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Bryce Berry could not understand why his student was misbehaving.

The youth excelled on his assignments, but he disrupted the classroom. Eventually, the student explained that he could not see the board. Thus enlightened, Berry arranged an eye exam and a free pair of glasses.

Problem solved. A life changed.

“I think about how many other students across Georgia are being mislabeled or mis-disciplined or left behind simply because no one caught something as basic as vision or a hearing issue,” said Berry, a middle school math teacher who joined the Georgia House of Representatives last year.

Rep. Berry, D-Atlanta, told that story during a floor debate in the Georgia House of Representatives on Wednesday.

It was a rare moment of bipartisan solidarity, a meeting of the minds on a root cause of academic under-achievement.

Rep. Leesa Hagan, R-Lyons, had brought a bill to the House that would require annual vision and hearing screenings at school, from pre-kindergarten through third grade.

Currently, the Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) requires parents to submit a form when their child enters school for the first time, confirming that all the necessary screenings, including for eyes and ears, have occurred.

House Speaker Jon Burns, R-Newington, said there may not be universal compliance.

“I think part of the problem is, in some areas of our state, they may have a form, they may not have a form,” he said, “but children are not being screened.”

And eyes change over time, so children, especially little ones, may have worsening vision that goes unnoticed in the years after they enter a school.

Rep. Angie O’Steen, R-Ambrose, shared a story about her own daughter.

“Her vision problem didn’t show up until second grade,” the former school nurse said. “She could not see. She could not read. So thankfully, this bill will address that.”

House Bill 1402, which passed 172-1 on Wednesday, would both mandate the screenings and grant each school system $15,000 to acquire the necessary equipment.

“What we understand from DPH and from some of the schools that we’ve talked to is there’s a need to do it at the school to make sure every student is screened,” Hagan said. “It doesn’t take a lot of time, but it’s worth it if to identify any issues that are hindering their learning.”

The legislation would require that parents be informed ahead of the screenings, so they have an opportunity to opt out.

The measure also would require school systems to notify parents if their child is not reading on grade level by the end of third grade. In that way, it dovetails with a priority in the House and Senate to improve literacy rates.

Last month, the House passed House Bill 1193, sending it to the Senate. The vote was 170-2 — another display of bipartisanship. That legislation would give school districts the funding to hire about 1,300 literacy coaches, with the intent of sending each of them into schools with K-3 classrooms.