Seeing a New Way

NEA Today, Mar 2006 by Sharma, Ritu

Iowa teacher Julie Benge lost her eyesight on a field trip, but returned quickly to the classroom.

BENGE, A SPECIAL EDUCATION TEACHER at Fort Madison High School in Fort Madison, Iowa, always figured it would be her left eye to one day give her trouble. Born with glaucoma in that eye, the 45-year-old wife, mother, and educator, could see just fine though. But while embarking with her students on a field trip in December 2004, she lost her balance exiting a van and slammed onto the cement.

"The van door opened wider than I expected it to and I just fell flat on my face," says Benge.

Her bad eye wasn't affected by her fall, but her good one was. She suffered severe damage as her right cornea and retina ruptured. "I had many surgeries and the doctors were excellent," says Benge. "I could get around with some sight." That was short-lived though, and as her eyesight deteriorated, she found herself plunged into a new, dark world.

It wasn't dark enough for Benge to lose her way. Just two months after her accident, she returned to school, teaching half days. "With wonderful support from my family and associates, I was able to finish the year and see what I needed to see," says Benge. Her two classroom assistants' work make it possible for her to remain an active and involved teacher for the students. And those students know that nothing gets by her, even if she is visually impaired.

"I am still very much aware of what is going on as far as what skills my students have passed and what skills they need to repeat," says Benge. Her students have also helped in her return to the classroom, becoming more cooperative and independent learners as the situation warrants.

It's a new life, Benge says, and it's a positive one. "Life keeps going. There is never any reason to be down."

-RITU SHARMA