AOP studies school literacy link

Links between vision and academic development have been highlighted by the AOP this week as it urged parents to ensure their children have a sight test.

As new terms began, it cited a study published in the British Medical Journal this year showing four and five-year-olds with lower visual acuity had significantly-reduced literacy development.

The study, Impact of visual acuity on developing literacy at age four to five years, found a reduction in the literacy score by around 2% for every line of vision reduction across 74 schools in Bradford.

Optometrist Henry Leonard added: ‘It is estimated one million children in the UK have an undiagnosed vision problem. When we look at how this can negatively affect a child’s development, it’s a really worrying figure.’