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Guide

School news and low vision

Tips for participating in school news with low vision.

I was part of the school news program at each of the schools I attended and held various positions both in front of and behind the camera, and also served as an advisor to an elementary school news program as part of my high school mentorship. Each school had their own way of structuring the school news program- some did daily live broadcasts, while others used pre-recorded broadcasts on a daily or weekly basis, and treated the school news program as an extracurricular or as an elective class. Here are my tips for participating in school news programs with low vision, based on my own experiences.

Using a teleprompter

Some of the school news programs I worked with used a teleprompter for the anchors to read off of, which was set up on a laptop positioned about five feet from the news desk. Other programs had students read off of a paper or digital script that was at the news desk. My preferred way to read information on my high school news program was to set up a teleprompter app on my iPad that I would position within my field of vision so I could read information, while my co-anchors would use their own teleprompter or read from a script. I liked having my own personal screen because I could customize the font to a larger size that was more comfortable for me, and the larger font size made it so I was less likely to misread information.

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Use a camera with auditory feedback

I have trouble reading small letters or alerts on the video camera, so I turned on several auditory settings in the camera settings menu so that I could make sure that the device was recording and operate other camera functions as needed. This audio feedback was not noticeable in the news broadcast.

Wearing glasses/using mobility aids on camera

While many students who wear glasses would take them off for school news, I always kept my glasses on because I do not have much usable vision without them and it’s a safety hazard. When one of the sponsor teachers for school news insisted that I take off my tinted glasses for a broadcast, I told them no and that my eyes feel like they are burning when I take off my glasses.

I had a student ask me about whether they should have their blindness cane with them during news broadcasts. I did not use a blindness cane when I was attending public school, but since most of my school news broadcasts involved me sitting or standing in one position, I would not have had my blindness cane on camera since I wasn’t going anywhere. If I was shooting a segment that involved walking, I would have used my blindness cane if I was in an unfamiliar area or outside, since these are settings where I would naturally use my cane.

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Have interviews in easy to access locations

When doing location scouting for segments, I would choose locations that were easy for everyone to access safely. I refrained from interviewing people at the top of staircases, on staircases, in parking lots, in front of windows, or near heavy doors that could be opened in someone’s face. Instead, I would typically shoot interviews in a vacant classroom, well-lit hallway, or in other common areas that could be accessed by everyone on the news crew.

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Have a copy of the script in large print or on a device

When filming interviews or segments for school news broadcasts outside of the studio, I would print out a copy of the script or filming plan in large print or save it to my phone so that I could access it as needed. Having this information in a font size and format that I can read with low vision made it easy for me to collaborate with others and make revisions as needed.

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Using an assistant

Since I often held leadership positions within school news programs, I was able to request a student assistant/human guide who would serve as an extra pair of eyes when setting up a video shot or serve as my human guide if I needed to go somewhere or get descriptive information. I have a post about how to be a human guide and more about this term linked below.

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Check the background

When I was shooting a segment for school news at my high school once, I forgot to look at what was behind the subject and realized after the first take that the bulletin board behind them appeared to spell out an inappropriate phrase when students stood in front of it. This experience taught me that having a human guide/assistant is helpful, and the importance of checking the background before filming!

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Train in different jobs

My first ever position on a school news program was as a script writer and supervisor, and I eventually started trying out other position such as camera operator, lead producer, editor, director, anchor, travel reporter, tech support, and others. At first, I wasn’t sure how I would be able to participate in some of these positions with low vision, but the sponsors for the school news program let me practice with equipment during lunch or recess/study hall so I could become more comfortable with using it. My favorite positions were probably the lead producer and travel reporter ones, as I got to shoot pre-recorded segments that covered interesting topics that went beyond the lunch menu and other standard school news segments.

Related links

Other tips for participating in school news with low vision

By Veronica Lewis/Veronica With Four Eyes, www.veroniiiica.com

Updated August 2023; original post published September 2017

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