SCOTOPIC
SENSITIVITY1
IRLEN
SYNDROME
PILOT
PROGRAM
Paula Abromovitz
Pilot Program Coordinator
December 15, 1998
DEC 15 'W 1Z:45PM BARRY MLDWFITER H I M SCHOOL I
December 15, 1998
rn
To Whom It May Concern:
I am writing thls letter to describe the experiences my daughter, Tiffany, has had
with regard to Scotopic Sensitivity Syndrome. In second grade, we noticed that she
was having a difficult time with reading. Since I am a Special Eduoation teacher, I was
most concerned that perhaps a learning disability was present. However, she
presented none of the "usual" symptoms. She could decode easily and understood
what she read. However, reading was quite laborlous for her and she was not fluent
when she read aloud. This problem,continued to plague her even wlth extra
tutoring, going through the "Hooked on Phonics" program, the reading program offered
for elementary students through ASU, and the summer reading program through
Glendale Community College.
Fortunately, because she Is reasonable intelligent and is motivated to
do well in school, she was able to pass her classes and scored on grade level when
she took !he standardized tests administersd by her school. Howevet, It was painful
to hear her read aloud and resisted all attempts to read unless absalutely necessary,
In her mind, there e was no such thing as reading for pleasure.
Because the district I work for is part of the pilot program, Paula Abromowitz
tested my daughter for Scotoplc Sensitivfty Syndrome when she was in 5th grade.
This was a last ditch effort on my part to figure out why readlng was so torturous for
her. I certainly was floored when the results revealed that Tiffany had thls syndrome.
It brought tears to my eyes to watch how effortlessly she read when a purple overlay
was placed over the page
Since Tiffany has been In the lrlen tlnts, she has made straight A's for the
past year and a half. Her SAT scores showed several years growth and I no longer
have to make reading one of har chores on her chore chart. AS she remarked to
me last night, ''These glasses really work. I read 30 pages in 30 minutes. Unusually
It wou!d take me at least an hour to read this much."
Given my background and experience, I was most skeptlcai of the Syndrome
when I first heard of it, However, after witnessing first hand the difference it has made
in my awn child's life, 1 cannot emphasize enough to you how Important Paula' s
work is. I believe, if caught early enough, it wilt save many children from being
labeled as having a "learning disability" - which simply means they have experienced
so much failure that their achievement scores in reading are far below their intellect.
Please feel free to contact me at any tlme, 581-7838 sxt. 234 to discuss this
issue.
1 I Cordially,
Charlene S. Tomlinson, M. Ed.
Department Chair of Special Education - Barry Goldwater Hlgh School
I
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SUBJECT
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SCOTOPIC SENSITIVITY IRLEN SYNDROME
The first regular session of the forty-second legislature established a
two-year scotopic sensitivity Irlen syndrome pilot program. This pilot program
was designed to allow the Arizona public schools to assess, diagnose and treat
a group of students with perceptual processing problems that were collectively
categorized as scotopic sensitivity Irlen syndrome. The Arizona Department
of Education was identified as the administrating agent and subsequently
awarded funds to the Deer Valley Unified School District #97. This district
acted as the fiduciary agent for the project for the two year program with the
understanding that Cartwright Elementary and Washington Elementary school
districts would also participate.
INTRODUCTION:
Scotopic Sensitivity Irlen Syndrome is a sensitivity to glare, contrast,
brightness and intensity of various lighting conditions, especially flourescent
lighting which is universally present in classrooms. It is comprised of a cluster
of symptoms related to a perceptual processing disorder not diagnosed by
optometric examinations or psychological and educational assessment
batteries. These symptoms are not restricted to people with otherwise "perfect
vision". Scotopic Sensitivity symptoms are indiscriminate. Persons with 20-20
vision or persons with prescription glasses may exhibit the symptoms of Irlen
Syndrome.
