Independent travel for developmentally disabled persons: a comprehensive model of instruction.

Danforth et al. (1990) drew a road map for teaching people with developmental disabilities to travel alone. They borrowed orientation-and-mobility tools first built for blind travelers. The paper is a blueprint, not an experiment.

The model lists what to teach, how to prompt, and how to fade help. It folds in safety, street crossing, and bus riding. No new data are given.

The authors did not run a study, so there are no results to report. They offer a checklist-style curriculum instead.

Taras et al. (1993) took the same idea and tested it. They used a behavioral-skills-training package with visually impaired students who also had intellectual disability. All students learned to travel new routes and kept the skill ten months later. This study turns the 1990 blueprint into real gains.

Sievert et al. (1988) came first. They showed BST can teach adults with mild handicaps to speak up for their rights. Danforth et al. (1990) widens the lens from self-advocacy to full community travel, keeping the same teaching bones.

Levin et al. (2014) sounds gloomy: totally blind children scored far below partially sighted peers on gross-motor tests. That warning pairs with the 1990 model. Before you ask a learner to cross a four-lane, check if they can step up a curb without falling.

If your client aims to ride the bus alone, start with orientation-and-mobility drills, not vague community outings. Use the 1990 sequence: body position, direction words, then real street crossings. Add the 1993 twist: model, rehearse, give feedback, and repeat in new places. Check motor basics first so the learner is not set up to fail.