Duo recreates images in school textbooks for visually impaired

Muhammad Firdaus and Devayani with some of the textbook images they recreated through a tedious process using cardboard and strings.

The blind use their sense of touch to “see” pictures and visuals.

At Malaysian Association for the Blind (MAB), two youths are tasked with recreating diagrams and pictures for some of the school textbooks in the country.

Muhammad Firdaus Abd Rahman, 26, and Devayani Saravanan, 22, recreate these images through a tedious process that uses cardboard and strings.

These recreated images are then printed using an imported thermoform machine.

The duo showcased the process to create school textbooks for the blind when representatives of the Golden Chersonese Preceptory Priory Malaysia visited MAB.

The organisation donated an embosser machine worth RM24,000, which is used to print Braille textbooks, in conjunction with MAB’s 70th anniversary.

Recreating these images was time consuming, said Muhammad Firdaus.

He spent almost eight hours recreating a complex diagram.

“It is a meticulous process.

“But it is also a highly rewarding experience as I know visually-impaired students will be able to have almost the same experience as the able-bodied when they flip through the pages of their school textbook,” he added.

The images on each page need to be printed manually but it is a rewarding job, Devayani echoed.

Her visually-impaired father works as a weaver at MAB.

Though able-bodied, she was introduced to MAB at a young age.

She taught herself Braille and enjoys being in the company of visually-impaired individuals.

“They are not judgemental and it is easy to foster friendships with them.

“When I am done with a diagram, I usually seek the help of my blind friends to tell me what they think of it.

“They are generous with their time and knowledge and they are lovely people,” said Devayani.

MAB council member Thavasothy Mailvaganam Pillai said machines to print Braille needed to be imported and were expensive.

“So, the association is grateful for the donation of the embosser machine.

“The embosser is like a photocopier machine. We reprint Braille textbooks with it,” he said.