Establishing a classification system would allow teachers and parents to understand more easily what materials they should be looking at to help in the education of their student. (American Printing House for the Blind, 2016.)
The Bridge School educational team consistently searches to improve their services to their students. A general dissatisfaction with the outcomes for students who were diagnosed with CVI led to a concentrated search for additional information and tools to help instruct and guide the staff in providing more systematic, consistent support to address the students’ vision needs.
In the Spring of 2012 we were introduced to the work of Dr. Christine Roman-Lantzy and her book, Cortical Visual Impairment: An Approach to Assessment and Intervention. Dr. Roman-Lantzy was contracted to provide direct consultations, trainings and assist in the development of student-specific interventions. Several of the staff were included in her week-long intensive workshops focused on CVI interventions.
Dr. Roman-Lantzy’s model has provided The Bridge School staff with:
- A tool for assessment
- A means of building intervention based on assessment
- A process of identifying and tracking the changes in specific CVI characteristics for individual students as needed
