If the family wants an ASL interpreter is the school required to provide one?

iv) Consider the communication needs of the child, and in the case of the child who is deaf or hard of hearing, consider the language and communication needs, opportunities for direct communication with peers and professional personnel in the child’s language and communication mode, academic level, and full range of needs, including opportunities for direct instruction in the child’s language and communication mode, and (v) Consider whether the child requires assistive communication devices and services. 34 CFR 303.324(2) |
1. How effectively is the student able to access/comprehend using his or her communication mode(s)?
2. What appears to be the level of comprehension in different situations (i.e., quiet vs noisy class)?
3. If the child uses both sign and spoken language the team needs to understand how, when, where, why and who the child communicates with each language modality. Spoken language may be adequate for routine activities but not sufficient for the student to (fully) comprehend teacher instruction.
4. How will the student access the inferential learning opportunities that hearing children are exposed to daily? What about peer-to-peer interactions, such as group work or class discussion?
5. What hearing technology does the student use and the level of benefit? Do the hearing aids plus an FM/DM device allow the student to close their comprehension gap fully? What is his ‘listening gap’?
6. What is the student’s language level in comparison to the teacher’s instructional language level? Does comprehension of instruction increase from one communication modality over another?
7. What is the student’s ASL vocabulary development level in comparison to their spoken language development level? (Refer to the White Paper on Estimating Access for more information)
8. What level of facilitation will be needed for the student to be able to meaningfully communicate with peers and adults?
a. Children who develop language via signing and then are implanted will more quickly learn listening and spoken language. As they are exposed and taught LSL, their previous language experience works as a scaffold to support verbal language learning. The better the ASL language level, the faster the rate of spoken language development once consistent hearing and appropriate LSL instruction are provided.
b. It takes time! Access to sound does not magically result in knowledge of spoken language. Knowledge must be learned. A child who is 5 years old or older who is implanted and heavily reliant on signs takes a minimum of 12 months of appropriate, knowledgeable, and intensive instruction in listening and spoken language before a major improvement in language can be expected. Not age equivalent comprehension – but beginning to rely on spoken language in some situations for understanding.
In the case of a child who was raised in an ASL environment that did not include an emphasis and consistent work to develop LSL skills it can be assumed that just having hearing aids on did not allow the child to develop spoken language at an adequate rate to allow him or her to be able to comprehend and compete with age peers within a typical classroom setting without an ASL interpreter. Based on language levels in ASL and LSLS, key decisions would likely be:
Free resource provides invaluable information for teachers working with multiple grade levels: |
Teachers of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing must have curriculum expertise for multiple grade levels, including staying abreast of the words and concepts being taught. One resource created by Texas educators is https://www.lead4ward.com. Concepts and vocabulary introduced in each grade, along with previous concepts to be mastered are included for all core subject areas from kindergarten to high school. This academic vocabulary can be extremely helpful in planning your pre-instruction.
a. the definition b. multiple meanings c. produce synonyms and antonyms d. practice using the word in reading and writing, and e. provide examples and non-examples of appropriate use of the word.
4. Visual/graphic organizers– Visual/graphic organizers show relationships between words and make information easier to manage. Our students need to be able to identify attributes and categorize words in various ways.The ability to organize words and information makes word retrieval easier. |
Pre-teaching vocabulary is NOT tutoring – it is specialized instruction. |
What program is most appropriate for a preschooler with cochlear implants?
While this question needs to be answered on an individual basis, a 2004 court case provides important insights into what an appropriate program is – and is not. Click here to read through the rest of the Early November UpdateWhat program is most appropriate for a preschooler with cochlear implants?
While this question needs to be answered on an individual basis, a 2004 court case provides important insights into what an appropriate program is – and is not. The many factors that influence a child’s success with a cochlear implant include1:
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Incorporating auditory speech perception practice into lessons that are aligned with academic objectives can take full advantage of the time the D/HH professional spends with a student, while also targeting auditory skill sets for students with hearing loss. |