Visual impairment, sometimes called low vision can be defined as a condition which cannot be corrected and made ‘normal’ by using spectacles. Refractive errors can usually be fully corrected.
A person visually impaired can be Sight Impaired (partially sighted) or Severely Sight Impaired (blind).
Most visually impaired people have some sight.
Severe visual impairment in children is rare.
Two people with the same level of sight may function in different ways. One learner may be keen to use her or his vision and display good skills where as another may not.
Visual impairment can mean for example,
A severe visual impairment cannot be seen in isolation from the emotional, social and psychological impact it has upon the individual and family as a whole.
Eye defects must be considered within the whole context of visual functioning and its impact upon the process of learning.
Visual functioning is primarily developmental. The more visual experience the learner has the more the pathways to the brain are stimulated and the greater the accumulation of a variety of visual images and memories. Vision can therefore be improved with visual training when a greater number of images is placed in the memory.