A clash I saw at my kid's school event over color coded signs

At my son's science fair, they used red and green stickers to show winning projects (which is a classic problem for colorblind people, right?). I overheard two parents arguing about it; one said the school should always use shapes or words instead of colors to be fair to everyone. The other parent said it's too much hassle for a one-time event and most kids can tell the colors apart anyway. This got me thinking about my own family, where my uncle often misses details on birthday cards because they rely on color cues. So, is it better to push for colorblind-friendly designs in all group settings, even if it means more work, or should we only speak up when it directly affects us? I've seen both sides in my office too, with charts that confuse some teammates. What's your take on handling this with friends or in public places?

3 comments

3 Comments

robins921mo ago

They're still using red and green? In a school? That's the most basic colorblind combo to avoid, it feels like we learned that ages ago.

stella_shah891mo ago

The National Eye Institute says about 8% of men have red-green color blindness. In a typical classroom, that could be a couple of students who can't tell those colors apart. I read a blog last week where a teacher pointed out how using blue and orange markers made a big difference for her colorblind kids. Tbh, it seems like such an easy fix that schools just keep ignoring.

holly_flores791mo ago

At my niece's school, they still use red and green markers. She's never mentioned it being hard to see. Might not be a huge deal.