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The Boy Who Sees Without Eyes- Ben Underwood

Echo Location

Ben Underwood is blind. Both eyes were removed when he was just three years old, leaving him with no vision at all. So how on earth does he play basketball, rollerblade and cycle his bike? Ben lost his eyes to retinal cancer but, unbelievably, he's taught himself to see; with sound.

Ben Underwood and his family live in Sacramento, the state capital of California. It's an old city with roots in the Wild West, but Ben and his family live in the new, outlying suburbs.

Ben uses many common aids for the blind, like speaking software for his computer so he can jot down his rap lyrics. He's also written a book and does his schoolwork on a hi-tech Braille writer. But what's unusual, what's totally unique, is what he doesn't use. Ben has no guide dog and never uses a white cane. He doesn't even use his hands. Instead he sees with sound, he makes a sharp click, with his tongue, which bounces back off nearby objects. Amazingly, Ben's ears pick up the echoes and he can precisely locate where things are. Ben is the only person in the world who sees using nothing but echolocation.

Ben's echolocation is so good, that at home his mum, Aquanetta Gordon, and his brother make no allowance for his blindness at all. Aquanetta has refused to allow the loss of Ben's eyes to overshadow their lives.

Ben was born perfectly healthy, with dark eyes like his mum. But, when he was two she looked into his eyes and saw something was terribly wrong. In Ben's eye was a rapidly-growing, malignant tumour; a retinoblastoma. This is a rare infant eye cancer that affects only one in every six million. Dr James Ruben, Ben's paediatric eye surgeon, explains "If left to it's own devices it would be lethal. It would spread along his optic nerve and into his brain".

In an attempt to save his sight, doctors immediately began intense chemo and radio therapy, but after ten months there was still some scattered tumour. Aquanetta had to make a critical, heart-rending decision; try to save his eyes or try to save his life.

To this day, Aquanetta describes the world to him so that Ben can experience life to the full. He is currently on his fourth set of prosthetic eyes and Aquanetta still treasures the ones he had as a little boy.

Just one year after the operation to remove his eyes, Ben astonished his mum when he performed what seemed like a miracle. While in the car he asked his mum what the big building was that they were passing. Ben's ears were picking up the sounds of the city traffic reflecting from the building's surfaces.

Seeing with sound transformed Ben's life. His mum let him play in the street because his sound pictures seemed to make him more aware of danger than his sighted friends. Ben's super-sense amazed everyone, but this was just the beginning. When he was seven, Ben discovered a new power, he began to click. Ben learned to bounce his clicks off objects around him, giving him an even clearer picture of his surroundings. Over the years Ben has developed his clicking into such a fine art, that he can skate freely. He has the confidence and fluidity of movement through space other blind people can only dream of.

There's nothing his friends can do, that Ben wont attempt, and conquer.

Doctors suspect that Ben has developed super-hearing to compensate for his loss of sight. However, tests reveal he has only normal hearing. So, has Ben's brain learned to translate the sound he hears into visual information?

Sonar uses echo location to detect underwater objects. In water, even a small noise can be heard for many miles. In air, echoes are much harder to detect. They're so faint it's a miracle Ben can echo locate at all.

Scientists at the University of California in Santa Barbara want to see and study how Ben navigates with such a faint signal. They test him to see how small an object he can detect and how well he can differentiate the shape of different objects. He excels by detecting a thin upright tube and correctly identifying two like objects from four placed on the table in front of him.

Incorrigible Ben

School hasn't always been a happy experience for Ben. Three years ago, Aquanetta was advised to send him to a residential school for the blind. She was told it would be good for Ben to mix with other blind kids. As soon as he arrived he knew it was a big mistake. He recalls "I didn't like the blind school because it was like a school full of handicapped kids. I don't belong here, there ain't nothin' wrong with me". Many of the students, as it turned out, had multiple disabilities. With so many vulnerable students around, staff were naturally protective, but Ben wanted to run around and play games, just as he did at home.

Ben is a typical teenager; he thinks he knows it all. Aquanetta knows there is only one man he might listen to. Daniel Kish is a unique mobility instructor; like Ben he lost his eyes to cancer as a baby, he also discovered clicking as a child. Unlike Ben he's perfected a mobility system that combines echolocation and the cane. He has Ben's no-limits philosophy too, taking students hiking and mountain biking. For Daniel, "The Blind Leading The Blind" is a campaigning vision.

