Author(s): Rachel Annoh and Ernest Gyan

The Ghana Education Service enrolls students in Senior High School primarily based on their academic achievements, often assuming that students without specialized visual assistance possess regular eyesight. This assumption overlooks the potential impacts of students’ varying vision impairment statuses on their learning experiences. This study aims to establish the prevalence of vision impairment among students as a necessary consideration for effective learning. A survey was conducted in July 2023, involving 147 students purposefully selected based on whether they had sight or not. Among the participants, 41 were male and 106 were female. The study examined the biographical data and profile characteristics of students across an Arts class, a Science class, and a Business class, using a questionnaire. Students with sight ranged from 14 to 20 years old, while those without sight were aged 19 to 22. The results revealed the presence of ten distinct categories of students within the classes. Among them, 49 students occupied front-row seats, 34 chose middle seats, and 30 sat at the back. Additionally, 29 students had no specific seating preference, 17 used spectacles, 12 relied on human recorders, 2 used electronic recorders, 1 sat close to the work board, 1 preferred sitting near a wall or window, and 9 selected seats near the first column, adjacent to the door. These findings suggest that a classroom could consist of various student categories based on their vision impairment status. Consequently, the arrangement of seating in a classroom could be optimized to accommodate these diverse needs. In conclusion, the study highlights the importance of considering the varied vision impairment statuses of students when determining classroom seating arrangements, which in turn, could impact the design of effective learning environments tailored to individual needs.