In the master’s thesis “Career path of the blind”, I become acquainted with different career paths of the blind and partially sighted persons and their unique life stories. I defined them in three groups with regards to their employment status (unemployed, employed, and creatively employed), as I wished to understand better which strategies of facing the obstacles proved to be efficient and which less efficient. I also wished to find out which protective factors are really important in employment and which are less important. On the basis of the ascertainments, I extracted the directives for the further work in order for the professional workers and the persons with visual impairment to be able to unite the theoretical knowledge with practical experiences and thus, ensure a more appropriate environment for changing the public image of the blind and partially sighted. This will reflect in searching the employment and in social inclusion. At the same time, the individual’s awareness of his own action for change will come to the forefront.
The theoretical part is composed of five chapters. These are “blind on the labor market”, “blindness as an obstacle”, “career path of the blind”, “early treatment”, and “social inclusion”. I pointed out the selected chapters because I find them essential within the set goal which is actually employment on the suitable working position which, at the same time, enriches employer’s social inclusion and breaks social stereotypes.
The main ascertainments of the master’s thesis are that the blind and partially sighted had to make substantial efforts and persist in order to reach the first employment if they were not employed through the acquaintances or under a set of circumstances. Even more effort, knowledge, and positive “defiance” against the social perception about them alone had to be presented if they wanted to be employed in accordance with their desires. Education, research, and socializing with the sighted outside of the time of school obligations showed as important factors for the development of competencies of an individual which were later successfully transferred to the working field also. On the other hand, supportive parents did not prove to be a “necessary” recipe for the successfulness in the career, which I find interesting. I can conclude that the reason lies in “too extensive” support of the parents which, in a way, deprived an individual of the opportunity for a “challenge” or an experience where he alone would have to overcome an obstacle and thus, develop the skills for life.
In the master’s thesis, there are a lot of fine strategies in the statements of the interviewees how to approach the improvement of the perceptions on blind and partially sighted on the social level. Eventually, this will reflect positively for all the social groups with special needs or without them.
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