This paper summarises the key conceptual themes raised by a broad review addressing the question: How do we define 'visual difficulty' for education and employment research? The review involved discussions with key informants from the Royal National Institute for the Blind (RNIB) and a critical survey of definitional and assessment practices in the literature. Key themes from the review are organised around a discussion of 1) diversity of definitional and assessment practice; 2) models of disability; 3) vision and function; 4) multiple disabilities; and 5) severity of disability. The paper concludes that currently there is no standard definition and related assessment tool that could be used across research contexts; although developments based on the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health would be welcome.
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