Hi Brian, I appreciate the political incorrectness of using, "How blind are you?" My answer would be, "Plenty blind." I am not sure that you should use this approach with all blind or visually impaired students though. Some might take offense to it. It might be better to rephrase the question to, "How much can you see? Can you see colors?" Etc.
I agree with your approach on using mouse terminology that translates to keyboard commands. I am not a blind AT instructor, but as a learner, I wish my instructors would have used those terms more often. I interact with sighted people on a daily basis, and had to get used to how to translate their mouse terms to keyboard shortcuts. When interacting with my manager, I cue him in aloud how I am translating his mouse instructions to keyboard shortcuts, so he knows either how he can rephrase his instructions, or he knows how I am interpreting them. My suggestion would be to use mouse and screen reader terms at the same time, depending on the application and students. I would not totally do away with screen reader speak. Having a moderate view, and open mind, seems most appropriate, allowing for questions, as you suggested. So, use the terms interchangeably. Mike
