Visual Impaired

Ang Wee Shin Nur Athirah binti Zaidon Anis Adibah

Definition

A severe reduction in vision that cannot be corrected with standard glasses or contact lenses and reduces a person's ability to function at certain or all tasks. A decreased visual acuity and field of vision relative to the fully sighted population.

To qualify as a visually impaired student, certain criteria must be met, like low visual acuity, visual field limitation, progressive eye disease, or cortical visual impairment.

Characteristics

Physical Signs
Crossed eyes, eyes that turn out, eyes that flutter from side to side or up and down, or eyes that do not seem to focus are physical signs that a child has vision problems Partially Sighted: A visual impairment that adversely affects a student's educational performance even when corrected to the extent possible. Low Vision: If someone's vision is between 20/7020/160 and cannot be corrected, the student has moderate to low vision.

Legally Blind: From 20/200-20/400 is legally blind with severe low vision. From 20/400-20/1000 is profound visual impairment, and is very close to total blindness. Totally Blind: The lack of light perception is known as total blindness or total visual impairment.

Common Eye Conditions

1.

Amblyopia:
Known as lazy eye. Children with a lazy eye may or may not be perceptible. Sometimes a lazy eye visibly turns in or out, but sometimes there is no outward sign. It causes the eye to have reduced acuity due to the poor positioning of the eye and weak muscles. The treatment is commonly a patch over the normal eye that makes the lazy eye work harder. Surgical corrections are also common.

2. Retinitis Pigmentosa:

This is a degenerative condition that is inherited. Retinitis pigmentosa results in a loss of peripheral vision, and eventually the student is left with a severe visual impairment.

3. Retinopathy of Prematurity:

This condition is common in children who were premature babies that required high concentrations of oxygen at birth. Scarring and detachment of the retina can result from this condition.

4. Strabismus:

In this condition, both eyes are unable to gaze at an object at the same time. Strabismus is caused by a muscle imbalance.

5. Cortical Visual Impairment:

Cortical visual impairment is not a problem with the eye itself, but with the visual cortex area of the brain. These children may also have other developmental delays or cerebral palsy. Vision may change throughout the day, depending on the health, mood of the child, or his environment.

Categories of visual impairment

Glaucoma Age related macular degenaration Cataract Diabetic retinotherapy Myopia

Retinis pigmentosa glaucoma

Glaucoma
Glaucoma is an eye disease in which the normal fluid pressure inside the eyes slowly rises, leading to vision loss or even blindness.

Age-Related Macular Degeneration

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a disease that blurs the sharp, central vision you need for "straight-ahead" activities such as reading, sewing, and driving. affects the macula, the part of the eye that allows you to see fine detail. AMD causes no pain.

Cataract
A cataract is a clouding of the lens in the eye that affects vision. Most cataracts are related to aging. Cataracts are very common in older people and by age 80, more than half of all adults either have a cataract or have had cataract surgery.

Diabetic Retinopathy
Diabetic retinopathy is the most common diabetic eye disease and a leading cause of blindness in adults. It is caused by changes in the blood vessels of the retina.

Myopia
Myopia is also known as nearsightedness or shortsightedness. Those with myopia see nearby objects clearly but distant objects appear blurred. This is the opposite of the defect hypermetropia, also know as "farsightedness" or "long-sightedness".

Retinitis Pigmentosa
Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) is a group of genetic eye conditions. People with RP first experience night blindness and this can later lead to a reduction of the peripheral visual field (known as tunnel vision). Sometimes RP can lead to a loss of central vision.

Care, Medical & Need

Mild Functional Restriction

normally be capable of all self-care tasks, such as bathing, dressing, and attending to toilet and hygiene needs. may require extra light or glasses to cut out glare or for reading (large print books) and for fine tasks such as preparing a meal, combing hair, etc but, in general, adaptations would not be needed.

be able to read large print, write, use a computer and watch TV.