Scotopic SensitivityIIrlen Syndrome may affect as much as 40% of
certain identified population. Persons may experience problems in the ability
to concentrate while reading, writing or working on a computer. Fatigue or
falling asleep while reading, reports of becoming drowsy or restless while
reading, difficulties reading groups of letters, notes, numerals or words at the
same time. These individuals have historically been incorrectly termed, "slow
learners" or "dumb", not motivated or manipulative. The directly affects their
self-esteem. The results may often be seen as explosive behavior, anger and
frustration. Other problems reported include but are not limited to poor depth
perception, getting on and off escalators, walking up and down stairs, poor ball
handling in sports and difficulty judging distance.
Elimination of offensive light wavelengths using color filters has had
dramatic effects in eliminating or reducing symptoms experienced by these
individuals.
Scotopic Sensitivity Syndrome screening results are generally
categorized by severity of symptoms ranging from slight to moderate, to
severe. A person who has Scotopic Sensitivity can experience any or all of the
six categories which comprise the Syndrome.
1. LIGHT SENSITIVITY:
A sensitivity to glare, brightness and intensity of various lighting
conditions, especially flourescent lighting. Reactions may include discomfort
and difficulty concentrating while reading and working under flourescent
lights and driving at night.
2. INEFFICIENT READING;:
Difficulty reading print, numbers, or musical notes. Problems may
include print that shifts, shakes, blurs, moves, doubles, disappears, or becomes
difficulty to perceive.
3. STRAIN OR FATIGUE:
Feeling strain, tension, fatigue, sleepy, or headaches with reading and
other perceptual activities. Strain can interfere with the ease of reading,
studying, or even listening.
4. SLOW READING RATE:
The inability to read groups of letters, notes, numerals or words in
groups. Difficulties include the inability to track, identi@ words, skim or speed
read.
5. ATTENTION DEFICIT:
Problems concentrating while reading, writing, doing school work or
working on a computer. Problems reported include requiring frequent breaks,
becoming drowsy or restless or needing to employ strategies to stay on task.
6. POOR DEPTH PERCEPTION:
The inability to judge distance and spatial relationships accurately.
Reported problems include difficulty with escalators and/or walking up and
down stairs, bumping into things, poor driving judgment, poor ball handling
in sports and difficulty judging distances in height and depth.
Individuals with Scotopic Sensitivity/Irlen Syndrome see a variety of
distortions when reading. By using spectral modification with colored plastic
overlays, these distortions may be eliminated or reduced. This makes
perceiving the page easier, resulting in a greater flow, fluency and/or improved
accuracy and reading comprehension. The elimination of print and background
distortions, increasing the span of recognition and the ability to stay on task
can promote greater comfort and duration of sustained reading.
Scotopic Sensitivity Symptoms are evident by distortions seen on the
printed page. These include, but are not limited to the following:
RIVERS: White background dominates and appears as rivers or patterns,
sometimes color appears.
SWIRL: The word being read is sharp and clear but other words around
it are moving in a swirl.
WASHOUT: White background takes over and parts of letters fade and
disappear.
SHAKY: Words splinter, lines split and cross.
BLURRY: Letters, words don't stay clear and sharp.
SEESAW: Lines shift and move up and down.
HALO: Letters double, color or hit images appear, lights glow around
the letters.
MOVE: Letters and words appear as ants running all over, or words
moving back and forth switching around or tilting. Letters such
as b and d, p, q, m, n and u apprear to look alike.
The Irlen Approach: An intervention for Individuals with Symptoms of
Scotopic SensitivityIIrlen Syndrome.
Reading Strategies Questionnaires were given to:
b 5 13 10th Grade High School Students
b 1149 4th Grade Elementary Students.
The classes were comprised of:
Readingkearning Disability classes
b Title One Classes
b Regular Classes
t Gifted Classes
Schools Participating:
Page School District - Desert View Elementary School
Cartwright Elementary School District - Starlight Elementary School
t Washington Elementary School District - Orangewood Elementary
School
t Deer Valley School District
*New River Elementary
* Greenbriar
*Desert Mountain Middle School
*Mountain Shadows High School
*Barry Goldwater High School
Teachers were chosen from each school to be trained as an Irlen
Screener and coordinate the project for 2 years. The coordinators were:
Dave Bufano - Mountain Ridge High School
t Sue LaConte - Orangewood Elementary
Marlene Manzer - Orangewood Elementary
t Kathi Robison - Starlight Park Elementary
Nancy McKiernan - New River Elementary
Charlene Tomlinson - Barry Goldwater High School
b Eva Ross - Desert View Elementary School
b Terri McElligott - Desert Mountain Middle School
STEP ONE
The teacher and/or individuals who went to the schools to collect data
asked the students to "think about what reading was like for them when they
had to read for long periods of time".
