The effect of enriched environments in teaching geometric shapes to students with visual impairment

This study aimed to investigate the impact of teaching geometric shapes to students with low vision in enriched learning environments on their academic achievement and procedural skills. The research was conducted using an exploratory sequential design, which is one of the mixed research methods. The participants of the study consist of a total of 14 students with low vision attending the 3rd and 4th grades of primary school. Quantitative data were collected using the geometry achievement test and process skill rubrics developed by the researchers. The data consisted of a total of 10 questions, including five open-ended questions and five multiple-choice questions. Qualitative data were collected using daily evaluation forms and interview forms. The Wilcoxon test was used for quantitative data analysis. In the analysis of the process skill rubrics, the weekly total scores for each student and the changes in these scores were tabulated. Qualitative data were analyzed using content analysis. Findings show that enriched learning environments that teach geometric shapes positively impact the academic success of primary school students with low vision. The findings indicate that enriched learning environments positively impact the development of process skills in primary school students with low vision when learning geometric concepts. It was found that enriched learning environments increased the process skills of the participants, such as problem-solving skills, reasoning skills, communication skills, and representation skills, but did not significantly enhance their ability to connect these skills with other mathematical concepts.