Is this true about CIs

[shel90]

I don't understand how sending a deaf child away to a deaf school is exposing them to both worlds anyway. Can someone explain? Is the exposure to the hearing aspect of it through reading and writing?

No,it doesnt isolate the kids from the hearing world. There are field trips, programs to get out in the community to work with hearing people for middle and high schoolers, and events. Also, many of the kids come from hearing families anyway...

 

[jillio]

"non CI? with about more than half of deaf kids being implanted these days?"


Are 50+% of deaf people profoundly deaf and eligible for a CI? I would think that the numbers of mild, moderate, and severe hearing losses make up a bigger percentage of the deaf? I've never heard the actual breakdown, and that's interesting to know if it is true.

It would seem to me that if this many children are getting implants, the deaf schools would have more to worry about than having enough players for a football team, since a lot of these implanted children would be in mainstream or TC school settings, and not necessarily in the deaf schools. And if they aren't in the deaf schools that's fewer students in the classes...

A lot of non-implanted children are mainstreamed, too. And the dea schools are seeing more and more students with CI. My son attended a school where there were only 32 students from Freshman to Senoir class. Four of those wer CI students, and this is 4 years ago. The proportion was even higher int he elementary schools. Shel, as well, has several CI students at her school.


The general push from public education is to mainstream all deaf students, not just the ones iwth CI.

 

[LTHFAdvocate]

There are 31 million hearing impaired people in the US. There are 500,000 people who fit the FDA criteria for cochlear implantation. 350,000 of those 500,000 are 65 and over, which means there are 150,000 children and young adults who are CI candidates. There are about 22,000 implanted children in the US. Therefore, the number of implanted children isn't anywhere near half of the # of candidates.

Even if you argue that the rate of implantation is higher in children being born today (i.e. a deaf child today is more likely to receive an implant than a deaf child born five years ago) the numbers still don't add up to half.

There are more than 14,000 children with losses sufficiently profound to qualify them for CIs born in the US every year, and another 2500 or so that have progressive losses or acquired losses that put them in implant territory. For half of the children to be implanted, we would need 8250 implanted children annually. The US had about 10,000 implants in all of 2006, about 60 % children. So the numbers are about 35 % of children born with profound hearing loss today will receive an implant, and only 15 % of all children who are FDA candidates for implantation actually have implants.

This is my thesis for my MBA by the way, citations available upon request. The only item above that I don't have a citation for is my guess on the annual # of children who become candidates who were not candidates when they were born. This # is my best guess based on what I've seen as patient demographics in a very implant center with a national cochlear implant appeals program.

Sheri

"non CI? with about more than half of deaf kids being implanted these days?"


Are 50+% of deaf people profoundly deaf and eligible for a CI? I would think that the numbers of mild, moderate, and severe hearing losses make up a bigger percentage of the deaf? I've never heard the actual breakdown, and that's interesting to know if it is true.

It would seem to me that if this many children are getting implants, the deaf schools would have more to worry about than having enough players for a football team, since a lot of these implanted children would be in mainstream or TC school settings, and not necessarily in the deaf schools. And if they aren't in the deaf schools that's fewer students in the classes...

 

[jillio]

My daughter too. We are learning sign (at school and home), yet she is in a mainstream setting. Doing great to boot!

Good for you and for her!

 

[jillio]

I don't understand how sending a deaf child away to a deaf school is exposing them to both worlds anyway. Can someone explain? Is the exposure to the hearing aspect of it through reading and writing?

Hearing adminsitrators and faculty members. And we are not necessarily talking about residential programs. There are day programs at many deaf schools so the child does not have to be "sent away". In those cases, hearing family and neighbors, as well.
Exposure to the hearing community for a deaf child is easily accomplished. Its exposure tothe deaf community that gets tougher.

 

[jillio]

I asked our surgeon about that 5 years ago, and was told there was 'one in the works', yet I've never heard anything about it again. It's very difficult to find a helmet that fits over the CI (we had to carve out the foam to fit, and it still falls off), and it would be great if there was one you could buy.

Of course, that might prove difficult since not everyone's implant is in the same position, so I don't know how they would do that...

They would probably have to be custom made for each individual.

 

[shel90]

Hearing adminsitrators and faculty members. And we are not necessarily talking about residential programs. There are day programs at many deaf schools so the child does not have to be "sent away". In those cases, hearing family and neighbors, as well.
Exposure to the hearing community for a deaf child is easily accomplished. Its exposure tothe deaf community that gets tougher.

