Braille

Blind people’s literacy was revolutionized by Louis Braille (1809–1852) which changed their access to work education and culture. Born in Coupvray France on January 4 1809 he was blinded as a young child following an incident in his father’s workshop. He used an awl to pierce his right eye when he was three years old.

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The infection quickly spread to his left eye and by the time he was five he was totally blind. Long before there were accessible textbooks or screen readers his early education in the village classroom depended on attentive listening and extraordinary memory. He was accepted into the National Institute for Blind Youth in Paris at the age of ten; one of the few establishments of its kind in the world at the time thanks to his intellectual prowess.

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There in 1821 Braille came across night writing a military code created by Captain Charles Barbier. Using a 12-dot grid that soldiers could feel in the dark Barbier’s system allowed them to silently read orders. Although the idea of using tactile dots instead of raised print letters was groundbreaking, the code was too complicated for everyday reading and writing. With the clarity of a brilliant problem-solver

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Braille saw its potential right away and began to redesign it so that blind readers could use it with ease. At the age of fifteen he introduced the compact six-dot cell system that bears his name in 1824. Compared to previous techniques that required tracing the outlines of raised print the cells six positions allowed it to be combined in a variety of patterns to represent letters of the alphabet numbers and punctuation with far greater efficiency. The six-dot cell also made it possible for blind people to write independently swiftly and silently using a slate and stylus.

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As his system developed Braille went beyond simple literacy. When he modified the code for musical notation at the age of 19 many blind students were able to access previously unattainable opportunities for professional musicianship performance and study. Even though the code’s elegance is now evident acceptance was delayed. Adoption was slowed by institutional conservatism and the cost of retooling materials, and the Paris Institute did not formally support Braille’s system until 1854 two years after his passing.

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 He continued to innovate while working as a teacher at the institute in his adult life. Decapoint, a technique that enabled sighted people to write messages that blind readers could decipher by touch is one of his lesser-known contributions. In addition, he was a skilled organist who held positions in churches all over France and was well-known for both his pedagogy and musical prowess.

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At the age of 43 Braille passed away on January 6 1852 from tuberculosis. His remains were moved to the Panthéon in Paris in 1952 a century later as France acknowledged his national significance. Since then recognition on a global scale has only grown. In order to protect the rights of people who are blind to literacy education and cultural participation, UNESCO recognized braille as an essential communication medium in 2005.

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Braille is still essential for independent living and accessible education in public places, workplaces, colleges and schools worldwide. The simplicity and completeness of Braille’s accomplishment are what give it its lasting power. The six-dot cell can encode language, math and music and is simple to learn. It also restores authorship: a blind person can write edit and distribute work without the assistance of sighted intermediaries by using a stylus or other contemporary tools. In this way braille is more than just a code, it is an inclusive philosophy based on useful design. A system that transformed how millions of people read learn and participate was born out of a childhood injury in a village workshop—proof that the right tool in the right hands can change the world.