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Berlin Day of the Visually Impaired: Touchscreens as a barrier in everyday life!
On June 6, 2025, Visually Impaired People's Day will be celebrated with a focus on touchscreens. Training courses are offered in Mitte to reduce digital barriers and promote independence. Information about the advice center and courses is available.
Berlin Day of the Visually Impaired: Touchscreens as a barrier in everyday life!
June 6th is the nationwide day for the visually impaired. This year the topic of touchscreens is the focus. The increasing use of touchscreen technologies poses major challenges for people with visual impairments. Press releases from Berlin emphasize the importance of the topic. District councilor Christoph Keller emphasizes that these technologies are increasingly replacing physical controls such as switches and knobs, which makes operation more difficult for those affected. For this reason, special courses on touchscreens are planned, which will be offered in the “General Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired” (ABSV) and in the future also at district adult education centers. This initiative aims to help people better understand and use new technologies to lead independent lives.
The advice center for people with visual impairments, as the only municipal contact point in the country, offers low-threshold services for those affected. The offers include advice on compensation options, testing of visual aids and demonstrations of tablets and helpful apps. Particular attention is paid to the training courses supported by social workers. These help to provide information about everyday aids and resources. In addition, ophthalmologists are available to explain the causes of the visual impairment and show appropriate treatment options.
Professional development and support
In the future, community college lecturers will also receive further training in order to cover the need for qualified teachers for the upcoming courses. Interested teachers can contact the advice center to take part in these offers. In this way, the digital inclusion of people with visual impairments is to be promoted, which is important given the World Health Organization's estimates: over a million visually impaired people live in Germany.
The Visually Impaired Day places a particular focus on PIN entry on touchscreen devices. However, this represents a major barrier for many. Manuela Myszka from ABSV reported experiences in which she was asked to say her PIN out loud. To address these challenges, some establishments, such as a Berlin restaurant, are using tactile stencils via touchscreen payment terminals. This is intended to make it easier for visually impaired and older people to enter their PIN independently.
Expand digital accessibility
The Accessibility Strengthening Act, which comes into force on June 28, 2025, will require companies to make digital products and services barrier-free. Digital barriers, such as a lack of image descriptions and insufficient contrast, prevent people with disabilities from using modern technologies. The German Association of the Blind and Visually Impaired (DBSV) points to the importance of accessible websites and apps and offers support to eliminate digital barriers. Tools such as contrast calculators and usage tests are helpful in ensuring digital accessibility.
In summary, June 6th, as Visually Impaired People's Day, represents an important opportunity to draw attention to the challenges and existing barriers that the digital world presents for visually impaired people. Initiatives and training offers can help to make digital solutions inclusive and thereby promote self-determination in the digital society. For further information about the advice center's offerings for people with visual impairments, those interested can use the address Turmstraße 21, 10559 Berlin, or contact the telephone number 030 9018 45246.
Further details on this topic can be found in the following links: Berlin.de, ABSV, DBSV.