Vision impairment is any diagnosed condition of the eye or visual system that cannot be corrected to within normal limits. Disease, damage or injury causing vision impairment can occur to any part of the visual system, such as the eye, the visual pathway to the brain or visual centre of the brain.
A vision impairment can:
Most visual conditions in children are stable and vision remains relatively unchanged. Some conditions, however, are progressive, resulting in reduced vision over varying periods.
The following conditions are not recognised as vision impairment according to DET criteria:
Verification for the EAP disability category of Vision Impairment is based on two criteria.
Criterion 1: Student must be diagnosed with a vision impairment involving:
with
Criterion 2: Documented evidence of activity limitations or participation restrictions resulting from the vision impairment in one or more of the following focus areas:
Criterion 1: Student must be diagnosed with a vision impairment.
DET recognises a diagnosis of vision impairment provided by a registered ophthalmologist, or in some cases of cerebral (cortical) vision impairment, by a registered paediatrician or neurologist.
It is expected that the specialist 's information be current. This does not mean that the report needs to be recent but rather that the information within the report is reflective of the student at the time of the verification request.
Criterion 2: Documented evidence of activity limitations or participation restrictions resulting from the vision impairment in one or more of the following focus areas:
This section is to be completed by a teacher with training and experience in vision impairment. The information is to be recorded using the domains on EAP Verification Form — VI (EAP 8). In order for the verification request to be accepted, evidence needs to be provided about how the vision impairment impacts on the student and their access and participation in all aspects of school life in and out of the classroom. Information about the affect of the vision impairment can be obtained by:
Comment on the activity limitations caused by the vision impairment as evidenced by information on the student 's current difficulties in areas such as: concept development (such as object concepts, concepts of self and space), spatial development, body awareness, visual functioning, sensory skills (tactile, auditory, kinaesthetic, proprioceptive and vestibular), social and emotional development, communication development and gross and fine motor development.
Comment on the participation restrictions as evidenced by the difficulties in participating in curriculum areas at school (including playground, assemblies, attending performances, excursions and camps).
Consideration of the student 's unique educational needs related to their vision impairment to assist access to the curriculum can be recorded in any, or all of the domains on the criterion 2 section on the EAP Verification Form — VI (EAP 8).
For a review of verification, the school follows the same steps as for an initial verification. It is important for schools to check whether both Criterion 1 and Criterion 2 need to be reviewed or only Criterion 2.
In some instances, a student may no longer meet the criteria for the EAP disability category of Vision Impairment. To remove a student from the disability category, evidence that the student no longer meets criteria must be collected and recorded using the EAP Verification Form - VI (EAP 8) with supporting documentation.
Use EAP Verification Form - VI (EAP 8) - available on the EAP website.
Prompts for VI Criterion 2 Form have been developed to assist with the completion of the Criterion 2 section. The prompts are a guide and school teams need to only report on those prompts relevant for that student.
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© The State of Queensland (Department of Education, Training and Employment) 2007.