Государственное Бюджетное Образовательное Учреждение города Москвы
лицей № 1535
ПРОЕКТНАЯ РАБОТА
Pupils’ health: development of eyesight problems
(Здоровье школьников: развитие проблем со зрением)
Москва, 2015
Contents
Introduction ...................................................................................... 1
Chapter 1. Theoretical input.............................................................. 2
Vision: physiological overview ........................................................ 3
Eyes-related diseases as a crucial health problem ............................ 4
Chapter 2. Practical research ............................................................ 6
Objectives ......................................................................................... 6
Research procedure .......................................................................... 7
Results ............................................................................................... 8
Conclusions ...................................................................................... 8
References ......................................................................................... 10
Introduction
Every year millions of children go to school trying to get knowledge and
good marks. They spend there several hours a day, from 5 to 8 hours depending
on the level of education. Schools literally becomes their “second home”, i.e. a
place where children have to stay for quite a long time. Therefore, school as a
temporary habitat for children may and does influence our generation in various
ways.
One of the aspects of life affected by the habitat is, of course, our health.
Every job has its own so-called “professional diseases”; pupils at school are no
exception. There is a solid number of school-related diseases. They touch upon
practically all the systems of the young organism. Moreover, they can also cause
psychological issues like anxiety, stress, insomnia and so on.
Yet, to our mind, the system that is especially under threat is vision.
Nowadays not only textbooks and tones of homework endanger the fragile
eyesight, all the electronic gadgets that children do not part with add to the
problem.
Good eyesight for children is certainly a basic requirement for school
success. When the child's vision falls short, the same happens with his school
performance. According to a recent study, up to 25% of children experience
eyesight problems that affect their learning ability.
Thus, we have decided to devote our research to the eyesight-related
problems that schoolboys and girls face all over the world and in our country as
well.
In our analytical project work we want to make an attempt to assess the
scale of the problem under analysis. What is more, we put forward an aim to
collect some simple basic tips helping to decrease the risk of vision dramatic
deterioration.
1
Chapter 1. Theoretical input
In the first chapter of our research we want to observe the scientific data
and works dealing with the following aspects:
- firstly, it seems important to dwell on the visual system of a human
being to understand which factors can threaten it,
- secondly, the most widespread eyesight problems should be defined,
- finally, we would like to put emphasis on those problems that are acute
especially for schoolchildren.
Vision: physiological overview
Since the birth, almost all of human beings who are not physically
challenged have an important ability to see. Although we usually take it for
granted, vision plays an extremely important role in our life. The organs
responsible for eyesight are eyes and the brain that interprets the information.
Still, in most cases visionary problems are eyes-related, so, we find it important
to give a brief overview of these exceptional organs.
The human eye is the organ which gives us the sense of light, allowing us
to learn more about the surrounding world than any of the other five senses. We
use our eyes in almost everything we do, whether reading, working, watching
television, writing a letter, driving a car, and countless other activities.
Sight is the most precious of the five senses, and many people fear
blindness more than any other disability. The eye allows us to see and interpret
the shapes, colors, and dimensions of objects in the world by processing the
light they reflect of give off.
The eye changes light rays into electrical signals, then sends them to the
brain, which interprets these electrical signals as visual images. The eyeball is
set in a protective cone-shaped cavity in the skull called the orbit or socket and
measures approximately one inch in diameter. The orbit is surrounded by layers
or soft, fatty tissue which protect the eye and enable it to turn easily. Six
2
muscles regulate the motion of the eye. Among the more important parts of the
human eye are the iris, cornea, lens, retina, conjunctiva, the macula, and the
optic nerve.
The human eye is composed of many parts, all of which work together to
convert the light rays that are going through your pupil into information that
your brain can then interpret. Light rays travel and bounce off objects before
they get to your pupil, that is what determines the color and brightness that your
brain perceives. Thanks to this complicated process, we perceive the thin band
of the electromagnetic spectrum that we call visible light, and are aware of that
surrounds us.
Eyes-related diseases as a crucial health problem
Talking about human eye diseases and disorders we should acknowledge
that there is a vast list of such diseases and various classifications, mainly based
on the injured or affected part of an eye. In our project we cannot observe all the
problems and will dwell only on the most widespread ones. Further the
definitions and basic information is presented.
Nearsightedness, or myopia, as it is medically termed, is a vision
condition in which close objects are seen clearly, but objects farther away
appear blurred. Nearsightedness occurs if the eyeball is too long or the cornea,
the clear front cover of the eye, has too much curvature. As a result, the light
entering the eye is not focused correctly and distant objects look blurred.
Generally, nearsightedness first occurs in school-age children. Because the eye
continues to grow during childhood, it typically progresses until about age 20.
However, nearsightedness may also develop in adults due to visual stress or
health conditions such as diabetes.
A common sign of nearsightedness is difficulty with the clarity of distant
objects like a movie or TV screen or the chalkboard in school.
3
Farsightedness, or hyperopia, as it is medically termed, is a vision
condition in which distant objects are usually seen clearly, but close ones do not
come into proper focus. Farsightedness occurs if your eyeball is too short or the
cornea has too little curvature, so light entering your eye is not focused
correctly. Common signs of farsightedness include difficulty in concentrating
and maintaining a clear focus on near objects, eye strain, fatigue and/or
headaches after close work, aching or burning eyes, irritability or nervousness
after sustained concentration.
Common vision screenings, often done in schools, are generally
ineffective in detecting farsightedness. A comprehensive optometric
examination will include testing for farsightedness.
Astigmatism is a vision condition that causes blurred vision due either to
the irregular shape of the cornea or sometimes the curvature of the lens inside
the eye. An irregular shaped cornea or lens prevents light from focusing
properly on the retina, the light sensitive surface at the back of the eye. As a
