What is albinism or oculocutaneous albinism?
There are different types of albinism; oculocutaneous albinism which affects the eyes and skin, and ocular albinism which affects the eyes. Albinism occurs when there is a reduction in the amount of melanin produced, which gives pigment to our hair, skin and eyes.
Those with albinism typically have eyes with pale and thin irises, with gaps in them. This causes more light than usual into the eye, which scatters and bounces around the inside of the eye causing blurred vision.
Because too much light enters their eyes, children with albinism are often sensitive to light and require protection from it. This is called photophobia. In order that the light conditions are comfortable, children and young people should wear dark glasses and a peaked cap when outdoors. Their eyes will take a while to adjust when moving between areas with different lighting levels.
Possible eye problems linked to albinism include:
- low vision – either short-sightedness or long-sightedness, and low vision (sight loss that cannot be corrected)
- astigmatism – where the cornea (clear layer at the front of the eye) is not perfectly curved or the lens is an abnormal shape, causing blurred vision
- photophobia – where the eyes are sensitive to light
- nystagmus – where the eyes move involuntarily from side to side, causing reduced vision; you do not see the world as “wobbling” because your brain adapts to your eye movement
- squint – where the eyes point in different directions
- foveal hypoplasia. This means that the fovea, the area of the retina which is used for the finest detailed looking, has not developed as it should. This results in reduced sharpness of central vision.
Education strategies that will help
- Classroom to have good ambient lighting. Be aware that a child or young person may have difficulty moving between areas with different lighting levels.
- Windows to have blinds to control light and reduce glare
- Consider glare from other sources e.g. paper or laminated resources (use matt if possible)
- Avoid standing in front of windows – this can reduce you to a silhouette and make it difficult for all learners to see you properly
- Children or young people sat best position to see the whiteboard but not separately from the other learners
- Provide individual copies of anything presented on the whiteboard
- Learners with vision impairment need to sit close to a power source if they are using specialist ICT
- Use screen sharing software. This will bring resources presented at distance within functional near vision
- When writing on the whiteboard, use a clearly contrasting pen – e.g. black on white
- Use discreet questioning to check understanding
- Provide key vocabulary (and definitions) sheets
- Child or young person to use a dark pen or 2b pencil to provide greater contrast with the page
- Print resources should be in an appropriate format. (print size, font and contrast)
- Use real objects and artefacts to support teaching
- Learners to have their own whiteboard and pen and also their own copy of resources e.g. phonics flashcards
- Ensure support staff have time to modify materials before the lesson
- Give extra time, if needed, for VI learners to process information and complete tasks
- Keep worksheets clear and uncluttered; keep drawings, tables and graphs as simple as possible
- PE equipment should be clean and create a good contrast with the surface e.g. no green bean bags on grass
- Children and young people should wear dark glasses and a peaked cap when outdoors
- Have a plan for sun protection
- Walkways to be clear
- Ensure classroom storage does not create obstacles
- Layout of the classroom to be kept consistent
- Resources kept in the same place and clearly labelled
- Plan and practise 1:1 procedure for fire alarms
- School trips: Plan and risk assess. Ensure CYP can access resources/activity e.g. Can CYP handle objects etc.
- UK education collection | RNIB Bookshare, accessible books for print disabled learners.
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