Saturday, February 26, 2000

Eye tests ensure pupils master A-B-SEEs

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Doctors screen kids at school

BY MARK SCHMETZER
Enquirer Contributor

        NORWOOD — About 100 Sharpsburg Primary School pupils got early, extra trips to the cafeteria Friday morning, but they weren't getting food.

        The schoolchildren were getting their eyes checked out by a team of 10 physicians and volunteers.

        The mass screening was a cooperative effort of the school, Prevent Blindness for Ohio and the Vision Council of America as part of The Great American Sightseeing Tour.

        The goal was to detect eye problems before they start to affect a student's performance, said Dr. Joel N. Zaba, a consultant for publications such as The Journal of Learning Disabilities.

        “There is a lot of current research into children's vision problems,” Dr. Zaba said. “If a student is having trouble reading, they won't close the book, raise their hands and tell the teacher, "My eyes hurt.' They'll just close the book.

        “When a child has a vision problem, he or she is liable to become frustrated and start to act out those frustrations, and they can end up as at-risk students.”

        This is the second year the VCA, an eye physicians' trade organization, and Prevent Blindness for America, the parent organization for Prevent Blindness for Ohio, has sponsored a tour, said the VCA's Adrienne Brodsky.

        Last year, the tour stopped in Columbus. This year, Cincinnati was picked as one stop on a five-city tour that also will test children's vision in New York, Chicago, Houston and Seattle, Ms. Brodsky said.

        “This is a way to get our doctors more involved in the community,” she said.

        The pupils — the entire second grade, third- and fifth-graders in need of res creening and selected kindergarten and first-grade students — were steered through a series of five stations. Doctors and volunteers tested close-up and long-range vision, the ability of pupils' eyes to work together and their ability to distinguish colors.

        The tests helped the Norwood district fulfill screening mandates the state set in the mid-1980s, said Sharon Thoroughman, the director of the Southwest Chapter of Prevent Blindness for Ohio.

Rescreened in six weeks “We've worked with them for the past three years,” said Sharpsburg school nurse Kathy Strasser.
        Pupils who flunk the tests are usually rescreened in six weeks. If the problems persist, letters are sent to parents suggesting a more detailed evaluation.

        Kayla Young, 8, a second-grade student, found the testing more enjoyable than a one-on-one visit to the optometrist.

        “This was fun because, this time, there were more people,” she said while fingering her yellow “I had my eyes checked today” sticker.

        “I thought the part where I had to find the hidden picture was the most fun,” said Shane Bolin, 8, a second-grader, referring to the color test. “They said my eyesight was pretty good.”

       

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