watts and Buzan (1973) who attempted to teach sighted
  adults to read faster.  Braille reading is considerably slower for most
  readers, not only because of perceptual problems and difficulties
  inherent in the code, but teaching has sometimes inadvertently
  encouraged this tendency. Stress had been laid on accurate oral reading
  and silent reading was perhaps not encouraged because of lack of
  reading material.  Now that most blind children are integrated into the
  main stream, uncorrected silent reading is more common.  Material well
  within the pupil's grasp will encourage a desire to hurry on when enjoying
  the story.
  
  In America McBride (1974) organised several two-week workshops
  intended to help increase the reading rates of blind adults.  Candidates
  were encouraged to experiment individually for "each person developed
  his reading skills in his own way, through suggestions from workshop
  directors and through comparing his own techniques with others in the
  class".  Each subject provided his own material and comprehension was
  tested by other participants; meanwhile purposeful reading, active
  responses, elimination of sub-vocalising, continuous effort to read faster
  yet with flexibility of speed were all emphasised.  A series of exercises
  were also employed involving rapid scanning of pages of braille using
  one or both hands and using one or more fingers.  The result showed an
  increase in average reading rate from 138 w.p.m. at the beginning of the
  course to 710 w.p.m. at the conclusion.  It was found that the subjects in
  the sample were highly motivated professionals. Though not conducted
  under rigid conditions the workshops stimulated others into action, and
  within the year (1975) two more studies were mounted.
  
  Crandell and Wallace (1975) divided the participants into two groups,
  one having training in rapid reading and also code recognition, the other
  having training in rapid reading only.  The results showed gains for the
  experimental group of approximately 39% and the control group showed
  only marginal improvement.  The experimental group gained speeds of
  up to 225 w.p.m.
  
  Olson, Harlow, and Williams (1975) divided their participants into three
  groups, two braille reading and one using large print.  One group was
  taught by an ex-member of one of McBride's workshops and followed his
  informal methods.  The other braille group was taught by more formal
  methods but also had informal sessions.  Both informal post tests
  revealed substantial gains, but not in the realms of those achieved by
  McBride.  They found (ibid., p.395) that "age had a negative effect on
  one's chances to increase his reading rate.  It is obvious, then, that we
  should concentrate our training efforts on young children who have not
  yet established their reading habits".  This fits in with the finding made by
  Fertsch (1946), p.131) that reading habits are established by the third
  grade, and Olson (1976) published an article entitled "Faster reading:
  preparation at the reading readiness level" (1976).
  
  In 1977, Lorimer, J., published Outlines of a short course to improve the
  braille reading efficiency of children in lower senior classes.  The study is
  unusual in that it was carried out under normal classroom conditions.  Six
  classes in a residential school were divided into two groups of three. 
  Half of them contained the 11 pupils regarded as the experimental group
  and half, the control group, were contained in the parallel three classes. 
  The mean age and IQ of the experimental group was 12.10 years and
  96.5 and the control group 13.2 years and 95.6 respectively.  All the
  pupils in the 6 classes took part even if their efforts were not included in
  the results, and the pupils were unaware of experimental conditions,
  regarding the proceedings as extra reading training.  Some showed little
  motivation at first, but there was noticeable enthusiasm as the training
  proceeded.  Each class had 19 periods of 40 minutes training.  The
  experimental group showed a gain of 84% in w.p.m. with only a slight
  drop in comprehension.  There was a small gain for the control group. 
  The training involved practice in techniques of hand use and speed
  reading with and without comprehension, Lorimer, J., stressed that the
  course was not regarded as comprehensive and that "more research-based information about the process and the limitations of reading by
  touch is needed before the design of a complete post-primary course in
  rapid reading can confidently be attempted" (ibid., p.10).
  
  7. SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH
  
  The selection of research findings concerned with reading in the medium
  of braille included in this chapter spans more than 60 years.  In the
  earlier years much of the work was observational and equipment for
  measuring results was primitive compared with the more sophisticated
  devices of present day, but this groundwork formed the basis of much of
  present day enquiries.  Since the late sixties more is being found out
  about the psychophysical properties of touch perception so a more
  holistic approach is now possible.
  
