Beginning Braille Transcription

Prepare for a rewarding career as a Braille transcriber by learning to write and read the tactual language of the blind. You'll learn the history of Braille, and different ways of producing the Braille English alphabet, Braille numbers, Braille punctuation, and more. You'll also learn about employment opportunities for Braille Transcribers.

To enroll in this course, click the Enroll Now button below:

Requirements:

You will need to install and use Perky Duck software for Brailling on a standard computer keyboard. This software comes in Macintosh and Windows versions and can be downloaded free of charge from
http://www.duxburysystems.com/freeware.asp

Please be advised that Duxbury Systems, Inc. does not provide support for Macintosh users installing the Perky Duck software.

You will also need to download and install the SimBraille font on your computer. The file you need is free and located at:
http://duxburysystems.com/downloads/duxbrlf.exe

You will also need Internet access, e-mail, and a and the Microsoft Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox Web browser.

Finally, you will need a keyboard that responds to simultaneous six-key input, in other words, a keyboard that has been manufactured to the original IBM PC specification. If you're talking to a computer tech, you will want to ask for an "IBM PC down/up encoded keyboard with n-key rollover."

Be aware that many newer computer keyboards are NOT suitable. To determine if your keyboard will work, start a new document in any word processing program. Then press the keys sdf jkl all at the same time. Note what appears on the screen. A properly configured keyboard will generate all six letters (sdfjkl) on the screen--but not necessarily in that order.

Each time you press all six keys at once, you should see all six of the letters you pressed on the screen. If this occurs, your keyboard will be perfectly acceptable for braille entry.

If your keyboard generates only three or four letters instead of six, it will not work for Braille entry. Your instructor will be able to suggest affordable replacement keyboards that will meet your needs.

Syllabus:

All courses run for six weeks, with a two-week grace period at the end. Two lessons are released each week for the six-week duration of the course. You do not have to be present when the lesson is released, but you must complete each lesson within two weeks of its release.

A new section of each course starts on the second or third Wednesday of each month. If enrolling in a series of two or more courses, please be sure to space the start date for each course at least two months apart.

To enroll in this course, click the Enroll Now button below:

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About Your Instructor

Dixie Mahaffie

Dixie Mahaffie first became intrigued with Braille while attending elementary school. At sixteen, she became a Braille Transcriber for a metropolitan school district. In 1984, she received a Masters of Science Degree in Education with a Certification for Teaching the Visually Impaired, and she began work as a Braille instructor at a State Department of Services for the Blind. Mahaffie currently works as a Teacher of the Visually Impaired and an Orientation and Mobility Instructor. She conducts several accredited college-level Braille courses for sighted individuals and has helped many students achieve their goal of becoming Braille transcribers.

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