Comparing practical knowledge storage of deaf and hearing teachers of students who are deaf or hard of hearing

Especially in the education of students who are deaf or hard of hearing, teachers' practical knowledge storage is almost never measured. The Survey of Practical Knowledge was used to compare the practical knowledge storage of deaf and hearing teachers of these students. Surveyed were 48 deaf and 115 hearing individuals at the preservice and in-service experience levels. Practical knowledge storage was defined as images, rules of practice, and practical principles. Results indicate that deaf teachers tend to view students as equals but are more likely to emphasize control over classroom behavior than hearing teachers. Hearing teachers tend to stress efforts to engage students in subject matter by providing variety and relating it to life experiences. Given the trend toward high-stakes testing of teachers, further research is encouraged on role differences between deaf and hearing teachers working with students who are deaf or hard of hearing.     

Three suggested teaching strategies for students who are deaf or hard of hearing

This paper addresses current issues in deaf education including poor academic progress and employment outcomes of individuals who are deaf and hard of hearing (D/HH) as well as provides suggestions for improving overall academic achievement of this population. Specifically, three instructional strategies are recommended for teachers: choral responding, response cards, and peer tutoring. These three strategies have been shown to increase active student responding in classrooms for children who are typically developing and children who have disabilities. For international deaf students in countries that may rely on volunteers who lack basic requisite skills these general education teaching strategies are easy to use even by novice teachers. Recommendations are tendered for how teachers can include these simple teaching strategies in classrooms serving students who are D/HH.     

Diversity in deafness: Assessing students who are deaf or hard of hearing

The purpose of this article is to support members of a student's multidisciplinary team to identify complex factors involved in providing valid classroom-based assessment data, including issues surrounding technology-based assessment for students who are deaf or hard of hearing (DHH). The diversity of this population creates unique challenges in creating guidelines for assessment. An overview of the diversity of DHH students is used to provide a framework for examining current assessment practices, including both effective and ineffective practices. Cognitive and linguistic learning differences and diverse language learning experiences in the population are discussed as they relate to assessment protocols. Paralleling technology-based learning experiences with comparable technology-based assessment experiences is also presented. Recommendations for planning for accessible and meaningful assessment include the use of innovative technologies to align instruction and assessment.     

Providing online course opportunities for learners who are deaf, hard of hearing, or hearing

For more than 20 years, two courses, History, Education, and Guidance of the Deaf/Hard of Hearing and Introduction to Instructional Methods for the Deaf/Hard of Hearing, have been taught at Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania using a traditional lecture format. A state grant provided funding to explore the use of technology to teach online courses to college-age learners who are deaf, hard of hearing, or hearing. Saba Centra software was used as the online tool for the synchronous presentation of course content, which included PowerPoint lecture material, text chat opportunities, sign language-interpreted video, and other forms of class participation (e.g., signaling for questions raised, responding in a "yes/no" format). The present article covers recent successes and challenges in offering online courses in a "virtual classroom" format to deaf and hard of hearing learners, as well as hearing learners, from a qualitative research perspective.     

Adapted interactive writing instruction with kindergarten children who are deaf or hard of hearing

The study describes an adapted form of interactive writing (McCarrier, Pinnell, & Fountas, 2000) and examines its effectiveness as an approach to beginning writing instruction for young children who are deaf or hard of hearing. Systematic videotape analysis was used to document the content of 45 adapted interactive writing lessons across an academic year. Findings of the study suggest that interactive writing has the potential to support early writing development in young deaf and hard of hearing children, if supplemented by techniques that make the phonology of English visible.     

Pathways underlying somatic complaints in children and adolescents who are deaf or hard of hearing

Frequent somatic complaints are not only a problem in themselves but also related to other difficulties. So far, no conclusive findings have been reported about the prevalence of and factors underlying these complaints in children and adolescents who are deaf or hard of hearing (DHH). Such information would be valuable for prevention and intervention. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine the prevalence of somatic complaints and their relation with emotional functioning in DHH youngsters, as compared with hearing youngsters. This was established by assessing how somatic complaints, mood states, and sense of coherence were experienced by 186 Dutch participants (mean age = 11;07 years). DHH and hearing groups were compared using multivariate analysis of variance and structural equation modeling. The results showed that somatic complaints were reported equally often for both groups, but that the pathways leading to these complaints were partly different. Only in DHH participants were feelings of fear associated with more somatic complaints. The results suggest that DHH children and adolescents would benefit from support in the regulation of fear and its causes. Other aspects affecting adjustment outcomes of DHH youngsters were education type and communication mode.     

