Equal opportunities for children and young people with visual impairments thanks to fair developmental diagnostics
On the occasion of the Day of Visual Impairment on June 6, 2025, the Intercantonal University of Applied Sciences for Special Needs Education (HfH) is presenting an important milestone for improving equal opportunities for children, adolescents and young adults with visual impairments.
In summer 2025, a development project will be completed that will result in a comprehensive and standardized test procedure for the fair assessment of intelligence and developmental functions for learners with visual impairments. Until now, intelligence and development tests for this target group have been based on procedures used for sighted children and young people. This led to incorrect assessments and disadvantageous results. The IDS-2-BS is now due to be published by Hogrefe Verlag in 2026.
Adapted test materials ensure fairness
The IDS-2-BS is characterized by specially adapted test materials and standard values tailored to the target group. These take into account central principles of test fairness and accessibility such as clear presentation, high brightness and colour contrast, optimized colour selection, different font sizes and sizes, adapted processing times and the possibility of using optical and electronic visual aids when carrying out the test. This makes it possible to diagnose cognitive and general developmental functions largely independently of visual abilities.
New procedure closes a long-standing gap
Prof. Dr. Fabian Winter, Professor of Education with Visual Impairment at the Intercantonal University for Special Needs Education (HfH), explains the significance of the new procedure: "The IDS-2-BS closes a long-standing gap in diagnostics. Conventional intelligence tests are unsuitable for children and young people with visual impairments, as they are strongly visually oriented. Until now, there has been a lack of standardized, scientifically based alternatives for this target group. The IDS-2-BS offers differentiated adaptations for both blindness and visual impairment - based on current intelligence theory. Filling this gap by adapting a comprehensive test procedure meets a great need in the field of vision.
Enabling individualized educational opportunities
The IDS-2-BS provide a differentiated profile of the areas of intelligence, executive functions, psychomotor skills, social-emotional skills, academic skills and work attitude. This profile serves as the basis for the planning and implementation of individualized educational programs. The HfH places particular emphasis on pedagogy in the case of visual impairments. The specialization in vision in the Master of Special Education is unique in Switzerland. The next start of the Master's in Special Education with a focus on vision is possible in the spring semester of 2026. The application window is open from September 1 to 30, 2025.
More about the project
The project is headed by Prof. em. Dr. Ursula Hofer and Prof. Dr. Fabian Winter. The first project phase was carried out in cooperation with the Heidelberg University of Education. Further information and cooperation partners can be found on the Project page listed.
Source: www.hfh.ch