Of Ben he says "In terms of echolocation he's probably one of the finest, if not the finest, I've ever come across. But he could achieve so much more if he would swallow his pride and learn to use the cane". Ben is the best self-taught echo locator in the world.

Daniel has experience of travelling quickly and safely all over the world; alone. Just the sort of independence he wants to teach Ben. A need he forcibly demonstrates when he let's Ben get completely lost on a walk in the local park. 

How to Use Skype in the EFL Classroom

Skype is an excellent tool for EFL educators who are tentative about using more sophisticated learning technologies. Because Skype originally began as a voice-over-Internet-protocol (VOIP) service, as a cost-effective alternative to traditional phone calls, its application as a personal communication tool makes it more attractive to those who struggle to incorporate technology into their classrooms.

Skype’s advanced features such as screen sharing, file transfer and instant messaging make this VOIP technology appropriate as a teaching tool, in addition to a personal communication tool.

In the EFL classroom, Skype can be used to provide a variety of authentic learning experiences to students, including an interview with an author or other native English speaker, or an international collaborative projects with other classrooms.

Skype Versus Other Technologies

Some argue that Skype is less powerful than other synchronous learning technologies such as Elluminate or other webinar-type services. This may be true. It offers interaction with only a very limited number of users at one time. It also does not include the same interactive features such as white boards, polls or other features found with more sophisticated technologies. Skype’s simplicity, on the other hand, makes it an accessible tool for those who are less comfortable using technology in the classroom - and it is free.

Relationship between Anxiety, Curiosity and Receptiveness to Learning

Using a progressive approach to incorporating technology into the classroom is an effective way for EFL teachers to update their teaching techniques at their own place, building confidence and skills as they progress. For teachers who are reluctant to use technology due to lack of skills or confidence or high levels of anxiety, getting started with simpler tools may be an effective way for them to explore and incorporate new technologies. Simpler technologies allow users to minimize their risk and “performance anxiety” as they learn.

As users become comfortable with more advanced features, they can engage in higher level uses. This may lead them to being open to trying more sophisticated technologies in the future. Skype is an excellent tool to help teachers build technology skills. It also happens to be an effective tool to teach languages, as it incorporates high levels of verbal interaction between users, in this case between teachers and students.

Advanced Features

Although Skype could arguably be considered less sophisticated than other web or video conferencing tools, it has some advanced features that make it useful for teaching English. These include:

Conference Calls

Skype can be used to make conference calls with a number of users (Family Matters, n.d.). Up to six users may be on the line at one time. At the time of writing, the conference calling feature included audio only. Video calls can only be made between two parties.

Instant Messaging or Chat

Skype has a chat function that can be used for a variety of purposes. Users may chat while in a real-time audio or video call. This is useful if the connection breaks up. Users may indicate that they are unable to see or hear well using the chat function.

In addition, if another call comes in while a user is in a real-time call, he or she may send the other party a quick instant message to let them know that their cannot be answered at that time.

The chat function helps to smooth out online communications, allowing users to briefly acknowledge one another or explain a situation, rather than simply terminating a call. This is particularly useful for EFL students who may find writing easier than speaking.

File Sharing

Users can send files, which is much like adding an attachment to an e-mail, except that the sharing takes place in real time, during a call. Users can send almost any kind of file such as a .pdf, a Word document. The the party on the other end can open it as soon as they receive it, allowing users to discuss it during their call. Teachers can use this feature to share activities or resources with students during a lesson.

Screen Sharing

This feature allows users to share a portion of their screen or their entire screen, with others on the call. This is particularly useful for giving presentations. One user may enable a presentation in full-screen mode, while sharing their screen with other users. Teachers can use the screen sharing option to give slide presentations to students during a lesson. The screen sharing function is only activated once the user is in a call. The downside is that one can only “learn by doing” for this feature.

To access this function, click on the “call” tab on the menu at the top of the screen. That displays a drop-down menu. From there the user must choose “share screen”. The user will be asked if  he or she wants to share part or all of their screen. An important tip: I open my presentation before the call and then have it running in the background. I choose to share my entire screen and then I quickly flip to my slides and run my slides in full-screen mode.

There will be a moment where the party on the other end will see the user’s entire screen before the slides begin, so ensure there is nothing else open on the desktop such as personal e-mails, etc. Screen sharing requires practice, and it is a powerful feature for learning.

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