Scholastic Status of Congenitally Blind Children Following Sight Surgery

Abstract

India is home to a large population of blind children, many with treatable conditions. Project Prakash identifies treatably blind children and provides them sight surgeries. Once treated, these children have the opportunity to further their education. To understand their educational needs, we undertook a diagnostic screening exercise, wherein we designed assessments of math proficiency and evaluated the scholastic preparation of 54 Prakash children across a broad age range. We found that the proficiency of the majority of Prakash children was well below age-appropriate levels. Even those enrolled in high-schools had assessed proficiency around the 3rd grade level. Furthermore, due to lack of basic instruction on how to interpret print material, many children continued using Braille even after gaining sight. The contrast these findings present relative to the official standing of the children in their schools makes a compelling case for more rigorous assessments and better educational interventions for visually impaired/sight restored children. Also, we argue that the educational interventions should be coupled with visual function assessments to ensure that the material being presented is accessible to the child. Our scholastic assessments, suitable for being administered over the phone, will be made available for use by other researchers and educationists.