About: Eye Conditions Resulting in Visual Impairments
It is important for people working with a student who is visually impaired to understand the cause of the visual impairment. This is important because:
- students with some eye conditions perform better or worse with certain classroom lighting conditions,
- students with some eye conditions fatigue easily,
- students with some eye conditions are susceptible to secondary eye conditions that could further complicate their use of vision,
- students with some eye conditions cannot participate in certain classroom activities (i.e., rough contact sports) because of a danger of damage to the eyes.
You will hear visual impairments discussed in the context of a clinical evaluation (i.e., a doctor’s evaluation of vision loss), a “clinical low vision evaluation” (i.e., an examination of the students vision loss and possible optical devices that may be of assistance) and functional vision assessment (i.e., an evaluation of how well the student uses his or her vision in daily activities). It is important to pay attention to all three, but you will likely be most interested in how the student will “function” in your classroom, including what adaptations will be most helpful for him or her.
You will not need to be an expert on ophthalmology, but it will be helpful for you to have a working knowledge of the eye so that you can ask meaningful questions about the visual impairment of the student in your classroom. The teacher of students with visual impairments who works with you will be able to answer most of your questions and discuss your student’s functional vision.
It might be helpful for you to know that there are three main types of visual impairments: visual impairments that result in total (or almost total blindness), visual impairments that result in vision that is less clear than typical either at a near or far distance, and visual impairments that result in a loss of visual field (either central field or peripheral field).
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