result, vision becomes blurred at any distance.
Astigmatism is a very common vision condition. Most people have some
degree of astigmatism. In serious cases it can cause distorted or blurred vision,
eye discomfort and headaches.
Astigmatism frequently occurs with other vision conditions like myopia
and hyperopia. Together these vision conditions are referred to as refractive
errors because they affect how the eyes bend or "refract" light.
The specific cause of astigmatism is unknown. It can be hereditary and is
usually present from birth. It can change as a child grows and may decrease or
worsen over time.
Anisometropia is the condition when the two eyes have a different
refractive power, so there is unequal focus between the two eyes. This is often
due to one eye having a slightly different shape from the other causing
4
asymmetric astigmatism, asymmetric far-sightedness (hyperopia), or asymmetric
near-sightedness (myopia).
Anisometropia can cause amblyopia (lazy eye) in young children because
the brain tells the eyes to focus the same amount in each eye. If the eyes do not
have the same refractive power, one of the eyes will be blurry relative to the
other. The brain is then unable to use the eyes together. The brain will pick the
eye with the clearest image or least refractive error. The eye with the blurry
image will be ignored and will not develop good vision.
Typically the refractive power of the eyes changes as the child grows, but
the eyes may continue to have an asymmetric refractive power and therefore
always need glasses or contact(s) to reach and maintain their visual potential.
We have listed just a few human eye disorders that schoolchildren face
most often. Still, the enumeration can be continued.
***
Good vision is a key to good education. It has been estimated that as much
as 80% of the learning a child does occurs through his or her eyes. Reading,
writing, chalkboard work, and using computers are among the visual tasks
students perform daily.
It is no surprise that more and more children suffer from vision disorders.
There are several reasons for that:
1) As children progress in school, they face increasing demands on their
visual abilities. The size of print in schoolbooks becomes smaller and the
amount of time spent reading and studying increases significantly. Increased
class work and homework place significant demands on the child's eyes.
2) Nowadays with the development of technologies and the process of
computerization of the educational process the quality of pupils’ vision is under
threat as they have to spend hours in front of screens doing homework and
researches, even school registers have been transformed into an electronic form.
5
3) Intensification of education is one more stress factor for the youth
which can deteriorate vision. One of already scientifically excepted examples is
Streff syndrome, or non-malingering syndrome, which is a visual condition that
causes both distance and near vision to deteriorate temporarily. The disorder is
thought to be brought on by high levels of emotional stress and tends to affect
girls more than boys. Triggers could include a troubled home life, bullying, high
anxiety and/or extreme pressure to get good grades.
It is obvious that the problem under analysis is extremely acute today and
demands a thorough examination.
Chapter 2. Practical research
In the second chapter of our analytical research we describe the following
points:
- the aims of the research;
- the procedure;
- the results;
- the conclusion based on the obtained data
Objectives
The objectives of our analytical research were to collect and analyze the
information about the vision conditions of pupils in an average Russian school.
Our hypothesis is that through school years vision deteriorates dramatically
regardless great improvements in ophthalmology.
Research procedure
As a method for research we chose a questionnaire that we specifically
devised in order to get the necessary information. As we were interested in
disorders we assumed that pupils who suffer from this or that problem regularly
have eye-tests, follow the development of their conditions and may supply us
6
with reliable data. The rest of the students also go through eye tests during
general medical examination that also takes place quite regularly and know their
visual acuity.
The students of our lyceum 1535 were the subjects for our research. They
were given the questionnaire (see Appendix) and asked to answer the questions
as carefully as possible.
Then we collected all the questionnaires, calculated the figures and got the
results described in the following section.
Results
The obtained results are as follows:
1) In terms of the vision acuity the data show that for 57% of the students
it is 1(100%); for 17% - 0,7-0,9 (70-90%); the rest 26% - 0,6 (60%)
and lower. These results are demonstrated in Chart 1 (see Appendix).
2) Chart 2 shows the percentage of the most common disorders for those
students who have them. Hyperopia has been diagnosed in 35% of
cases; 31% is accounted for by myopia; 25% feature anisometropia;
18% experience astigmatisms that accompanies other problems.
3) We have also calculated the number of people with different visual
acuity in different grades of our lyceum from the 8th to 11th grades. The
results are shown in Chart 3.
4) The amount of time the students spend on studying and studying
related activities is at average 10-11 hours (6-7 hours – lessons ant
school, 1-2 hours – extracurricular activities, 2-3 – homework).
Conclusions
After the analysis of the obtained results of the questionnaire we came to
certain conclusions.
7
1) First of all, though the number of students with 100% vision is more
than a half, this fact is quite alerting as in future it can become
significantly smaller.
2) Secondly, there is a tendency that visual acuity is deteriorating from
the 8th to 11th grades.
3) Thirdly, relatively a lot of students suffer from this or that disorder that
can negatively affect their study at the current moment and worsen the
quality of their life in the future.
4) We also proved that among the factors that have negative influence on
the quality of vision is excessive learning with the unavoidable
intensive use of electronics.
Even our humble analytical research proves that children’s fragile still
developing eyesight is endangered nowadays. To conclude we would like to
underline that to avoid eye diseases and disorders students and their parents
should follow a set of simple rules:
1. Regular eye tests should become a habit for everyone and only for those
already diagnosed.
2. Parents and teachers as well should observe the behavior of children as there
are some evident signs indicating eyesight problems, for example such as:
- consistently sitting too close to the TV or holding a book too close,
- losing his place while reading or using a finger to guide his eyes when reading,
- squinting or tilting the head to see better,
- closing one eye to read, watch TV or see better,
- complaining of headaches or tired eyes and so on.
3. Adults should remember that poor vision can lead to other problems such as
different types of learning disabilities. Therefore, if a child has unexpectedly
started to get bad marks it may be a signal of earning-Related Vision Problems.
4. As emotional state can also have certain impact on the state of vision, this
aspect needs to be taken into account, i.e. a child should be provided with
8
suitable emotionally-positive and friendly environment for life, development
and study.
5. There is a set of rules about work with the electronic devices that should also
be observed, especially in case of children using gadgets:

Location of computer screen should be 15 to 20 degrees below eye level from
the center of the screen and 45 to 50 centimeters from the eyes.

Reference materials should be located above the keyboard and below the
monitor.

As for lighting it is better to position the computer screen to avoid glare,
particularly from overhead lighting or windows. Use blinds or drapes on
windows and use the light bulbs of lower wattage in desk lamps.

Chairs should be comfortably padded and conform to the body. Chair height
should be adjusted so your feet rest flat on the floor.

To prevent eyestrain, it is important to rest eyes when using the computer for
long periods. We need to let eyes rest for 15 minutes after two hours of
continuous computer use. Also, for every 20 minutes of computer viewing, it
is advisable to look into the distance for 20 seconds to allow eyes a chance to
refocus.

To minimize chances of developing dry eye when using a computer, one
should make an effort to blink frequently to keep the front surface of the eye
moist.
No doubt, there are many more useful tips that might help to maintain the
vision quality at a good level, but even this simple ideas are already a good start
for moving to the “clear” future.
9
References
1. Computer eye strain symptoms and solutions
http://www.specsavers.co.uk/eye-health/computer-eye-strain-symptomsand-solutions
2. Eye Conditions, American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and
Strabismus http://www.aapos.org/terms/conditions/153
3. G. Heiting, OD Vision Problems of Schoolchildren, All about Vision
http://www.allaboutvision.com/parents/schoolage.htm
4. James Garrity, MD Structure and Function of the Eyes, Merck Manuals
Consumer Version http://www.merckmanuals.com/home/eyedisorders/biology-of-the-eyes/structure-and-function-of-the-eyes
5. Poor Eyesight Can Lead To Bad Grades, Medicine.Net.org
http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=20974
6. R. Murphy Learning-Related Vision Problems, All about Vision
http://www.allaboutvision.com/parents/learning.htm
7. School-aged Vision: 6 to 18 Years of Age, Site of American Optometric
Association http://www.aoa.org/patients-and-public/good-visionthroughout-life/childrens-vision/school-aged-vision-6-to-18-years-ofage?sso=y
8. Visual acuity, Precision Vision http://precision-vision.com/Introductionto-Visual-Acuity-Measurement/a-visualacuity.html#.Vk4f6L-qmUk
9. ЗРЕНИЕ и ДЕТИ - Охрана зрения ШКОЛЬНИКОВ, Русский
медицинский сервис
http://www.rusmedserv.com/ophthalmolog/faq/articles_425.html
10.Сайт "Детское зрение" http://www.detskoezrenie.ru/about/
10
APPENDIX
Questionnaire 1.
VISION CONDITIONS
1) What grade are you from?
2) What is your current vision acuity?
3) If possible enumerate the figures for vision acuity from the previous eye tests
stating the period when the test was conducted.
4) Do you have any eyes disorders? If yes, state your condition. Who long have
you had it?
5) How many hours do you spend on studying a day (school + after-classes
activities +homework)?
6) How much time a day do you spend reading printed texts?
7) How much time a day do you spend in front of a screen
(computer/laptop/tablet/smartphone/etc.)?
8) Assess the level of tiredness after the school day on the scale from 1 to 10.
Chart 1. Visual acuity among the pupils of lyceum 1535
11
Chart 2. Percentage of vision disorders among the pupils of lyceum 1535
Chart 3. Visual acuity if different grades
12
13