| Description | Interview with Lee Farmer from Chicago, United States of America, instructor on a training programme for orientation and mobility instructors . He talks about the history of rehabilitation training in the United States and the influence of ideas and attitudes from the UK. He discusses the psychological elements of mobility training, getting people to undergo formal training to use the long cane and the perceived lack of dedication of sighted people to helping blind people achieve independence. He gives his opinions about the progress made in the UK in placing blind people in industry, considering that it is too associated with paternalism. He contrasts this with his aim to give people total independence (tracks 1-4).
Interview with Mr Weeks, tutor at the guide dog training centre at Cleve House, Exeter. He talks about the history of guide dog training in the UK, the establishment of the centres at Liverpool, Leamington Spa, Bolton and Exeter, and the difficulties in training dogs in the centre of town. He discusses criteria for matching compatibile dogs and owners, the abilities required for people to use different mobility devices, and the level of dependence that people have on their dogs. He talks about the treatment of people at the centre as individuals, the length of time spent at the centre to build a relationship with the dog, the reasons for the types of dogs used and the dog training programme. He describes the kinds of people who use the dog training scheme, the preference for using female dogs, difficulties using dogs in the workplace and the visual and auditory signals used between the guide dogs and their owners (tracks 4-8).
Total: 34.56 mins
Dubber's reference number: PLA KF549C0066680 |