Words by Smiley Team
The development of this Lego set is a victory for disability rights advocates who have long been calling for efforts to close the literacy gap for children with blindness and low vision. The blocks will be distributed free of charge to partner organisations that can then give sets to learning centers, schools, and daycares.
Although mastery of braille correlates to higher levels of educational attainment and greater career success later in life for children, the reading system has been falling out of favor in recent years as digital learning tools become more popular. In the US for instance, 10% of blind children are learning braille today, compared to 50% in the 1950s.
The new Lego blocks, along with other recent efforts to adopt braille efficiency, could help reverse this trend.
“With thousands of audiobooks and computer programs now available, fewer kids are learning to read braille,” said Philippe Chazal, treasurer of the European Blind Union, which partnered with Lego on the announcement, in a press release. “This is particularly critical when we know that braille users often are more independent, have a higher level of education, and better employment opportunities.
“We strongly believe LEGO Braille Bricks can help boost the level of interest in learning braille, so we’re thrilled that the LEGO Foundation is making it possible to further this concept and bring it to children around the world.”
In addition to the full braille alphabet, the blocks will include the numbers zero through nine and various math symbols to encourage different challenges and learning opportunities. The blocks are fully compatible with other Lego blocks and can therefore be used to supplement a child’s existing Lego set.
The blocks are being tested in Portuguese, Danish, English, and Norwegian, while additional languages will be added in the future.
Original article by Joe McCarthy - Source Global Citizen
Photo by Esteban Lopez on Unsplash