  New research throws up further ideas of what needs to be investigated. 
  For example, Millar's findings concerning the strategies used by young
  children when learning braille show that the processes concerned involve
  wider choices than had already been realised and were different for
  stages of development and for those of lesser intelligence.  Further
  research in this area seems of prime importance for the more that is
  understood, the more will be the benefit to learners and teachers alike. 
  Obviously, teachers need a fuller knowledge of the strategies being used
  and therefore where to strengthen the learning process.
  
  Because tactile reading takes longer to learn than visual reading there
  is less time available to learn such skills as the use of context cues,
  syntax and dictionary skills.  There is therefore an urgent need for blind
  children to be given extra help in this area for them to reach their full
  potential.  More research is needed for a better understanding of when
  such help is appropriate for each child.
  
  Lorimer, J.'s, research (1977) on improving the braille reading efficiency
  of children in the lower senior classes could be suitably adapted for use
  with fluent younger children, based on more research-based information
  about the stages of development in braille reading at that age.
  
  More research is needed regarding verbal processing and finger and
  hand movements.  This is also important because it has direct bearing on
  the early stages of reading when the learners are determining their best
  hand use before their reading habits become more set.
  
  So far little has been said about adult reading because there has been
  little research carried out in this area.  Children were easier to select
  where whole samples could be found in a special school, and, now that
  children are more integrated into normal schools in Britain, travelling for
  researchers is expensive and time consuming.  Adult learning of braille
  is very different for two main reasons; adults are not learning  to read' at
  the same time as they are learning braille, and they have the
  disadvantage of having to learn a new skill without the old word patterns
  intervening.  The teenager who must learn quickly so as to get on with
  training or for a waiting job, the adult suddenly blinded who has to adjust
  to new working conditions, the retired professional who wants a
  purposeful new life, and the elderly blind person who may learn slowly
  but needs braille for simple organisation in the home, are but a few of the
  adults who need new literary skills.  It is obvious that their needs are very
  different.
  
  In conclusion it seems to the writer who has been both teacher and
  researcher, that there is not a sufficient link between the valuable
  findings of researchers and their application in the learning situation.  It
  is necessary that findings are written up in research journals so that
  others may build on previous work.  Understandably, teachers often do
  not always understand the statistics involved or even the special
  vocabulary that is necessary to convey exact meaning.  No blame is
  attached anywhere, for it is the natural result of the working of separate
  disciplines, and all have problems of lack of time.  Yet the matter needs
  to be addressed for the sake, ultimately of those for whom the research
  is carried out.  The Braille Authorities of the United Kingdom and North
  America have also supported the desirability of having this knowledge
  made more available.  The International Conference on English Braille,
  Grade 2, held in Washington, D.C., in 1982, passed resolution 7.5
  (p.248) which stated, "Little appears to be known about the structure and
  functioning of the touch sense or about the psychophysical factors which
  affect tactile sensitivity in perceiving braille characters.  Research on this
  topic is clearly beyond the competence of any braille authority to carry
  out.  It is therefore proposed that efforts to be made to persuade properly
  qualified specialists to undertake this task.".  No reference was made to
  this aspect in the following conference held in London in 1988.
  
  8. CONCLUSION
  
  The intention of this chapter has been to explore some of the factors in
  the braille code which cause it to be a comparatively slow medium of
  reading.  Inevitably, therefore, the difficulties became highlighted in order
  that they might be mitigated to some extent.  To end on a positive and
  kindly note, let Ashcroft (1960, p.52) end the chapter, "The low incidence
  of errors, about 5 errors per 100 words, is a positive and encouraging
  finding of the study.  Braille is often described as a difficult, cumbersome,
  and illogical system ... .  Nevertheless, this study, which concentrated
  upon errors, and held a widely inclusive definition of error, revealed
  relatively little difficulty in a large sample of children of wide range in age,
  grade, and ability.".
  
  
  