VIDBE-Q Volume 69 Issue 2
years of life. The ultimate challenge is determining who is responsible for
implementing these functional vision screening tools. Early intervention providers,
including Teachers of Students with Visual Impairments, must be compelled to
have a sense of responsibility regarding the earliest identification of vision
concerns and potential visual impairment. The following information, shared at the
2024 CEC Convention, can assist early intervention providers as they create
awareness for and answer this important call to action regarding the use of
functional vision screening tools in early intervention.
Importance of Vision Screening
Vision screening is a method to identify red flags for vision concerns in
children so that a referral can be made to appropriate vision professionals, such as
eye doctors and Teachers of Students with Visual Impairments, for further
evaluation. Vision screening is not meant as an assessment nor diagnostic tool.
Vision screening should occur as soon as possible, especially during the first year
of life—a crucial time before a child's vision development is nearly complete
around eighteen to twenty-four months.
Vision screening is essential because it can aid in the identification of
children who have or are at risk for developing serious eye conditions that have the
potential to lead to permanent vision loss, such as strabismus, cataracts, glaucoma,
ptosis, or refractive errors like myopia and hyperopia. Many common eye
