'n Ondersoek na die effek van okkulomotoriese oefeninge in kombinasie met 'n visuelepersepsieprogram op die visuele persepsie by sewejarige leerders met visueel-perseptuele probleme

[摘要] According to the Occupational Therapy Practice Framework (2002), the objective of occupationaltherapy is to help people to participate in activities of daily life which are purposeful and meaningful tothem and in which they are expected to participate. According to educators, learners are increasinglyexperiencing problems with performing academic tasks, and learning barriers, especially with regard tovisual perception, are on the increase. Various external factors, such as educational policy pertainingto inclusive education and a younger age for school admission, as well as internal factors, such aslearning readiness, may contribute to the occurence of learning barriers that can restrict the academicprogress of learners.Learners are increasingly being referred to occupational therapists. Occupational therapists alsoprovide guidance to learner supporters. Occupational therapists refer learners with visual perceptionproblems with possible eye tracking problems for vision therapy, after which occupational therapy isresumed. Meanwhile, learners still have to function in the school environment, which means thatincorrect capturing of information processing can take place. According to literature, the promotion ofeye movements is regarded as part of occupational therapy services in the USA. In South Africa theproposed model by Fishman-Hellerstein and Fishman (1999: 148) of cooperation betweenoptometrists and occupational therapists is followed. In this approach eye movements are regardedas underlying building blocks of visual perception and the effect of eye movements on the academicperformance of learners is clearly described (Green, 2001). There is a shortcoming in the literaturewhere eye movements are promoted as integral to a visual perception programme. Occupationaltherapy needs to investigate effective methods of intervention that are time and cost effective in orderto address the growing problem, especially in South Africa.A clinical experimental field trial with a convenience sample was used to investigate the effect ofocculomotor exercises in combination with a visual perception programme on the visual perception ofseven-year-old learners with visual perception problems.The study population was seven-year-old learners with visual perception learning barriers fromneighbouring schools with foundation phase education. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were applied.Sifting procedures included questionnaires to parents and educators, 'Beery-Buktenica DevelopmentalTest of Visual-Motor Integration 4th edition of Beery (1997) for visio-motor integration, and a screeningtest by an optometrist. A visual perception programme was presented to the control groups and theexperimental groups over ten sessions. An eye exercise of 15 minutes was included with the experimental groups. The Developmental Test ofVisual Perception, 2nd edition, by Hammill, Pearson and Voress (1993) was used as measuringinstrument in the pre-test and post-test to determine effectiveness, which was statistically indicated byusing the repeated measures ANOVA.The results indicated no significant difference between the visual perception programme with eyeexercises and the one without. Two tests of the sub-ability of visual perception showed a tendencytowards improvement. The educators indicated that the learners benefited functionally from theprogramme and that it made a difference in academic performance. Behaviour and emotional eventsmay have influenced the results of the study because of external factors.It is recommended that the study be repeated with a larger sample and a longer programme presentedover six months to a year.Occupational therapists can include eye exercises integral to activity participation by adaptingactivities and through the optimal use of space for activities so that the learner would have to adapt toit visually.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University