IMPACT OF REDUCED VISUAL ACUITY ON ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE AMONG SENIOR SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS, LAFIA, NASARAWA STATE, NIGERIA
Abstract
This study examined the impact of reduced visual acuity on academic performance among Senior Secondary (SS1-SS2) School Students in Lafia, Nasarawa State. The study adopted an expo-facto research design and purposive sampling technique to choose participants based on a predetermined criterion. From the total population of 1500, 306 were sampled through an online sample size calculator. Data for this study was collected among the chosen 92 students with reduced visual acuity using a combination of self-administered and interviewer-administered questionnaires. The questionnaire was structured in three sections: Section A, determined the bio-data of the students, Section B, contained a record of the visual acuity measurements of the students (as determined using the Snellen’s chart) while Section C contained the scores of the test questions. An alphabet Snellen’s chart was hanged on a wall at a distance of 20 feet away from the students in a well-lit room/ classroom. Only students with a visual acuity from 20/30 and above in both eyes were assessed by making them respond to some questions that were written on the board by the researchers. Three hypotheses were tested and the result of hypothesis one indicated that reduced visual acuity significantly have a relationship with academic performance [X2(29) = 60.124, P<.05]. The result of hypothesis two revealed that there was no gender difference in academic performance among students with reduced visual acuity [t(90)= .843; p> .05]. Lastly, the result of hypothesis three indicated that age significantly have a relationship with academic performance among students with reduced visual acuity [X2(4) = 12.800; p< .05]. The study concluded that there was presence of reduced visual acuity among students of Government Secondary Schools, Lafia, Nasarawa and this has contributed significantly to poor academic performance. The study recommended that there should be periodic school screening programmes to identify students with poor visual acuity so that if identified and helped appropriately, it would avert poor academic performances of students.
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