SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Meg Loughran Cappel is leading a measure to ensure children who have color vision deficiency, more commonly referred to as “color blindness,” are identified early and receive resources to help their literacy.
“Many children do not receive color vision deficiency testing because it’s not required, meaning they often don’t find out until much later in their lives that they cannot distinguish certain colors,” said Loughran Cappel (D-Shorewood). “This measure makes sure children receive testing so they know if they have color vision deficiency and can be connected with the appropriate resources to help them succeed in their education.”
Color vision deficiency is present in about one of every 12 boys and one of every 200 girls, yet many states do not test for it. Recognizing that color is used in classroom settings to improve students’ cognitive performances, Loughran Cappel is leading House Bill 3408 to ensure that students potentially impacted by color vision deficiency have access to early diagnosis and treatment.
The legislation would mandate color discrimination testing as part of the vision examinations for children in kindergarten, second grade and eighth grade, helping to identify students with color vision deficiencies as early in their education as possible. It would also require the Illinois State Board of Education to publish resources on its website that help teachers and school districts teach literacy to students who are color-vision-deficient.
Currently, all Illinois children must have an eye exam within one year before starting kindergarten, upon beginning the sixth and ninth grades, and prior to becoming a student at a school. However, testing for color deficiency is not part of the examination.
“We not only want the students and their families to know if they have color vision deficiencies, but we also want to support them throughout their academic career,” said Loughran Cappel. “By giving teachers and school districts the resources to properly help students with color vision deficiency, we would set them up for successful lives, both in childhood and adulthood.”
House Bill 3408 passed the Senate Thursday.