Family supports and resources for parents of children who are deaf or hard of hearing

The study examined family supports after identification of children's hearing loss. On a questionnaire, 456 respondents rated the importance of different aspects of family support, the quality of supports they experienced, and their preferences about informational resources. They verified the importance of informational resources, social-emotional support, and educational advocacy. Families expressed a preference for discussion with other parents of children with hearing loss over discussion with parents of children without hearing loss. The quality of support was rated higher by parents of children with cochlear implants than by parents of children with hearing aids. Top-ranked sources of support included individual professionals and service providers, other parents of children with hearing loss, family support organizations, and grandparents and extended-family members. Open-ended written responses indicated that parents desired additional opportunities to connect with mentors, role models, and other parents.     

Inquiry-based science instruction and performance literacy for students who are deaf or hard of hearing

Deaf and hard of hearing students, who cannot successfully access and utilize information in print, experience various difficulties in conventional science instruction, which heavily relies on lectures and textbooks. The purpose of the present review is threefold. First, an overview of inquiry-based science instruction reform, including the so-ciohistorical forces behind the movement, is presented. Then, the author examines the empirical research on science education for students who are deaf or hard of hearing from the 1970s to the present and identifies and rates inquiry-based practice. After discussing the difficulty of using science texts with deaf and hard of hearing students, the author introduces a conceptual framework that integrates inquiry-based instruction and the construct of performance literacy. She suggests that this integration should enable students who are deaf or hard of hearing to access the general education curriculum.     

Coenrollment for students who are deaf or hard of hearing: friendship patterns and social interactions

Third- and fourth-grade students in two separate classrooms--one a classroom with only hearing students and the other a coenrolled classroom with hearing, hard of hearing, and deaf students--were assessed to determine friendship patterns, attitudes, beliefs, and perceptions about sign language and deafness. Sociograms, interviews, and videotape analysis of the students' responses were done. Results suggest that hearing students in the coenrolled classroom had better sign language skills, a more positive attitude toward deafness, and an improved awareness of certain aspects of hearing loss (such as speech and amplification). Deaf and hard of hearing students' social acceptance was similar to that of their hearing peers.     

Implications of utilizing a phonics-based reading curriculum with children who are deaf or hard of hearing

Extensive literature has reiterated the reading difficulties of students who are deaf or hard of hearing. Building and expanding upon the work of B. J. Trezek and K. W. Malmgren, this study demonstrated that given 1 year of instruction from a phonics-based reading curriculum supplemented by Visual Phonics, kindergarten and first-grade students who were deaf or hard of hearing could demonstrate improvements in beginning reading skills as measured by standardized assessments of (a) word reading, (b) pseudoword decoding, and (c) reading comprehension. Furthermore, the acquisition of beginning reading skills did not appear to be related to degree of hearing loss. In this study, students with various degrees of hearing loss benefited equally well from this phonics-based reading curriculum supplemented by Visual Phonics.     

Engagement during reading instruction for students who are deaf or hard of hearing in public schools

An observational study of reading instruction was conducted in general education, resource, and self-contained classrooms, grades 1-4, in public schools. Participants included students who were deaf or hard of hearing and their reading teachers. Results indicated that time engaged in reading and/or academically responding varied significantly by grade level enrolled, reading curriculum grade level, and instructional setting, but not level of hearing loss or presence or absence of concomitant conditions. Students working with reading curriculum one grade level below spent significantly less time in reading instruction and reading than students working on grade level or two levels below. Students in general education settings spent significantly more time in reading instruction and reading silently than students in self-contained settings. The probability that students would engage in reading was significantly increased by several teacher and ecological conditions more likely to be observed in general education settings.     

Rural gifted students who are deaf or hard of hearing: how electronic technology can help

Electronic technology can be used to overcome many of the barriers and other factors that restrict delivery of services to rural schools; it can also expand the world of rural gifted students who are deaf or hard of hearing. Online college and high school Web sites that offer courses are listed, as well as a Web site for tutoring and one offering help for teachers of rural gifted students who are deaf or hard of hearing. Recommendations are made for ways that legislatures and rural school districts can make Internet resources and assistive technology more widely available in rural educational settings.     

