Free Custom «Poor eyesight and IQ» Essay Paper

This paper examines whether there is a strong correlation between poor eyesight and IQ. There is an establishment of two hypotheses regarding whether there is a strong correlation between poor eyesight and IQ. The first hypothesis is that poor eyesight does to some extent affect the learning capacity (IQ). When the eyesight is poor, an individual has lower IQ compared to the individuals with normal eyesight. Individual’s poor eyesight affects the ability to learn and thus he/she will have to work extra hard to compete with others. The second hypothesis is that individuals with poor eyesight have lower IQ compared to those whose IQ is higher and this has led to poor performance in learning.

When it comes to learning, the person with poor eyesight performs poorly in class. He or she will score low in IQ compared to those whose eyesight is operating normally (Mitchel, 2006). There are several other factors affecting IQ but our main focus will be poor eyesight and how strong it correlates with IQ. Copping with poor eyesight is problematic to an affected person as he or she feels disadvantaged. The data for this study will be collected using epidemiological approach. The findings of this study are meant to assist the policy makers with information which will go long way to provide solution to people with poor eyesight. The findings will be proving the hypotheses.

 

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The key words: poor eyesight and IQ.

The definition of IQ is the initials which stand for Intelligence Quotient. This is the means by which one’s intelligence is measured. Numbers are used for expressing this measure. The average IQ is 100, above which one is considered smarter. Intelligence, as per our study, will be one’s learning capacity. IQ has other dimensions, such as cognitive measures as well as thinking (Prifitera, 2005). Most studies have shown that both genes and environmental factors are determinants of IQ level (Pulsifer, 2008). Poor eyesight falls under environmental factors. This study will focus on the learning capacity, especially that of children. Poor eyesight can result to the complete learning disability. The main aspect of learning affected by poor eyesight are writing, reading as well as solving mathematics’ problems. This in the long run results to poor academic achievement (Garett, 2011).

Poor eyesight can also affect the ability of the affected to interact with others and this occurs especially due to the feeling that others are doing better (Mitchel, 2006). The IQ of these pupils will be lower than that of those who have no problem with their eyesight. Recent studies have shown that about 20% of people who have learning disability are said to have a deficit in processing of visual information (Garett, 2011). The same study indicates that those learning problems related to vision are risks for progress in reading. Poor vision is also associated with inability to comprehend the reading materials and more so, this is common in children who have a problem in grasping information learnt in class. As indicated earlier, IQ is the measure of one’s intelligence and reading ability is one aspect measured (Prifitera, 2005).

IQ of pupils with learning problems will appear to be lower compared to that of the pupils who have good vision (Mitchel, 2006). Poor vision can lead to the convergence insufficiency and those pupils suffering from this, as has been shown by the research, have shortened attention span. As indicated earlier, the objects chosen for this study were school children. Data for this study were collected from 20 early childhood institutions and also nursery schools. Simple random sampling was used for the purpose of this study. The span of time used to collect these data was 2 years.

Before conducting the study, the institutions were asked about availability of the students’ records so as to ease the study. Also the family history of these students was sought and this was done through following up at their homes. This is important and was meant to assist the researcher in knowing when the problem started. In school, the information was obtained from their teachers. The researcher has interviewed parents or guardians of these pupils. These data were important in helping us to understand the extent of the poor eyesight problem, which is a determinant of IQ. Apart from that, it is important in helping us to know how to approach the problem-solving process. Besides, we will be able to know whether poor eyesight was as a result of inheritance or as a result of environment cause. It is good to understand this as solutions towards this problem differ.

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The data are also important, as through them one is able to understand the measures which are being taken in addressing this vice. The following questions were asked at school: How many pupils in your institution are having poor eyesight? How long each pupil has been suffering from this problem? Are there any measures that the school has put in place that are aimed at addressing the problem? How are the pupils who have poor eyesight performing academically compared to other pupils? How do they interact with other pupils? Do they seem to have low self-esteem? What is the social life of the child at school? At home, the following questions were asked: When did your child start experiencing this problem? What is his/her interaction with other children? Is there any help that you have received from outside sources regarding raising of your child?

The independent variables for this study are poor eyesight and IQ. The dependent variable for this study was academic performance. A check on academic results for these students as well as for those whose eyesight was normal was done and information was collected from the schools heads. Source of information for this study can also be the education heads as they have up–to-date information on the statistics of children who have poor eyesight. Previous surveys done on this topic can also be important sources of data. Poor eyesight can run across the family and thus it is important to look at the family. It is also important to check whether the child has had any illness that affects the eyesight.

When it comes to the working environment, those with poor eyesight but with no aid have been seen to perform much poorer compared to those who have normal sight (Pulsifer, 2008). However, it is important to note, if the necessary arrangement is made to improve their eyesight, their performance tremendously improves and at times becomes better compared to those with normal sight.

There is a need to ensure that teaching methods for pupils who have poor eyesight are different from those for the rest pupils. More special schools should be established for these students as they would feel more comfortable competing among themselves than with those who have normal eyesight. In order to boost their self-esteem, such pupils require all-round support.

Little has been done regarding correlation between poor vision and high IQ. Poor vision affects the reading ability which, in its turn, lowers IQ of an individual. Many researchers have concluded that good vision greatly determines the capacity to learn. To learn in this case determines IQ. IQ tests taken by numerous researchers have proved this (Kuszewski, 2009). None of the studies done has been able to determine the relationship that exists between reading and either myopia or hyperopia. However, normal or above normal reading is linked to myopia (Neisser, 2008). Hyperopia, on the other hand, is associated with poor reading ability. Individuals with poor eyesight will be categorized under hyperopia.

In one study to determine the reading capacity, Burri and Park selected school-age children. They were drawn from schools of Chicago (Mitchel, 2006). In total they selected a sample of 250 children. They wanted to assess cycloplegic refraction, visual acuity, vergence range as well as heterophoria. A defect of eyes was determined by abnormality (Mitchel, 2006). Defects were also determined by presence of heterophoria. Reading tests were administered by school personnel. From this study occurred 8 categories of students. Few children had eye sight score that was below the average. The reading scores related well with visual deficiency. When the score was low, the researchers concluded that there was presence of visual defect and vice versa. They found that the reading and eye score correlated (Mitchel, 2006).

Another research by O’Grady presented similar findings. In her study, a sample was of 227 students who were in their second grade and were from 74 schools (Michel, 2006). Each student was given a test. The research was meant to test the visual status of each student. Through three, three categories of students were identified and they were borderline, normal or suspect. Once through with the exam, it was concluded that visual care needed to be extended to 16.2% of the students (Gurret, 2011). The final conclusion of this study was that optometric is linked to mathematics as well as reading performance. The students categorized as suspects had poor performance unlike the others (Mitchel, 2008). A study by Wilson and Wold however had an observation of negative results. In their study 160 students were drawn from the third, fourth as well as fifth grades. The study concluded that there was no noted difference in the groups after conducting the study (Mitchel, 2006).

In conclusion, poor eyesight has emerged to have strong correlation with high IQ. Pupils with good eyesight have been shown to perform better than those who have poor eyesight (Neiser, 2008). In other studies, poor eyesight has been shown to increase the performance of a pupil he or she becomes more focused in her/his quest to march the performance with that of his/her classmates. This has, however, met so stiff opposition from the researchers and no clear answer has been found to prove this (Prifitera, 2005). Individuals with poor eyesight experience difficulties when learning. Their performance is poorer as compared to those who do not have eyesight problems. This has contributed to their having low IQ. Poor eyesight is seen to affect the reading ability of an individual contributing to the overall poor performance