Universal navigation diagrams (mnemonic schemes) installed in a special school for children with visual impairments
The Resource Centre "Barrier-Free Ukraine" of the National Assembly of People with Disabilities of Ukraine has developed and installed state-of-the-art universal mnemonic schemes made specifically for this educational institution at the Y.P. Batyuk Special Boarding School No. 5 in Kyiv.
Mnemonic schemes are a means of orientation and navigation for people with visual impairments, one of the types of tactile accessibility elements (TAE). According to a number of Ukrainian regulations, primarily DBN B.2.2-40:2018 "Inclusivity of Buildings and Structures", mnemonic schemes should be installed at public facilities, educational and rehabilitation institutions, transport infrastructure facilities, etc.
For the first time, mnemonic schemes have been installed on the 1st, 2nd and 3rd floors of a Kyiv special boarding school for children with visual impairments. The mnemonic diagrams were developed jointly by specialists in visual impairment education and professional designers, and they have been tested and are accessible to all users - children and adults with visual impairments.
"When there are no specially designed clear signs, blind people are guided by the landmarks that are available. It can be a ledge, a hole or a bright smell. Recently, there have been signs or schemes to facilitate orientation in space, installed indoors or outdoors. Of course, mnemonic schemes are much easier and simpler to navigate than, for example, smell, and this evokes very strong positive emotions. Here we were working for the sake of children, investing our efforts and knowledge in their future development. And this is what inspires us to continue working."
Provided that they are well designed and comply with all the standards of accessibility, convenience and safety in use, mnemonic schemes installed in schools for children with profound disabilities should perform a number of tasks and functions: educational, developmental, safe and free navigation in the building. The use of mnemonic schemes allows students to correctly visualise the general layout of the school, which in turn greatly facilitates spatial orientation skills and creates psychological comfort and self-confidence. This is extremely important, as for people with visual impairments - blind and visually impaired - the most important thing is not technical means, but their attention, memory and the formed system of spatial representations of the environment.
The development, production and installation of mnemonic schemes in the premises of the Y. Batyuk boarding school No. 5 had been planned for a long time. All this was made possible thanks to the financial participation of SmartiwayUA (director - Valeriy Muratov). The management and staff of this company demonstrate with real deeds, not just words, how to implement the leading values of social responsibility and inclusiveness, and not just financial responsibility, created by themselves. The Resource Centre "Barrier-Free Ukraine" is sincerely grateful to our partners from SmartiwayUA for their good deed and effective care for the students and teachers of the boarding school.
Our specialists have been fruitfully cooperating with the Y.P. Batyuk Special Boarding School No. 5 for many years. Thus, at the end of 2018, the Resource Centre "Barrier-Free Ukraine" developed universal information signs with a tactile component (Braille) for the school's classrooms, made in large print on a contrasting background. This makes it possible for everyone to read such a sign and orientate themselves in the room.
Our cooperation with and special attention to the school has its own explanation. Children with visual impairments study here, and it is for them that the designs developed and implemented by our specialists are intended. That is why we consistently and systematically implement the most modern approaches to the organisation of accessible space in this school in accordance with all the criteria of the regulatory framework of Ukraine.
By creating an accessible space in a special school, we not only solve the issues of safety and comfort, provide teachers and students with accessible relief and tactile visuals for orientation classes, but also teach children to use this accessibility from an early age.
Thus, as a result of many years of systematic work, Kyiv Special Boarding School No. 5 named after Y.P. Batyuk became one of the first in Ukraine to have the most modern, high-quality and beautiful mnemonic schemes for universal use, and the school's students have already appreciated their usefulness and convenience.
