Purpose: All students have equal rights to a quality education and learning, however for students with a vision impairment, access to class materials and therefore educational outcomes, can be negatively impacted by their vision impairment. Current support for a student in education is based on vision function measures of visual acuity. This presentation reports the outcomes of a PhD thesis and highlights the necessity and impact of functional vision assessments to support students through education.
Method: Eighty students were recruited through the South Australian School and Services for Vision Impaired. Vision function measures (visual acuity, contrast sensitivity and electrophysiology) were compared with functional vison measures (reading performance, vision processing and visual search).
Results: Measures of visual acuity and contrast sensitivity were poor indicators of functional vision performance in children with a vision impairment. Additionally, electrophysiology measures indicated that children with pathology causing glare, and children with retinal dystrophies, had an improved reading performance using reverse polarity print (white writing on a black background). The results highlight the complexity of childhood vision impairment and its functional impact, which varies depending on the cause of vision loss and environmental conditions.
Conclusions: From these findings a new and comprehensive assessment framework was developed, to tailor classroom support around an individual's functional vision, thereby enhancing curriculum accessibility. This framework is currently in use within South Australia to support students with a vision impairment, enabling a more inclusive and equitable educational experience, ensuring that unique visual needs are understood and adequately addressed in the classroom.