Condition-Specific ยท IEP Planning

IEP for a Child With Visual Impairment: Specialist Services, Braille, and Your Child’s Rights

Children with visual impairments have specific IDEA entitlements, including a Teacher of the Visually Impaired, a functional vision assessment, a learning media assessment, and braille instruction unless the team has a specific reason it isn’t appropriate. Most parents don’t know all of these rights exist.

Meghan Moore, BCBA, M.A. Special Education
Founder, Mama Moore Advocacy  ·  Updated April 2026

Eligibility and Initial Evaluation

Children with visual loss that adversely affects educational performance qualify under the Visual Impairment Including Blindness eligibility category. The evaluation must include a Functional Vision Assessment (FVA) conducted by a certified Teacher of the Visually Impaired (TVI), a test of visual acuity alone (like a standard eye chart) is not sufficient for educational purposes.

The FVA documents how the child’s vision functions in educational tasks, reading, mobility, responding to visual stimuli at various distances, visual fatigue, and performance under different lighting conditions. This functional picture is what drives IEP planning, not just the clinical diagnosis.

The Learning Media Assessment

Alongside the FVA, students with visual impairments are entitled to a Learning Media Assessment (LMA). The LMA determines the student’s primary and secondary learning media, whether the student will read primarily in print, braille, or a combination, and what assistive technology supports are needed.

The LMA directly informs whether braille instruction will be part of the IEP. Under IDEA, braille instruction must be provided unless the IEP team determines, after conducting the LMA, that braille is not appropriate for the student. The default is to provide braille instruction; the exception requires documentation.

Teacher of the Visually Impaired (TVI)

A TVI is a specially credentialed specialist who provides direct instruction to students with visual impairments. TVI services are not optional for students with significant visual needs, they are a required related service when the IEP team determines the student needs specialized instruction in areas affected by vision loss.

TVI services may include:

  • Braille literacy instruction
  • Expanded Core Curriculum (ECC) skills, the nine areas of disability-specific skills that sighted students learn incidentally but students with visual impairments must be taught explicitly
  • Use of assistive technology (screen readers, magnification software, refreshable braille displays)
  • Visual efficiency skills training
  • Consultation with classroom teachers on accommodations and materials

If your child’s IEP doesn’t include TVI services, ask the team to document why they’ve determined a specialist is not needed.

Orientation and Mobility Services

Orientation and Mobility (O&M) training teaches students with visual impairments to travel safely and independently, in school, in the community, and eventually independently. O&M services are provided by a Certified Orientation and Mobility Specialist (COMS) and are explicitly listed as a related service in IDEA.

O&M goals typically address:

  • Navigating the school building independently
  • Safe travel on school campus (outdoor travel, stairs, doorways)
  • Use of long cane techniques where appropriate
  • Community travel and public transportation for older students

Like TVI services, O&M must be provided when the IEP team determines the student needs it, and lack of a COMS on district staff is not a reason to deny it.

The Expanded Core Curriculum

The Expanded Core Curriculum (ECC) represents nine areas of disability-specific skills that students with visual impairments need but cannot acquire incidentally through observation the way sighted students do:

  1. Compensatory access skills (braille, technology)
  2. Orientation and mobility
  3. Social interaction skills
  4. Independent living skills
  5. Recreation and leisure skills
  6. Career education
  7. Use of assistive technology
  8. Sensory efficiency skills
  9. Self-determination

A comprehensive IEP for a student with visual impairment addresses ECC areas, not just academic content. Ask the IEP team how the ECC has been assessed and which areas are addressed in the IEP.

Accessible Formats and Materials

Schools must provide instructional materials in the student’s primary reading medium, braille, large print, audio, or digital formats, at the same time the materials are available to sighted students. Waiting weeks for braille textbooks to arrive while sighted peers have already covered the material is a denial of FAPE. This is a specific requirement and schools must plan ahead to meet it.

Making Sure Your Child Gets Every Service They’re Entitled To

Meghan reviews IEPs for students with visual impairments and helps families identify whether TVI, O&M, braille, and AT services are adequate, and what to ask for when they’re not.

Request a Consultation
My child has low vision but isn’t blind, do they still qualify for TVI and O&M?
Yes. The Visual Impairment category includes students with low vision, not just students who are legally blind. The standard is whether the visual impairment adversely affects educational performance, and for students with low vision, the answer is often yes. TVI and O&M eligibility is based on the student’s individual needs, not on a specific acuity threshold.
What if the school says my child doesn’t need braille because they can see print with magnification?
The Learning Media Assessment determines the appropriate reading medium, not the team’s assumption. If the LMA hasn’t been conducted, request it in writing. A student who can read print today may benefit from braille as a secondary medium for efficiency or if their vision changes. The decision should be based on data, not convenience.