Remove Barriers to Education
Undiagnosed vision problems can adversely impact learning, behaviour, welfare and even inclusion.
Children’s eyesight can change as they grow. Also, in the wake of COVID, there’s a significant increase in the children with short sight (myopia). Most likely, owing to increased screen time.
That’s why it’s important to check their eyes regularly. The earlier we work out which children are at-risk, the sooner we can focus resources.
By using SchoolScreener for Schools Vision, in 2 or 3 minutes you’ll know if that child needs an optometrist eye test or not. It doesn’t diagnose, you won’t be prescribing glasses, that’s for the clinicians. But understanding the child’s needs can help teaching staff to accommodate that child better in class.
All you need is internet access and a laptop. After the vision check, the software automatically generates reports for parents and the SLT. They also provide evidence of welfare and inclusion for OFSTED.
For those children that fail their check, it recommends they take their child for a full clinical assessment.
There’s no need for charts and the app automatically records the vision check results and instantly alerts if the child needs further examination. On-screen prompts are age-appropriate (Thomson the Teddy for KS1 and 2) and available in up to 50 languages.
Any colleague can use it; teachers, TAs, school nurses or SEND specialists. There’s a minimal period of learning how to set up and use it (20 minutes, or less).
Ask about how to identify and support children with moderate hearing loss, too.
SEND Code of Practice Consistent with Vision and Hearing Checks In-School.
The SEND Code of Practice defines special educational needs in four broad areas of need and support. Vision and hearing checks from SchoolScreener for Schools can form important aspects of these 4 areas:
- Communication and Interaction
Both vision and hearing are key to communicating with and interacting with others. This in turn can impact social skills development. Identifying vision or hearing deficits early, can help children overcome other communication challenges.
- Cognition and Learning
Even moderate sight or audio deficiencies can impact on educational attainment. Once understood, SENcos can ensure a child’s needs are better accomodated.
- Social, emotional and mental health
The same applies to social, emotional and mental health. Vision and hearing checks can help identify these seemingly innocuous causes of greater issues in some children.
- Sensory and/or physical needs
Again, without knowing about any vision or hearing difficulties the child has, accomodating their environment is much tougher.
In-school vision and hearing checks are now quick, easy and inexpensive, thanks to SchoolScreener for Schools.
Any colleague can use it; teachers, TAs, school nurses or SEND specialists. There’s a minimal period of learning how to set up and use it (20 minutes, or less).
See the Video
As part of its Apex Project to ‘eliminate avoidable literacy failure’ the Fischer Family Foundation, assessed the software in primary schools. They found:
- ‘Over 20% of children had a potential sight problem, not previously known about.’ This was despite most of them having been checked by school nurses at Reception age school entry.
- Over 75% of those recommended to see an optometrist in the above pilot study did attend. Of those, 64% needed an intervention, usually glasses.
This video includes interviews with the head teacher and key staff involved at one of those schools. It’s illuminating and well worth watching. A little over 8 minutes long, it shows in some detail how they achieved these results, how the pupils and school benefitted and how they feel about it.
Claim a FREE Travel Mug When You See for Yourself
We’d love to show you SchoolScreener for Schools Vision. And also for Hearing. The applications, how they work and how they can help your school.
To schedule an online demonstration, please contact us, without delay.
And by way of thanks, we’ll send you a lovely new, insulated travel mug after the demo.
Offer valid until 31st March 2024. Demonstration to be booked any weekday before 26th April 2024. Tumbler will be dispatched up to 7 days after the demonstration takes place. One per person attending the demo.
See Our December 23 Webinar:
Remove Barriers to Education:
Identify and Support Pupils with Vision and Hearing Problems
Recorded 7th December 2023
The webinar was approximately 1 hour long.
Plays back from a different website: bigmarker.com
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Michelle Siequien, Headteacher of Discovery Primary Academy in Peterborough, since 2015.
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Liz Zoccolan, SENDCO and Assistant Headteacher at Harrogate Grammar School in Yorkshire. Also the Lead for SEND across Red Kite Learning Trust.
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Professor David Thomson, Director of Product Development, Thomson Screening. Prof Thomson has spent most of his professional life at City, University of London.
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Dr Sebastian Hendricks, Consultant in paediatric audiovestibular medicine.
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Pete Henshaw (Host), Editor SecEd & Headteacher Update.
Vision and hearing problems are common among children and can act as a significant barrier to educational and social development.
This webinar considered the prevalence of vision and hearing problems and their potential impact on a child’s development.
Experts discussed how these problems often go undetected, what we can do to help identify them, and how we can subsequently support these pupils in a school environment. Also, they discussed the implications for educational and social development, including inclusive practice, pupil welfare, academic progress, graduated approaches and pastoral care. The NHS is supposed to screen all children of reception age, but provision is patchy across the country and screening doesn’t take into account related issues such as colour-blindness. This also presents significant implications for schools.
Thomson Screening was formed by City, University of London to manage the ongoing development and global implementation of SchoolScreener® software. The company has also developed variants for Occupational Health under the name WorkScreener®.
Worldwide, our software has been used to manage over 2,000,000 screenings. Most of these have been in the UK by the NHS and other providers of Healthy Child Programmes in schools, commissioned by public health. They use it to automate processes region-wide, including pathway management and feedback from clinics about full clinical assessments.
Read more about Thomson Screening Solutions at the City, University of London website.
Check out our latest news, case studies and blogs, too.
Plays back from a different website: bigmarker.com
Professor David Thomson
Dr Sebastian Hendricks
