Braille Production

 

Braille is not a language. Rather, it is a code by which languages such as English or Spanish may be written and read. The Braille code is complex with special rules. Braille symbols are formed within units of space known as braille cells, with a full cell consisting of six raised dots arranged in two parallel rows each having three dots. A single cell can be used to represent an alphabet letter, number, punctuation mark, or even a whole word. Braille transcribers take text and recreate the content in Braille. Transcribing requires critical analysis of visual information and the ability to convey that information accurately in a tactile format.

The KSB Braille Production staff use computer software to do much of their work, but it is not as simple as pushing a button and translating a document. The staff in the Braille Production Center must make many decisions throughout the text being transcribed. They determine how to most accurately present information from print into a Braille version and then transcribe it into Braille so that a student who is blind or has low vision gets the same benefits from the information as his or her sighted peers.