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Unit 16 Persons with Sensory Impairments 

1. Fill in the blanks:

• Sensory impairment refers to difficulty either in seeing or hearing.
• Hearing is a process of detection, discrimination, recognition and comprehension of sounds.
• Persons with low vision mean a person with impairment of Visual Functioning even after treatment of standard refraction.
• Deaf blindness is a dual sensory loss

2. List the various common features based on which the persons having sensory impairment can be identified.

• Visual Impairment:
  • Child tilting their head to locate a light source.
  • Pain and irritation in the eyes.
  • Bumping into objects in the environment
  • Unable to write from the blackboard, takes help from peers to copy from the blackboard,
  • Poor performance in the class,
  • Unable to read in poor lighting conditions,
  • Unable to see during night,
  • Depending too much on oral information,
  • Rubs eyes excessively,
  • Watery eyes,
  • Eyelids are often red,
  • Holds objects and the book too close to eyes,
  • Squints or blinks when looking at something,
  • Blinks more frequently, and
  • Regular headaches
• Hearing Impairment:
  • Confident movement in school environment,
  • Visual orientation to the new stimuli,
  • Light gazing,
  • Avoidance response to shadows,
  • Interested in visual games,
  • Avoidance of large obstacles,
  • Unusual head tilt,
  • Hand flickering,
  • Distracted by movement in the environment,
  • Startled response to suddenly approaching objects,
  • The child experiences difficulty in reading small prints,
  • The child experiences difficulty in identifying small details in
  • pictures or illustrations,
  • The child frequently complains of dizziness after reading a passage
  • or completion of assignments involving vision, and
  • The child frequently complains of headache, infection in eye; the
  • child uses one eye more than the other

3. What are the assessment tools used to measure visual functioning?

Following are the assessment tools used to measure visual functioning:

i) Maddox rod test,

ii) Allied muscle balance test,

iii) Tests of hyperopia,

iv) Plus lens test, and

v) Near vision testing

4. List the types of hearing loss.

The types of hearing loss are:

• Conductive hearing loss
• Sensorineural hearing loss
• Mixed hearing loss
• Central hearing loss, and
• Functional hearing loss

5. What are the major causes of avoidable blindness identified by VISION 2020?

Following are the five causes of avoidable blindness identified by VISION 2020:

i) Cataract,

ii) Trachoma,

iii) Onchocerciasis,

iv) Childhood blindness, and

v) Refractive errors and low vision

6. Discuss the different methods of identification of sensory disability.

Methods for identifying sensory disabilities:

• Hearing Impairment:
  • Observing if a person does not respond when called.
  • Noting if a person turns one ear towards a sound source.
  • Assessing if a person speaks too loudly or softly.
  • Determining if a person appears inattentive in group conversations.
  • Checking if a person does not respond to music.
• Visual Impairment:
  • Observing if a person tilts their head to locate light.
  • Noting complaints of pain and irritation in eyes.
  • Assessing if a person bumps into objects.
  • Determining if a person has difficulty writing from a blackboard.
  • Checking if a person holds books too close or too far from their eyes.
• Deafblindness: All methods used for identifying hearing and visual disabilities may be used in combination to identify deafblindness.

7. What do you understand by the term 'deaf-blindness'? Explain with suitable examples.

Deaf-blindness refers to a multi-sensory impairment in which individuals have significant limitations in both hearing and vision. This dual sensory loss can affect their ability to access information, communicate, and navigate their environment. 

8. Enumerate the types of sensory impairments.

Types of Sensory Impairments:

• Hearing Impairment: Conductive, sensorineural, and mixed hearing loss.
• Visual Impairment: Blindness and low vision.
• Deaf-blindness: A combination of both hearing and visual impairments.

9. What are the symptoms and features indicative of hearing impairment in a child?

Symptoms and features indicative of hearing impairment in a child:

• A child may not respond when called.
• They might turn one ear towards the source of a sound.
• They may speak in a very loud voice or very softly.
• A child might appear inattentive in group conversations.
• They may not respond to music.
• Additional symptoms include a history of high-risk factors, absence of normal responses to sounds, lack of language development after one to two years of age, attention to the lips of speakers, liquid discharge from ears, and a constant itch in the ear.
• In a classroom setting, indicators may include a lack of linguistic skills, difficulty in comprehension, specific problems with reading and speaking, slow language skill development, and frequently asking for repetition.

10. What are the interventions needed for visually impaired persons?

Interventions needed for visually impaired persons:

• Sensory training is needed to enhance the use of other senses, as visually impaired persons are compelled to use them more.
• Orientation and mobility training is vital to teach visually disabled individuals how to move independently and safely in their environment, including the use of mobility devices such as the long cane.
• Daily living skills training is necessary to enable visually impaired persons to carry out their daily routines with minimum or no assistance. This includes developing alternative strategies for activities, and creating performance assessment criteria.