Every school day, 3.4 million Indian children go to class with uncorrected vision. Children with refractive errors – such as short or long-sightedness or astigmatism – are unable to see blackboards and books, learning much less than their peers.
To mark World Sight Day 2024, new research titled, “Learning and economic productivity losses from uncorrected refractive error in schools” is released for the first time, estimating the learning losses associated with poor vision. The research is published by the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB) – the overarching alliance for the global eye health sector, working together for a world where everyone has universal access to eye care – and the Seva Foundation – an international non-profit health organization known for preventing and treating blindness and other visual impairments.
The calculations, which are based on a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials, show that a child with poor vision learns approximately half as much as a child with good or corrected vision.
This translates directly into lifetime earnings for the individual; for example, if a five-year-old is provided with glasses in primary school and continues to wear them until they are 18, they will earn, on average, 55.6% more lifetime income than if they never had their vision corrected.
If these children were to get glasses, India would stand to gain nearly 1.2 million years of schooling every year, amounting to a future economic productivity boost of ₹156 billion. These calculations are the sum of the individual learning loss for children with uncorrected refractive error, translated into a percentage reduction in the country’s projected GDP per capita.
Brad Wong, Chief Economist, Seva Foundation said: “With this very first global estimate of actual learning losses associated with poor vision, we see just how much our children could gain by getting glasses when they need them. With India standing to gain 1.2 million schooling years, this is far beyond China and Brazil who come in second and third, standing to gain 730 and 310 million schooling years respectively. As our report shows, correcting these children’s vision would translate directly into a substantial economic gain both for the individual and for the country as a whole.”
Most often, refractive errors go uncorrected simply because they have not been detected – many students do not have easy access to eye tests, or are not aware of the importance of getting your vision checked every year.
Vinod Daniel, CEO of India Vision Institute, an independent, not-for-profit trust established in 2012, said: “Children’s vision plays a crucial role in their learning and future opportunities. To address uncorrected refractive error issues, it is essential that we ensure early access to screenings and corrective glasses to give them the best chance for success. IVI is working to provide access to underprivileged children in government and tribal schools across India. Clear vision can be the foundation for brighter futures to uplifting communities through healthy children.”
At the same time, Indian school children, along with others from around the world, are re-imagining the ‘Glasses of the Future’ in a competition facilitated by the IAPB. The competition asks children to use their creativity to raise awareness of the need for checks.
Peter Holland, Chief Executive Officer, the IAPB, said: “Early intervention, regular eye checks and access to good quality eye care and glasses are critical to unlocking education opportunities and children’s future economic potential. Eye health in young people is not an optional extra – it is vital to their future”.