| Description | Interview with Miss McHugh, headmistress at Chorley Wood grammar school for blind girls, Hertfordshire and Miss Crawshaw, matron at Chorley Wood. They continue to talk about the girls' development of other senses to compensate for their lack of sight, their problems with mobility and using cutlery and other everyday tools when they arrive at the school, and efforts to teach them skills to be independent. They discuss the difficulty in recruiting ancillary staff for schools who care about their job because of the poor pay and the segregation from teaching staff, and the greater integration at Chorley Wood. Miss McHugh emphasises the importance of learning social and interaction skills over academic achievements and thinks that the girls she teaches are more vulnerable psychologically because they overhear their parents' conversations without being able to interact with them visually and worry much more about things. Miss McHugh talks about her career teaching science (tracks 1-4).
Track 5: test tone 0.12 mins
Miss McHugh continues to talk about her career teaching science, the educational achievements of the girls once they have gained confidence, the speed of technological developments and the possibility that in the future people will know how to use scientific instruments and computers without knowing how they work. Miss Crawshaw joins the conversation to discuss school structures, the election of head girls and student representatives, the number of teaching and ancillary staff, and the desirability of teaching small classes. Miss McHugh talks about the need for initiatives in blind education, her involvement in general inspections of schools, her educational objectives and determination to do the best she can for the girls in her care (tracks 5-9).
Total: 33.10 mins
Dubber's reference number: PLA KF565D0764680 |