1. Bruce Abe
David Squires
VISUAL IMPAIRMENT INCLUDING BLINDNESS If any of these symptoms are present, parents will want to have their
child’s eyes professionally examined. Early detection and treatment
Definition are very important to the child’s development.
According to IDEA - Sec. 300.8 (c) (13)
Visual impairment including blindness means an impairment in Types of Visual Impairment
vision that, even with correction, adversely affects a child's Not all visual impairments are the same, although the umbrella term
educational performance. The term includes both partial sight and “visual impairment” is often used to describe an eye condition or
blindness. disorder. Common visual impairments you are likely familiar with
An fyi from our text book,Including students with special needs: A are near-sightedness and far-sightedness. Less familiar visual
practical guide for classroom teachers (Friend & Bursuck, 2012)
explains that the term legal blindness means the vision in the best impairments include:
eye, with correction, is 20/200 or lower (what a person with normal  Strabismus, where the eyes look in different directions and
vision can see at 200 feet can only be seen at 20 feet), or the visual do not focus simultaneously on a single point;
field is 20 degrees or less (the person sees a small slice of what  Congenital cataracts, where the lens of the eye is cloudy;
others can see).  Retinopathy of prematurity, which may occur in premature
Characteristics babies when the light-sensitive retina hasn’t developed
According to NICHCY, common signs that a child may have a visual sufficiently before birth;
impairment include the following:  Retinitis pigmentosa, a rare inherited disease that slowly
Eyes that don’t move together when following an object or a destroys the retina;
face
 Coloboma, where a portion of the structure of the eye is
Crossed eyes, eyes that turn out or in, eyes that flutter from
side to side or up and down, or eyes that do not seem to missing;
focus  Optic nerve hypoplasia, which is caused by underdeveloped
Eyes that bulge, dance, or bounce in rapid rhythmic fibers in the optic nerve and which affects depth perception,
movements sensitivity to light, and acuity of vision; and
Pupils that are unequal in size or that appear white instead of  Cortical visual impairment (CVI), which is caused by
black damage to the part of the brain related to vision, not to the
Repeated shutting or covering of one eye eyes themselves.
Unusual degree of clumsiness, such as frequent bumping
into things or knocking things over Teaching Strategies
Frequent squinting, blinking, eye-rubbing, or face crunching, Encourage independence: it is often difficult for these students to
especially when there’s no bright light present
become as fully independent as they are capable of being. The
Sitting too close to the TV or holding toys and books too
classroom teacher should encourage independence as often as
close to the face
Avoiding tasks and activities that require good vision possible to avoid the trap of “learned helplessness.” Encourage the

2. student to move independently through the classroom, and organize American Academy of Pediatrics lists types of health issues affecting
your classroom accordingly. eyes.
Communicate: with the student, with the students’ parents, with http://www.healthychildren.org/English/health-
special educators, the O & M specialist, and other teachers who have issues/conditions/eyes/pages/Specific-Eye-Problems.aspx
more experience than you. Learning Strategies:
Learn about the student’s specific visual impairment: what aspects http://www.projectidealonline.org/visualImpairments.php
of vision are affected, and how does that affect the student’s ability
to move around the classroom, see the board, or read a textbook. Eye visual, National Eye Institute is part of the National Institutes of
Students and parents can be good sources of information. Health.
Adapting your classroom: account for the student’s specific visual http://www.nei.nih.gov/health/eyediagram/index.asp
impairment. Place a student with low vision near the front of the Advocacy group:
room where he or she can see the blackboard. Control lighting Association for Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and
variables when presenting learning materials to those students who Visually Impaired supports educators with professional development,
are sensitive to light and glare. Make safe lanes to walk through, and publications, and advocacy.
keep cupboard doors closed. http://www.aerbvi.org/modules.php?name=Content&pa=showpage&
Verbal cues: for those students who cannot see body movements or pid=1
physical cues, verbal cues are necessary.
Created by AFB so that families of blind people can connect with
Textbooks and instructional materials: students need access to
each other.
materials in the appropriate media and at the same time as their
http://www.familyconnect.org/parentsitehome.asp
peers. For students who are blind this may mean braille and/or
recorded media. For the student with low vision, this may mean large What are the issues you face when setting up your classroom?
print text or the use of optical devices to access text and/or recorded http://iris.peabody.vanderbilt.edu/v01_clearview/chalcycle.htm
media while in class.
Instruction materials:
Use the IEP: it serves as a guide for what the student’s goals are,
Printing house for the blind
and what accommodations are appropriate.
http://www.aph.org/
Other Resources Accessible Instruction Materials
Definition: http://aim.cast.org/
http://idea.ed.gov/explore/view/p/%2Croot%2Cregs%2C300%2CA Educators guide to getting accessible textbooks.
%2C300%252E8%2Cc%2C13%2C http://aim.cast.org/learn/aim4families/school/accessible_textbooks
Characteristics:
http://nichcy.org/disability/specific/visualimpairment