Scottish Independent Media

By Claire Elliot

TEACHER Gordon McFarlane was convinced going blind in a profession with mountains of paperwork and marking would spell the end of his career.

 But modern technology has proved a Godsend for the religious studies teacher, who tried for years to hide that he was losing his sight.
 

His guide dog, Yulie, and a security camera now act as his eyes in the classroom.

And, using a computer with voice commands linked to a DVD player, scanner and an overhead projector, he is able to continue to teach as well as he did before.
 

The 57-year-old, who has been blind for 11 years, said without the co-operation of the pupils at Bridge of Don Academy, Aberdeen, however, his job would not be possible.
 

“I have been very fortunate,” he said.
 

“The kids here are brilliant and it wouldn’t have worked unless they co-operated and they do.
 

“Young people get a bad name but 99.9 per cent of them are pretty good.
 

“In the 11 years I have been totally blind I have used the camera only 12 times to catch pupils.
 

“If I suspected someone had done something we would check back to see.”
 

Mr McFarlane, who was born with cataracts in his eyes, also has a reader who is employed to help him mark pupils’ written work.
 

They also check course books for graffiti.
 

And Mr McFarlane, who feels his way around the classroom using special bobbled flooring, said his acute hearing was the key to catching pupils who think they can get away with eating in class.

He said: “I don’t find it is a problem being blind in the classroom. You just find ways around things.
 

“I always knew there was a likelihood I would go blind and I remember panicking about what it was going to be like in a class of kids and not being able to see at all.
 

“But 11 years on, I could not have believed how good it has been.”
 

Mr McFarlane, who has been teaching religious and moral education at the school for 32 years, knew there was a chance he could go blind after developing glaucoma as a teenager.
 

He temporarily lost his vision for 10 days when he was 16.
 

Despite operations to try and save his sight, however, doctors warned that it was unlikely to be permanent.
 

Mr McFarlane, who has been nominated for an Inspirational Adult award, however, said: “I got 30 years of good eye sight out of it.
 

“I got to see my family growing up, and got through my education and teaching college.”
 

After finishing his senior years at a school for the blind in Edinburgh, where he met his wife, Sheila, 55, he initially studied to become a minister.
 

But after four years he decided to switch career paths and did his teacher training Moray House in Edinburgh.
 

When his sight started to “dwindle” 15 years ago, however, he decided to keep his disability a secret.
 

It was only when he needed to enlist the help of his guide dog that he plucked up the courage to tell staff and pupils.
 

He said: “I remember one night agonising over it. I even wondered about early retirement because I didn’t tell anybody I was losing my sight, I just tried to show I was normal.
 

“But my belief in God got me through and I just decided to tell everyone and see what happened.
 

“When I told the head teacher at the time I was going to get a guide dog I think he was a bit worried. But he was very supportive.
 

“I like it in some ways better now because I can be myself and I don’t need to hide it and I think the kids respect that,” he added.
 

Mr McFarlane is even brave enough to take part in annual activities week with the pupils, and most recently joined in a day at the dry ski slope in Alford, Aberdeenshire.

And his guide dog Yulie, who is now 13 years old and retired, she still goes to school with him every day and sits under his desk during lessons.
 

Mr McFarlane, said: “The guide dog is good at breaking down barriers and she is a brilliant friend.
 

“She has made being blind a joy.”
 

The popular teacher has now been nominated for an Inspirational Adult award as part of Aberdeen City Council’s Children and Young People’s Service Awards, which will be held on Thursday (June 18).