Reading Strategies Ouestionnaire
Part A - deals with general reading difficulties. These questions
measure the degree of reading difficulty due to the inefficiency of the visual
perceptual system. Good readers rarely report having the type of reading
difficulties asked about in this section. A score of 1-3 answered yes were
considered in the low range. A score of 4-7 indicated moderate problems and
scores of 8- 17 were considered to be in the high range.
Part B - Deals with strain and fatigue. Scores of 1-3 are considered in
the low range; 4-7 moderate and 8- 17 severe.
Fatigue and discomfort should not be part of the reading process. Good
readers rarely report that strain and fatigue accompany the reading process
regardless of how long they read. Instead, good readers report they find
reading to be relaxing and enjoyable.
STEP 2
After reviewing the questionnaires, we sent out letters to the parents at
each school asking them to attend a one-hour talk about the project. We
requested a permission slip to be signed allowing their child to be screened
with colored overlays.
The students who returned permission slips were given an evaluation
by the school nurse to determine if there was a visual problem. If necessary,
they were referred to their Eye Doctor. Only those children without visual
problems were screened for Irlen Syndrome.
The screening consisted of administration of tasks which are designed
to illicit symptoms of Scotopic Sensitivity. It is not important if an individual
can complete the task, what is significant is the reporting of specific visual
perceptual problems related to print and/or background distortion while
attempting to do the tasks. The types of perceptual skills being tested appear
to be fully developed at a young age. There appears to be little change or
development of these perceptual functions as a child grows older. These
perceptual problems do not improve with maturation.
Boxes A-B: Musical Lines: Individuals with print and/or background
distortions, a restricted span of recognition or problems with sustained
attention, will report an array of optical illusions when doing these tasks.
Pumpkin: Individuals with problems with eye movement and tracking
will have more difficulty with this task.
Span of Recognition: This measures the ability to perceive groups of
letters, numerals or words at the same time; individuals who have difficulty
tracking from line to line and have a tendency to lose their place on the page.
Distortions that individuals see on the page when reading were
identified. Students who scored in the moderate to severe range in symptoms
were chosen by the school coordinator or their teacher to proceed to the next
step. Students were screened and given colored overlays to use for reading.
Students were then evaluated for tinted lenses. Students could pick out their
own frames.
All students will be tested using the Woodcock Johnson Form G-H
each year, for 2 years:
*Letter/word recognition
*Word Attack Skills
*Reading Vocabulary
*Passage Comprehension
b 79 started out in the Pilot program.
b 37 moved or never wore the tinted glasses given to them
b 42 remain in the project
Thirty Two students have been pre and post tested the first year. Ten
need to be post tested. Others have moved or changed phone numbers and we
are in the process of locating them.
The 2nd year post testing will begin this month for those students going
into the second year of the pilot. We will be administering the Woodcock for
2 years until they have completed the project.
The following impactors have been identified as problem areas:
1. Students not wanting to wear colored glasses because of how
they looked, regardless of the benefit.
2. Poor parental support
3. Children losing or breaking glasses
4. Strategies not employed in the classroom and home
5. Students who were successful by the end of the year felt they no
longer needed the glasses and stopped wearing them
6. The movement of the families during the Pilot; several students
were "lost" due to their leaving the Pilot site; no data was given
as to where they moved.
The students who were consistent in wearing their glasses for reading
and during school made the greatest progress.
One student was identified in the 4th grade but his parents would not
allow him to wear the tinted glasses. He was the only one in the group who had
to repeat 4th grade. He was then tested and placed in colored glasses and by
the end of that year, he was honored by the school for his improvement and
made the honor roll and went on to graduate.