Gender differences in response to auditory-verbal intervention in children who are deaf or hard of hearing

Recent research has questioned the role of gender in language development and in special education outcomes, yet neither issue has been addressed in literature on students who are deaf or hard of hearing. To determine if language and placement outcomes differ by gender, the present study considered the behavior of children who attended a clinical program subscribing to an auditory-verbal philosophy. Parents of 28 boys and 42 girls with hearing losses evaluated their children using the Parent Rating Scale of the Leiter International Performance Scale--Revised (Roid & Miller, 1997) and the Parental View of Therapy Scale (developed for the present study). Also, clinical file data were surveyed. The boys were found to be more likely than the girls to be rated by their parents as having basic features of temperament nonconducive to traditional clinical language intervention. The girls' language and placement outcomes surpassed the boys', although both groups' outcomes were positive. A possible limitation of the study was that the population was atypical of students with hearing losses in general.     

Effect of postsecondary education on the economic status of persons who are deaf or hard of hearing

This article examines the effect that postsecondary education has on earnings and the duration of time spent in the Social Security disability programs for young persons who are deaf or hard of hearing. Our hypothesis is that investments in postsecondary training increase the likelihood of employment for persons who are deaf or hard of hearing and thus reduce dependency on disability-related income support programs. A longitudinal data set based upon records from the National Technical Institute for the Deaf and Social Security administrative records is used for this analysis. We find that those who graduate, even those who graduate with vocational degrees, experience significant earnings benefits and reductions in the duration of time spent on federal disability programs when compared with those who do not graduate with a degree. This finding suggests that reductions in the duration of time spent on Social Security programs are not limited to those with the highest level of scholastic aptitude and that investments in post-secondary education can benefit a broad group of deaf and hard-of-hearing persons. In addition, the data show that individuals who attend college, but withdraw before graduation, fair no better economically than individuals who never attended college.     

Assessment practices of professionals serving students who are deaf or hard of hearing: an initial investigation

Assessment currently plays a critical role in American schools and society, in tasks ranging from ranking schools' effectiveness, to determining individual placement, to planning instruction. The purpose of the study was to gather data about the formal and informal assessment instruments and processes used by professionals in deaf education. Respondents indicated that statewide annual assessments are the most frequently used measures, followed by the Stanford Achievement Test series and the Woodcock-Johnson III Test of Achievement. Commonly used assessment instruments and procedures for each academic area are reported in rank order. Issues about current practices are raised, and suggestions for additional research related to assessment practices in deaf education are provided.     

The signed reading fluency of students who are deaf/hard of hearing

Reading fluency in deaf children whose primary mode of communication is visual, whether English-like or American Sign Language, is difficult to measure since most measures of fluency require a child to read aloud. This article opens the discussion of a new construct, namely, signed reading fluency (i.e., rendering of printed text in a visually fluent manner) in children with hearing loss whose primary means of expressive language includes some form of sign. Further, it describes the development of an assessment rubric to measure signed reading fluency. A comparison of fluency scores and scores on tests of vocabulary and text comprehension of 29 middle school students who attended a school for the deaf indicated that signed reading fluency, as defined and measured by this instrument, correlates highly both with word and passage comprehension.     

Using structured games to teach early fraction concepts to students who are deaf or hard of hearing

The study focused on the development of the concept of fractions in a group of 11- and 12-year-old students who were deaf or hard of hearing. The approach implemented in the study relied extensively on the use of games with very little formal instruction. It emphasized the development of appropriate language to facilitate an understanding of the notion of fractions through the investigation of concrete materials, pictorial representations, and interactions between students and teacher. The progress achieved by means of this approach is reported, and the implications of developing an understanding of fractions (and mathematics generally) among students who are deaf or hard of hearing are noted.     

Using visual phonics to supplement beginning reading instruction for students who are deaf or hard of hearing

The purpose of the current study is to expand upon the effectiveness of using Visual Phonics in conjunction with Direct Instruction reading programs (B. J. Trezek & K. W. Malmgren, 2005; B. J. Trezek & Y. Wang, 2006) and to explore the results of utilizing Visual Phonics to supplement another phonics-based reading curriculum for students who are deaf or hard of hearing. Twenty students with various degrees of hearing loss in kindergarten and first grade as well as 4 teachers participated in the study. Results of the investigation reveal that, given 1 year of instruction from a phonics-based reading curriculum supplemented by Visual Phonics, kindergarten and first-grade students who are deaf or hard of hearing can demonstrate statistically significant improvements in beginning reading skills as measured by standardized assessments.