Download TEN COMMON MYTHS AND MISCONCEPTIONS SURROUNDING DEAFNESS

TEN COMMON MYTHS AND
MISCONCEPTIONS
SURROUNDING DEAFNESS
DEAF PEOPLE CAN’T HEAR
ANYTHING
• Most deaf people hear something – very
few have a corner audiogram
• The type of loss and the age of onset
determine how a person can use their
hearing
• Categories of loss include: mild,
moderate, severe, and profound
CULTURAL PERSPECTIVES
• When you see deaf printed in the literature
with a lower case “d” it refers to an
audiological definition -- Degree of
hearing loss
• When you see Deaf printed in the
literature with a capital “D” it refers to Deaf
Culture
CULTURAL CHARACTERISTICS
• Deaf people are one of the few disability
groups (perhaps the only one who value
their deafness and consider it a positive
attribute).
• Culturally Deaf People
– Don’t want to be fixed
– Value their Deaf heritage
– Share a common language
ALL DEAF PEOPLE CAN READ
LIPS
• 40% - 50% of speech sounds are not
visible on the lips
• e, g, h, i, a, k remain hidden
• There are only 16 mouth movements that
are distinguishable in the English
language
• You must have an extensive English
vocabulary and be familiar with the syntax
of the language to speech read
• Phrases such as:
– I love you
– I’ll have two look exactly the same
ALL DEAF CHILDREN HAVE
DEAF PARENTS
• 9 out of every 10 deaf children are born to
parents who can hear
• Deaf children having 2 deaf parents comprise
only 3-4% of the general population
• 90% of hearing parents who have deaf children
DO NOT rely on signed communication to
interact with their deaf child
IMPACT OF COMMUNICATION
ON LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT
• Most children are born with an innate ability and
desire to learn to communicate
• Normal language development follows a
predetermined sequence that is similar across
most cultures
• The language development of deaf or hard of
hearing children also follows a predetermined
sequence
• Delays in language development can
occur in deaf/hard of hearing students
because of:
– Their inability to process auditory input
– Or a lack of sufficient exposure to visually
encoded language
• As a consequence, the most debilitating aspect
of deafness if NOT the hearing loss but the lack
of language that results from insufficient
VISUAL or AUDITORY input
• Although in the past there was a belief that
speech was language, we now know that
speech is simply a tool or mode of transmission
and is distinct from the cognitive system that
underlies language.
• Children who are deaf and hard of hearing
do not have easy access to spoken
communication
• Language development relies on exposure
and exchanges that occur in one’s
environment
HEARING INDIVIDUALS
• Hearing individuals are constantly
bombarded with language from the
environment
• Radio
• Friends
• Siblings
• Community
• Mall
Deaf/Hard of Hearing Individuals
• Deaf and hard of hearing individuals have
limited exposure to spoken language in
the environment –
• Those who rely on signed communication
are limited to others who share the same
language
– Captioned TV
– Information provided in print
ALL DEAF PEOPLE KNOW SIGN
LANGUAGE
• In the US approximately 82% of deaf/hard
of hearing students receive all or part of
their education in regular education
classrooms.
• In 95% of these classrooms a form of sign
communication is used
AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE,
SIGN SYSTEMS &
CUED SPEECH
• American Sign Language (ASL) unlike
English is a spatial, time-oriented
language, based on visual perception and
visual conveyance of ideas, information
and feeling concepts
• ASL has its own:
– Prosody
– Syntax
– Grammatical structure
ASL STRUCTURE
• Topic/ comment statements are common
in ASL
• Adjectives can occur before or after the
noun
• Pronouns are gender neutral and number
specific
ASL
• Is not a universal language – each country
has their own sign language
• ASL is comprised of fingerspelling and
signs
• It has been developed by and for the Deaf
community
ENGLISH SIGN SYSTEMS
• Several Sign Systems have been
developed to apply signs following English
word order.
• These systems are not languages and
include: SEE I, SEE II, Signed English
CASE, etc.
A COMPARISON OF ENGLISH
AND ASL
• In English we would say:
• “ I have got to really study for my SPEC
2000 test that Dr. Hull is giving next week
because she said it would be a bear.”
