Texas schools look for vision, hearing loss in students

Eight year old Myles Keeler smiled as he plopped into the chair in front of the school nurse at Williams/Ledger Elementary School.  He was in the nurse’s office not for an ache or pain but to get his vision and hearing checked and he was excited.

"It's important to have vision and hearing screening so I can hear and see my mom, dad, friends and teachers,” he said. “And, so I can understand the lessons at school."

Keeler placed the headphones onto his head and began listening for the tones holding up a finger on the hand corresponding with the ear in which he heard the sound. Keeler passed both hearing and vision tests with no concerns. Copperas Cove schools along with others across Texas are conducting state-mandated vision and hearing screenings on students from pre-kindergarten through junior high.

Vision problems are common among school-age kids. According to Prevent Blindness America, one in four school-age children have vision problems that, if left untreated, can affect learning ability, personality and adjustment in school. Five per 1,000 children have a reported hearing loss according to the Centers for Disease Control with 14.9 percent of children reporting a low- or high-frequency hearing loss of at least a 16-decibel hearing level in one or both ears.

Williams/Ledger Elementary school nurse Marcy Moreno said a child's vision is essential to his success in school. When his vision suffers, chances are his schoolwork does too.

“Even mild problems with our vision and hearing can have a major impact on our ability to learn.  If a child has some form of hearing loss, it can affect the development of normal language or speech,” Moreno said. “Vison problems make it difficult to learn and read. Early detection is the key to a healthy learning development in our students.”

School-age children also spend a lot of time in recreational activities that require good vision. After-school team sports or playing in the backyard aren't as fun if you can't see well. Children also spend a lot of time on computers and with video games.

“I have not seen any trends linked to the use of modern technology as being the culprit of our students failing the state-mandated vision test. There has not been any evidence-based studies indicating that the use of computers, tablets or any form of electronics is the cause of students

failing their vision tests,” Moreno said. “It does cause eye fatigue or eye strain which is resolved by avoiding prolong time in front of the computer and taking regular breaks to give our eyes time to rest.”

Shirley Mallet volunteers to assist with the vision and hearing screenings in CCISD having been a school nurse from 1986 to 2006.

"(Vision and hearing) are essential for students to be successful in the school, Mallet said. “If they cannot hear or see, then they are not going to be successful in their studies."