The coordinators, pilot sites and I want to extend our deepest gratitude
to the legislature for sponsoring the pilot. It is indicated in the data, that the
children who wore the tinted lenses and were committed to the process,
benefitted immensely. Those who have been involved in this pilot see the
efficacy of having children screened for Scotopic Sensitivity Syndrome and
support having children screened for it as we do with our hearing and vision
acuity screenings. Test scores do not supply a comprehensive picture. There
is much data that needs to be reported that doesn't come in as a test score.
Teacher reports, parent reports, students reports and their report cards also
supply important information. Further data is being disaggregated and when
it is completed, will be included when the 2 year testing has been completed
and will be presented to the legislators as another vehicle for accountability
and planning the next step in facilitating the children of Arizona in their quest
to be effective life-long learners.
Score Interpretation
Average
Passage
Comprehension
LetterIWord
(Sight Words)
LetterIWord
Identification
(Sight word
decoding)
Word Attack
(Phonics)
+
Reading
Vocabulary
Passage
Comprehension
= Basic Reading Skill
Scores
=
=
Total Reading
Comprehension Scores
Broad Reading
Scores
Students Academic gains in 1 year - Woodcock Johnson - R Assessment
1
2*
3
4
5 *
6
7
8*
9
10
11
Broad
Reading
2.8
0.5
1.4
1.9
0.8
0.8
1.3
0.3
1.9
1 .O
1.5
LetterIWord
Identification
3.0
0.6
1.2
0.7
1 .O
1 .O
0.6
0.9
1.4
1.3
1.8
3.1
0.5
1.8
4.6
0.5
0.5
2.0
0.2
3.0
0.6
0.9
Basic
Attack
2.3
0.4
0.9
3.6
0.7
0.3
1.2
0.3
2.9
0.8
-0- -
-0-
1 .O
1.1
5.6
-0-
1.2
0.6
0.2
3.7
0.8
2.5
2.2
0.5
-0-
2.4
0.7
0.3
0.2
0.7
2.9
1.2
1.2
5.7
0.6
1.2
1.8
0.7
1.2
0.6
0.6
2.4
1.1
6.5
12
13*
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
2 1
22
23
2.4
-0-
0.5
1.5
1.8
2.1
0.5
3.0
1.6
3.4
2.6
1.2
LetterIWord
Identification
1.4
0.4
-0-
0.8
0.7
0.6
2.1
0.9
1.3
0.4
0.2
0.8
2.4
0.4
1.6
1
1.4
1.9
1 .O
1.7
1.7
2.6
No score
No score
Basic
Attack Reading
Broad
Reading
1.8
0.3
0.2
1.2
1.2
1.1
1.1
1.7
1.3
1.4
1.2
1 .O
0.5
.01
0.6
0.3
0.3
0.7
1.8
2.0
0.3
0.3
No score
No score
2.1
0.6
2.8
0.6
1.2
1.7
1.7
0.5
1.8
1.8
No score
No score
1.1
0.2
0.2
0.5
0.6
0.2
2.0
1.6
0.8
0.2
No score
No score
LetterIWord
Identification
Broad
Reading
Basic
Attack
24
25
26
27
2 8
29
3 0
3 1
32**
33***
3 4
*Reported
***Was tested but did not wear his tinted lenses
Six students have now left their Reading Resource class and returned to the regular classroom.
