Identification of cases of color blindness in the academic community: implications for teaching-learning

Abstract

Introduction: Color blindness continues to be a neglected condition in educational environments and there are no data available on the prevalence and characteristics of cases in the academic context. In higher education, there is a lack of data on the limitations imposed by the condition, as well as on the predilection of color-blind individuals for different areas of knowledge. Methods: In this work, a series study of color blindness cases was conducted in the academic community of Barreiras, Bahia, Brazil, where cases were identified using the Ishihara online test associated with symptomatologic interrogation in a single digital questionnaire. Results: The prevalence of color blindness within the study population was 6.38% (15/235) of participants. A greater number of cases were observed among participants who are from the area of health knowledge. Although some people with color blindness reported an impairment in their learning process, the findings indicate that this was not a determining condition for choosing an area of knowledge, but it limits the choice of acting in specific areas. The association of a symptomatologic survey allowed us to identify cases of color blindness not distinguishable by the Ishihara online test and, although considered rare, we identified cases of tritanomaly among study participants. Conclusions: In this way, the data points to the presence of cases of color blindness in the academic community of Barreiras in western of the Bahia and suggests that additional studies should be conducted to draw a broader profile on the consequences of color blindness in the teaching-learning processes in higher education.