October is National Bullying Prevention Month. Gallaudet researchers found that 812 deaf and hard of hearing students in eleven U.S. schools reported instances of bullying at rates 2-3 times higher than reported by hearing students. It is obvious that bullying is a...
Bullying / Teasing Happens!
Determining Listening Challenges
Speech perception and listening accuracy cannot be assumed by looking at the audiogram – it must be assessed. Teacher’s voices, room acoustics, and classroom management vary so identifying listening challenges – and specific accommodations – needs to be done for...
Surface Learning is Not Enough – the Need for Deeper Understanding
In most classrooms, new information is presented in a lecture format supplemented by reading material, until students build surface knowledge of the topic. Interaction activities such as classroom discussion, small group work, and partner problem-solving are...
Preparing for Success: What Classroom Teachers Need to Know About Students with Hearing Loss
At the start of each school year, thousands of students enter classrooms with teachers who have never encountered a child with hearing loss. The following list summarizes key needs of students who are deaf or hard of hearing and the critical role of teachers to set...
Too Many Students to Serve?
The majority of itinerant teachers of the deaf/hard of hearing have caseloads of 10-25 students in 10 different buildings, with 85% of students being served 1:1 or in small groups, and about 30% of caseloads being students who are ‘deaf-plus’. Fewer new educators of...
Learning Progress Equal to Peers?
Students with hearing loss have less access to communication. This will result in a slower pace of learning and fewer gains in academic knowledge unless appropriate services and supports are provided. At the end of the school year it is important to ask whether your...
We Want Him to be “Normal”…
Everyone wants students to have a good experience in school. Often part of this desire by families is for their child to not feel singled out as ‘different.’ While it is true that our students are just ‘normal kids who happen to be hard of hearing or deaf’, it is also...
Early Intervention Materials on Tap
Who are our babies with hearing loss? Fewer than 15% of the babies identified by Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) programs have bilateral profound hearing loss (deaf) and more than 50% have mild bilateral or unilateral hearing loss. The distribution of...
Tailored Assessment for Students with Hearing Loss: Identifying Needs to Support Eligibility for Specialized Instruction
A recent US court case1 made it clear that students with hearing loss must receive an eligibility assessment that identifies areas of suspected need secondary to hearing loss must be evaluated with sufficient intensity to satisfy in depth evaluation. The special...
Reading Comprehension Delays – An Expectation for Most Students with Hearing Loss
What does it mean to teach kids how to read text effectively?1 Initially, it means making certain that they can decode so proficiently that they can decode the words without much conscious attention. Texts are going to place increasing demands on students’ linguistic...