• In Signed English it would look like this –
• In ASL it would look like this --
ASL EXAMPLE
• Next week Dr. Hull (reference) give SPEC
2000 test
• Me, Study must
• Why (rhetorical question)
• Reference
• Announce tough!
PIDGIN SIGNED ENGLISH
• Because ASL is a foreign language and
English is a foreign language a pidgin has
been developed to facilitate
communication between deaf and hearing
individuals.
• Pidgins take pieces from both languages
so communication can occur
AN EXAMPLE OF THE SAME
SENTENCE USING PSE
• I must really study for SPEC 2000 test
• Week because Dr. Hull say tough.
• Pidgins work on a continuum – they can
be more ASL or more English in nature
DEAF CHILDREN/DEAF
PARENTS
• 10% of deaf children have deaf parents
• From infancy Deaf mothers use strategies
to support the learning of a visual
language
• They will sign near an object with which
the child is playing or wave a hand to draw
the child’s attention to them
• They use exaggerated facial expressions
• Communication is visual
• They use visual motherese to facilitate
language growth
• Greater time is allowed to process
language input
• Signs are modified – they are presented in
a fluent, rich manner
Comparisons of Language in Deaf
and Hearing Children
• DC exposed to sign language from birth
parallel hearing children
• They being to sign at 9 months of age
• (Hearing babies say their first word at 12
months of age)
• Between 12 & 18 months language
development is parallel
DC/HP compared with HC/HP
• According to Carey the speaking
vocabulary of a hearing six year old
ranges from 8,000 to 14,000 words
• Research indicates that DC/HP at age six,
where no form of sign communication is
used only posses about 500 – 700 words
• Because DC/HP may not be exposed to
language caregivers frequently assume
that their children do not have the
language needed to engage in dialogues.
• Therefore, communication exchanges
become monologues from a hearing
perspective
DEAF CHILDREN CAN’T READ
• Language development of lack of
therefore has a significant impact on the
ability to read.
• Because of the language delays due to
problems in communication only 10% of
18 year old deaf students read above the
8th grade level.
DEAF CHILDREN ARE NOT AS
INTELLIGENT AS HEARING
CHILDREN
• On standardized intelligence tests the
average IQ is 100
• For deaf students the average IQ is 96.89,
only slightly lower than hearing children.
• Speech and language are often confused
with intelligence but they are not related
DEAF PEOPLE CAN’T TALK
• Babies who are born deaf or lose their
hearing before speech and language are
developed may have a difficult time
mastering speech.
• They can talk but may have been made
fun of, or their speech may not be clear
HEARING AIDS ENABLE DEAF
PEOPLE TO HEAR SPEECH
• Hearing aids amplify sounds
• They do not clarify
• There are many types of hearing aids
including cochlear implants – these do not
cure hearing – they are an implantable
hearing aid
DEAF PEOPLE CAN’T DRIVE
• Deaf people can and do drive
• 97% of the warning signals that reach the
driver are gained through a visual channel
• 41/49 states rank deaf drivers as good or
better than hearing drivers
ALL DEAF PEOPLE WISH THEY
COULD HEAR
• Culturally Deaf people do not want to hear
• They value their culture and see no reason
to be “fixed”
• They have established a tight network that
affords them social opportunities and a
rich language
INTERPRETERS AND SIGNERS
• Communication between deaf and hearing
individuals is often accomplished between
an interpreter
• An Interpreter:
– Highly skilled professional
– Bound by a Code of Ethics
– Can both interpret and transliterate
Signers
• These individuals have taken some
classes in sign language
• They sign to express what they want to
say
• They are not interpreters and should not
be used in that capacity
Technology and Deafness
• Technology plays a vital role in deafness:
• Light signaling devices (telephone, door
bells, baby cry systems)
• TTY/TDD, Sidekicks, and computers
• Hearing dogs for the Deaf
Hard of Hearing People
• A few words
– These individuals can have a harder time with
communication because hearing individuals
assume they hear more than they do based
on their speech
– Speech cannot be equated with hearing loss
– Speech cannot be equated with language
– Speech cannot be equated with literacy or
intelligence
PARTING WORDS
• Deaf people when given the access to
communication can do anything hearing
people can do based on their individual
capabilities.
• Deaf people cannot be stereotyped – they
are as different as you and me and want to
be viewed as such