No score
-0-
0.3
2.5
0.8
0.2
0.4
2.5
0.2
0.8
-0-
**Was tested
2.4
4.3
-0-
0.9
-0-
Never wore
1 .O
1.3
No Score
0.2
-0-
1.7
they didn't wear their
No score
1.4
2.4
2.6
-0-
1.5
2.7
3.7
0.7
-0-
1.7
but didn't go into tinted
2.0
3.4
0.9
6.1
-0-
glasses the
4.0
2.8
5.0
-0.9
-0-
2.2
tinted lenses much of
2.2
3.9
0.4
2.9
-0-
1 st year
1.9
1.8
No Score
0.3
-0-
2.2
the time
No score
2.9
2.0
3.2
0.3
0.7
1.1
No Score
0.1
0.3
2.9
lenses
No score
2.4
1.7
4.0
-0-
2.6
2.8
4.8
-0-
-0-
1.4
1 Irlen tints primarily affect these subtests and are of primary significance for this project.
I CHART "A"
Subtests of Primary Significance
I
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I
I
I
D
I
I
I
1
I
I
1
2*
3
4
Passage
Comprehension
3.1
0.5
1.8
4.6
5 *
6
7
8*
9
10
11
12
13 *
14
15
16
17
Reading
Vocabulary
2.2
0.5
-0-
2.4
Reading
Comprehension
2.3
0.4
0.9
3.6
0.5
0.5
2.0
0.2
3 .O
0.6
0.9
2.4
-0-
0.5
1.5
1.8
2.1
0.7
0.3
0.2
0.7
2.9
1.2
1.2
2.1
0.6
2.8
0.6
1.2
1.7
0.7
0.3
1.2
0.3
2.9
0.8
-0-
2.4
0.4
1.6
1
1.4
1.9
18
19
20
21
22
2 3
24
2 5
26
2 7
28
29
30
31
32**
33***
3 4
Passage
Comprehension
0.5
3 .O
1.6
3.4
2.6
1.2
2.0
3.4
0.9
6.1
-0-
4.0
2.8
5.0
-0.9
-0-
2.2
Reading
Vocabulary
1.7
0.5
1.8
1.8
No score
No score
No score
1.4
2.4
2.6
-0-
1.5
2.7
3.7
0.7
-0-
1.7
Reading
Comprehension
1 .O
1.7
1.7
2.6
No score
No score
No score
2.4
1.7
4.0
-0-
2.6
2.8
4.8
-0-
-0-
1.4
Irlen tints were not expected to address phonics or decoding skills which are LetterIWord
Identification; Word Attack and Basic Reading. Gains were not expected in these areas. Irlen filters
may improve one's ability to see letters correctly. Other programs may be used to reinforce gains
in Word Attack and LetterIWord Recognition.
Irlen filters and overlays are a piece to the puzzle needed as building blocks for successful
reading.
CHART "B"
Subtests of Secondary Significance
1
2 *
3
4
5 *
6
7
8 *
9
10
11
12
13 *
Letter/Word
Identification
3 .o
0.6
1.2
0.7
1 .O
1 .O
0.6
0.9
1.4
1.3
1.8
1.4
0.4
Word
Attack
-0-
1 .O
1.1
5.6
-0-
1.2
0.6
0.2
3.7
0.8
2.5
0.5
.O 1
Basic
Reading
5.7
0.6
1.2
-
1.8
0.7
1.2
0.6
0.6
2.4
1.1
6.5
1.1
0.2
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
2 1
22
23
24
2 5
26
2 7
28
29
30
31
32**
33***
3 4
LetterIWord
Identification
-0-
0.8
0.7
0.6
2.1
0.9
1.3
0.4
0.2
0.8
2.4
4.3
-0-
0.9
-0-
1 .O
1.3
No Score
0.2
-0-
1.7
Word
Attack
0.6
0.3
0.3
0.7
1.8
2.0
0.3
0.3
No score
No score
No score
-0-
0.3
2.5
0.8
0.2
0.4
2.5
0.2
0.8
-0-
Basic
Reading
0.2
0.5
0.6
0.2
2.0
1.6
0.8
0.2
No score
No score
No score
2.9
2.0
3.2
0.3
0.7
1.1
No Score
0.1
0.3
2.9
POST POST TESTING
1 st Yr
2nd Yr
Word
Attack
Vocabula
LetterIWord Broad
Identification Reading
continue to
-1.2
First year made significant gains. She stopped wearing tints in May. Second year did not wear Irlen tints and lost the gains she
had made the first year.
Broad
Reading
1.7
0.9
1st Yr
2nd Yr
Word
Attack
Vocabula
Never wore
0.7
2.0
-0-
decline
0.9
LetterIWord
Identification
1.1
0.7
glasses. His
-0.7
3 .O
-1.4
0.5
-1.9
reading skills
0.1 0.3 0.2
1.5
0.2
1.7
-0.1
