Through
Their Eyes: An Introduction to Low Vision (Video #6 of the "Can
Do" series)
Review by Stuart Teplin, M.D., Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrician, UNC-Chapel
Hill
Source: Visually Impaired Preschool Services
1229 Garvin Place
Louisville, KY 40203
PHONE: (502) 636-3207 FAX: (502) 636-0024
This 13-minute video is one of a series of 11 videos devoted to promoting an understanding of young children with visual impairments and how their families, teachers, and other caretakers can best help them to learn about their world and achieve competence in daily activities.
Most individuals who are “legally blind” actually have some use of their vision, albeit in limited ways or under limited conditions. In this video, the viewer learns about what it means to be a child who has “low vision,” i.e., a child who has difficulty accomplishing visual tasks, even with prescribed corrective lenses, but who can enhance his or her ability to accomplish these tasks with the use of compensatory visual strategies, devices, and environmental modifications (adapted from Corn AL & Koenig AJ, Perspectives in Low Vision, in Corn AL & Koenig AJ (eds.) Foundations of low vision: Clinical & functional perspectives, NY, AFB Press, 2000, p. 3).
Two important lessons are illustrated throughout the tape: (1) the cause of a child’s visual impairment can give caregivers valuable clues as to how the child’s vision and health are being uniquely affected; and (2) despite not being able to improve a child’s actual visual acuity, there are many adaptations or accommodations that will improve the child’s functional vision and improved competence in daily activities, i.e., the efficiency with which he or she uses what vision he/she does have.
The first half of the tape shows 8 actual children in a preschool setting, each of whom has low vision caused by a particular eye condition. We see how the child is playing, interacting, and using vision as the narrator explains in easy-to-understand terms the main problems of the eye or visual system for each of the 8 common conditions. These disorders are: albinism, aniridia, cataract, glaucoma, coloboma, retinitis pigmentosa, cortical visual impairment, and retinopathy of prematurity. We learn which conditions are likely to cause light sensitivity, pain in the eyes, poor color vision, poor night vision, fluctuation in vision from day to day, and deteriorating vision as the child gets older.
The video then briefly reviews some common eye-related findings that might be clues that a child’s vision may not be normal and should prompt a referral for further medical assessment, e.g., jerky eye movements (nystagmus) or over-sensitivity to light (photophobia).
In the second half of the video, we learn about 4 major types of adaptations in the child’s environment that could be tailored to the specific needs of a child with low vision. These are (1) lighting changes; (2) Altering the contrast of objects and patterns; (3) Use of specially printed materials; and (4) Providing devices which magnify images. Each area is explored and examples are illustrated in the preschool setting.
Overall, this video is a concise but excellent overview of an important concept for any parent, interventionist, or teacher who might encounter young children with visual impairments.