Independent Contractor Position: Blindness Skills Instructor
- Location
- Victoria, BC
Reports To - Program Coordinator
Dates of Contract - January 9, 2018 to June 29, 2018
Hours - up to 12 per week (number of days and hours are somewhat flexible).
Hourly Rate - $20
We are looking for someone who is passionate about teaching, excited by new challenges, and interested in working as part of a small, energetic, grassroots organization.
Services to Be Performed:
- Provide individualized and group instruction to blind adults in all areas of the alternative techniques of blindness, such as Braille, talking computers, travel with the long white cane, cooking, home management, job readiness etc.
- Work / train part of the time under sleepshades / learning shades, if not totally blind, and use a long white cane at all times during the program.(guide dogs are of course welcome to be at the centre, but the expectation is that the individual will use a long white cane when actually teaching.
- Help students become independent by adopting the structured discovery / problem-solving method of teaching used at the centre.
- Help to plan programs and program activities.
- Provide community outreach and help to identify the needs of blind individuals; Propose ways to meet these needs. Assist in the recruitment of new students.
- Provide services as part of a multidisciplinary team through group and one-on-one lessons.
- Link clients with formal and informal resources, and help individuals develop their skills and ability to use their own resources and those of their community to solve problems and find solutions.
- Support the Program Coordinator and other staff in the management of client files and demographic reports.
- Assist in the submission, writing and compilation of student reports to ensure student requirements are being met.
Qualifications:
- Candidate must be legally blind.
- Strong belief in and understanding of the structured discovery model of blindness skills training taught at the centre, and the centre’s positive approach to blindness.
- A degree or diploma in a Human Services, Social Work, or Community Social Services, or experience in a relevant field of knowledge with blindness experience preferred.
- Experience in teaching adults and an understanding of the unique needs of adult learners.
- Working knowledge of Braille, adaptive speech and Braille technology, travel with the long white cane, and other aspects of blindness skills.
- Experience working with people who have various disabilities in conjunction with blindness such as physical challenges, learning disabilities, brain injuries and mental health issues.
- Must be detail oriented and possess effective organizational and research skills.
- Must have excellent written and verbal communication skills.
- Have experience in developing and organizing lesson plans.
- Possess the ability to work with a variety of people in a diverse range of situations.
- A willingness to be flexible.
- A willingness to help out occasionally during extra activities such as conventions and recreational activities.
- Punctual, reliable and dependable. Work requires high degree of emotional intelligence and intuitiveness.
Please email a cover letter and resume to Elizabeth Lalonde, Executive Director, at Elizabeth@pacifictrainingcentre.ca no later than December 15, 2017.
For more information about the Pacific Training Centre for the Blind, please visit our Website at www.pacifictrainingcentre.ca or contact us info@pacifictrainingcentre.ca 250-580-4910
About the Centre
The Pacific Training Centre for the Blind (PTCB) teaches blind adults in Canada independence skills and a positive approach to blindness.
Its Vision Statement is:
Blind people empowering blind people to be employed, independent and free.
Its Mission Statement is:
The Pacific Training Centre for the Blind is committed to empowering its students to achieve independence, employment, equality and first-class citizenship by offering cutting edge blindness skills training based on a positive, proven, world-renowned model. Project leaders instill a belief in blind people’s own capabilities and in the limitless possibilities open to them by adopting a non-custodial approach (i.e. it is not about sighted people doing things for the blind; it is about blind people doing things for themselves, and it is about blind teachers working with blind students to increase skills and confidence).
The Pacific Training Centre for the Blind was established in July of 2011 and began running its signature program, Blind People in Charge, in the fall of 2013. The centre serves blind adults in Greater Victoria and other areas of all ages from young adults to older seniors.
The Blind People in Charge Program is the only program of its kind in Western Canada that offers regular, intensive rehabilitation to adults who are blind or who are losing their vision; it is also the only program that uses an empowering, problem-solving model of instruction, where blind people are the teachers, planners, directors and administrators.
Blind instructors and mentors teach non-visual independence and literacy skills such as Braille, adaptive technology, cane travel, cooking, cleaning, organizational skills, home and financial management, job readiness and other life skills, and develop positive strategies for living without sight; they provide training one-on-one and in group settings.
The program provides participants with the skills and confidence they need to improve their income and quality of life, take part in their community, and find gainful employment.
