These days, rather from the beginning of the last academic year (2020-21), online learning has emerged as a boon for young learners in the period of COVID-19 pandemic. On the one hand, this platform offers a safe home learning experience. While on the other hand, many problems related to the eyes and ears have become profound.
Government of all the countries are taking significant measures to overcome COVID, yet the situation is far from being under control with the third wave and related diseases also emerging.
So, it is for sure that schools, colleges and coaching institutions will conduct their learning through online mode only.
In online learning, learners make use of either of the four-
A. Mobiles
B. Laptops
C. Tablets
D. PCs (Desktops)
In all of the above, exposure of the eye to the screen is the most. They all give off a blue light, which stresses your eyes, even leading to sleep deprivation.
On an average, an online session continues from 2 to 3 hours in one go. Further, the assignments and home works are also provided digitally. So, students are stuck up to the screen for a long period of time.
Hence, it should be our foremost concern to have a safe screen time for students. Otherwise, students will be exposed to problems like-
A. Dry Eyes
While working on screens we blink our eyes less number of times. Thus our eyes produce less moisture thereby causing itchiness, redness and difficulty in eye movement which is commonly known as dry eye syndrome.
B. Blurred Vision
Due to continuous screen exposure, the blue light tends to blur the vision of students. In such a case, their vision becomes hazy and they find it difficult to read and write.
C. Near Sightedness
It is a condition when the nearby objects are visible to the person, but he can’t see the far ones. This problem is very common among online learners.
D. Eye strain and Fatigue
Learning through screens cause great strain and fatigue for eyes even leading to headaches and sleep disorders.
E. Problems in Ears and Body Aches
Not just the eyes are exposed to the screen , but the whole body faces problems like back, neck and shoulder pain , hearing troubles due to overuse of mobile phones, headaches etc.
There are 7 simple tips, which, if followed will enhance the learning experience and will help keep the eyes healthy:-
1. Regular Breaks (Follow 20-20-20 Rule)
There is a rule for healthy eyesight which says that while working on screens-
A. One must take a break after 20 minutes.
B. take break for 20 seconds, look at any object 20 feet away, blink 20 times .
This will relax your eyes.
2. Control Brightness and Glare
Minimize the brightness of your mobile or laptop so as to comfort your mind.
Also try to position your device in such a way that the glare is minimized.
Always use a room with proper light and ventilation while attending classes through digital mode.
3. Magnify your Reading Stuff
Change the font size of our device so that you can read texts and documents in a better way.
Always zoom any text before reading or typing. This will help you to reduce strain on your eyes.
4. Use Computer Glasses
Screen glasses actually do not prevent the blue light from entering your eyes.
Hence, it is better to use computer glasses while attending online classes. Such glasses have specially coated lenses designed to relax your eyes while using screen. You can use such glasses without doctor’s prescription also.
5. Eye Exercises
Following exercises also provide relaxation to your eyes:-
A. Blink your eyes for few seconds. Remind kids to blink very often.
B. Roll your eyes in clockwise and anticlockwise directions for few seconds.
C. Rub your palms and put them on your closed eyes to calm them up.
6. Check your posture
Students should also adopt a right sitting posture to reduce eye strain. They should sit in such a way that their feet are flat on the floor, shoulders are relaxed and the lower back is well supported. Arms are at right angle in such a way that forearms rest on the keyboard in a straight line.
In case of mobile phones, students should use mobile stands for holding mobiles at a distance.
Clean the screens of your devices regularly and keep them at a distance of 18 to 24 inches away from your eyes.
7. Healthy Diet and Sound Sleep
Last but not the least, eat lots of veggies, fruits and drink plenty of water. Take a sound sleep of 7-8 hours and keep yourself stress free. This will help you to enjoy your studies.
The above tips will help you in lot many ways. Still, if you find your eyes getting itchy, your vision becoming blurred or having headaches too often, then visit your nearest eye specialist and get your eye check-up done. After all, HEALTH IS WEALTH!
