Effect of providing free glasses on children’s educational outcomes in China: cluster randomized controlled trial

These data are from a randomized controlled trial of fourth and fifth grades children in Gansu and Shaanxi Province, China conducted in June 2012. The RCT covered 3177 of 19934 children with visual acuity <6/12 in either eye without glasses correctable to >6/12 with glasses at 252 schools across 22 counties in the two provinces. Children were randomized by school (84 schools per arm) to one of three interventions at the beginning of the school year: prescription for glasses only (control group), vouchers for free glasses at a local facility, or free glasses provided in class.The dataset includes information on student characteristics (gender, age, minority, whether the student boards at school) and family background (household wealth, parent education, and parent migration status) as well as student physical health (vision), and academic performance (scores from a standardized math exam consisting of questions created for the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS)).