Moderate Functional Restriction

A person with moderate visual impairment should be able, in general, to look after own personal hygiene but there are some people whose vision is impaired to the extent that they may be unable to complete this activity without assistance.

should be able to prepare and cook a main meal but there may be some people whose visual impairment is such that they may not be able to peel and chop vegetables, and handle hot pans safely.
They may have considerable difficulty reading recipes, and checking cooker dials, but in some cases these difficulties may be overcome by using visual aids.

Moderate Functional Restriction

A person with moderate visual impairment should be able, in general, to look after own personal hygiene but there are some people whose vision is impaired to the extent that they may be unable to complete this activity without assistance.

should be able to prepare and cook a main meal but there may be some people whose visual impairment is such that they may not be able to peel and chop vegetables, and handle hot pans safely.
They may have considerable difficulty reading recipes, and checking cooker dials, but in some cases these difficulties may be overcome by using visual aids.

unable to read labels on medicine bottles, and check medication levels on syringes, and would normally need assistance to take tablets, and administer injections (in the case of diabetics).
likely to have problems with small fastenings, and, with some people, their ability to see fine detail is affected to the extent that they may need assistance in checking that clothes are clean, match and are appropriate. A person with moderate visual impairment would only be able to work or study in an environment which is adapted to visual impairments. Extra vigilance and indeed assistance may be needed on stairs. They may be registered Partially Sighted.

Severe Functional Restriction

The person would normally have difficulty in checking that clothes are appropriate, and that they are clean, and match, and would normally need assistance in this activity, but should be able to dress and attend to toilet needs.
would normally need assistance in having a bath or shower, as would not normally be able to do this safely on his own.

The person would normally need help with administering medicines, checking needles (in the case of diabetics) reading instructions, and would not normally be able to peel or chop vegetables safely, handle pans of boiling water safely or turn cooker knobs to the correct temperature. Assistance would normally be required for cutting up food. The person would be unable to read, but may use Braille. Writing would not normally be possible. In the home, they would be likely to need a clear space for getting around, without obstacles, and some people may need assistance. The person would normally not be able to use stairs safely on their own.

Awareness

Meet with the student, parents and the student's previous teacher. Learn the correct way to act as a sighted guide for the student and teach this method to peers. Consult with a specialist to acquire information regarding any necessary accommodations to ensure the student's safety in the school building (e.g., markings on stairs, additional or reduced lighting).

Collaborate with school staff, the school jurisdictional team and community partners to identify and coordinate supports and services required to address the nine areas of the Expanded Core Curriculum for students with visual impairment, including: compensatory or functional academic skills (e.g., Braille reading, keyboarding, tactile discrimination

Instructions Adapt the Classroom

Make it easy for the visually impaired child to get around. Leave lots of space between desks or tables and keep classroom furniture in the same places. Think about your posters. Too many posters will just turn into a blur for a visually impaired child. Choose the most important ones, such as academic reminders, and leave lots of space between them. Use a contrasting background color for their borders.

 Write with dark colors. Use dark markers on class charts, posters and whiteboards to make the letters easier to see. Keep the visually impaired student in front. Keep his or her desk nearest to where you usually teach. If you have students sit on the floor in front of you, make sure the visually impaired student is consistently in front of you.

 Increase illumination and contrast while reducing glare. Keep the room well-lit. Pair dark colors with light colors. Reduce glare by avoiding all-white backgrounds and/or using filters on the lights.

Adapt Your Teaching Style

Emphasize the auditory experience. Talk your way through everything you are doing and through what anyone else is doing. Use words that describe your actions as you solve a math problem. Record experiences. Record important lessons and stories so that the visually impaired child can listen to them again.

 Enlarge your activities. When you make copies of worksheets, diagrams and other work make sure to enlarge them enough to make them easy to see.

Use concrete examples. Don't just talk about rocks--bring some in and pass them around. Encourage touch and active participation as much as possible.

 Remove clutter from the work space. Don't split your whiteboard, with social studies info on one side and homework info on the other. Only put one subject on the board or the chart at a time. Maintain your high expectations. While you will need to adapt certain things for your visually impaired student, you should still have the same academic and behavioral expectations for her as you do for your other students.

Thank you...