“You Are Just a Life Role Model” a Multiple Case Study of Teachers With Visual Impairment in the Field of Visual Disabilities

Teachers with disabilities serve as role models for students who share their disability identity, offering lived experience as a valuable source of knowledge and representation. The misconceptions about the potential contributions a visual disability affords the field of education not only limit employment opportunities for individuals with visual impairment (VI) in a field with a critical shortage but also deprive students with VI of educators with a shared disability identity who could serve as role models. This qualitative multiple case study used semi-structured interviews to explore the lived experiences of seven adults with VI who pursued careers in the field of visual disabilities education. Findings indicate role modelship impacted all aspects of considering, becoming, and being a Teacher of Students with Visual Impairments (TSVI). Their professional journey was marked by a double bind; they were simultaneously perceived as unqualified due to their disability and dismissed as taking the easy route due to the shared disability identity. TSVIs with VI, however, bring critical lived experience to their teaching, advocacy, and school communities. Breaking the double bind requires collective responsibility across teacher education, policy, and school leadership. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.