| This qualitative case study examined the issues and concerns with preparing visually impaired people (VIP) for mainstream employment and their perceptions of the impacts of information and communication technology (ICT) accessibility on their personal and professional lives. The study focused on the experience of one Philippine-based non-governmental organization and their efforts to provide skills development and employment preparation support to VIP. Study findings discuss the organization's training program features, barriers to, enabling factors for, skills needed for employment, and the impacts of ICT accessibility. The transformation theory of adult learning provided the conceptual framework for the study and was used as the primary tool for analysis of findings. Conclusions highlight that while impacts have been positive over all, there is a need to increase VIP access to ICT across the socio-economic spectrum worldwide. Barriers to VIP employment need to be addressed, particularly related to employer attitudes towards hiring VIP. Concluding remarks additionally address implications for policy, practice and research. |
