The School Child 95 



and include more mental defectives than do the 

 latter. In a recent communication, he has 

 stated that eye vision standards are very lax 

 in rural schools. He declares that country 

 children are not being given as careful cultiva- 

 tion as crops and live stock. He finds, more- 

 over, that 21 per cent, of American children 

 have eye defects, and such conditions may cause 

 bright children to become dull. 



Defective eyes mth imperfect vision may 

 cause blurring of sight, headache, dizziness, 

 nervous irritation and lack of control. Dr. 

 Wood believes that educational experts in this 

 country are coming to an increased apprecia- 

 tion of the importance of the eye in school 

 work. 



A concerted effort to improve the health and 

 normal development of school children should 

 be made by parents, teachers and physical di- 

 rectors. As a start, more time in the school 

 curriculum could be given to a careful study of 

 the physical condition of the pupils. This 

 should be done by physicians accustomed to 

 such work and not by mere physical trainers. 