That is what I will never understand. If deaf children MUST be exposed to hearing people or other hearing children, then hearing children MUST be exposed to deaf people or other deaf children instead of just being exposed to only heairng people?

 

[Angel]

I don't there is such thing as a special helmet for CI users.

I just looked on the website Ask Linn - Sports and Summer Travel
and they say just to use the regular normal helmet designed for that sport.

Yeah I tried to look up for special helmet for CI users, but the only thing came up was the regular helmets that are designed for sports, bikes and skating...

 

[Tousi]

DD, I don't know but maybe they don't wanna manufacture something and be potentially liable for anything that might happen?

 

[Angel]

As to the person who said you cannot play field hockey with a ci, you are 100% WRONG! My daughter played field hockey from grades 7-12 in high school and in fact, we are going to go see her play on her college's club field hockey team this weekend.
Rick

Who said CI users can not play field hockey?....I don't think you've read anyone's post carefully cause I don't see anyone saying anything similar to what you're stating above....

 

[jillio]

DD, I don't know but maybe they don't wanna manufacture something and be potentially liable for anything that might happen?

Good point. We have become a litigious society.

 

[jillio]

That is what I will never understand. If deaf children MUST be exposed to hearing people or other hearing children, then hearing children MUST be exposed to deaf people or other deaf children instead of just being exposed to only heairng people?

Guess it doesn't work the other way around!

 

[deafaussie]

Interesting but set these facts straight!

First of all, I am a CI user since 2001. Since I had my right ear implanted I have done in the following activities below:

Skydived from 18,000ft.
Deep dived as hearing peers(providing that I put on rubber mask on to minimize risk in my right year)
Played Rugby union for my local club with my head protection on.
Wrestled freestyle for my local club with my head protection on.

So far its close to 2008 and I haven't had any failures. Providing that you do the risk minimization for yourself and/for your child. It will be all fine and I understand my CI body from Cochlear in Australia is made of titanium which considered strongest of all metals. Not sure about Clarion.

 

[R2D2]

Hearing adminsitrators and faculty members. And we are not necessarily talking about residential programs. There are day programs at many deaf schools so the child does not have to be "sent away". In those cases, hearing family and neighbors, as well.
Exposure to the hearing community for a deaf child is easily accomplished. Its exposure tothe deaf community that gets tougher.

I don't personally have a problem with day programs - as you say, it results in plenty of exposure to hearing family, friends and neighbours. Its more when the child is sent away to the school. I respect someone that chooses to do that for whatever personal reason, but I would not judge a parent who could not bring themselves to do that because I don't think I could either.

I realise that some of the staff at the school may be hearing, but wouldn't they communicate to the child in sign anyway?

So I guess they might get exposure from field trips I guess.

 

[R2D2]

First of all, I am a CI user since 2001. Since I had my right ear implanted I have done in the following activities below:

Skydived from 18,000ft.
Deep dived as hearing peers(providing that I put on rubber mask on to minimize risk in my right year)
Played Rugby union for my local club with my head protection on.
Wrestled freestyle for my local club with my head protection on.

So far its close to 2008 and I haven't had any failures. Providing that you do the risk minimization for yourself and/for your child. It will be all fine and I understand my CI body from Cochlear in Australia is made of titanium which considered strongest of all metals. Not sure about Clarion.

Rugby Union too! That's pretty rough. Good on you.

 

[R2D2]

DD, I don't know but maybe they don't wanna manufacture something and be potentially liable for anything that might happen?

Or maybe it's just not necessary? Why would people want to spend more on a "special helmet" when they can get one cheaper down the sports store which can do the same job?

 

[jillio]

I don't personally have a problem with day programs - as you say, it results in plenty of exposure to hearing family, friends and neighbours. Its more when the child is sent away to the school. I respect someone that chooses to do that for whatever personal reason, but I would not judge a parent who could not bring themselves to do that because I don't think I could either.

I realise that some of the staff at the school may be hearing, but wouldn't they communicate to the child in sign anyway?

So I guess they might get exposure from field trips I guess.

In my son's program, the hearing staff and faculty used sign and speech, the deaf faculty and staff relied on ASL alone. In addition, during their Jr. and Sr. years of high school, students could opt to take some of their classes during the day at a local vocational school with hearing students, and come back tothe deaf school for their core classes. They also were partnered with a local public (hearing) school that offered sign language as foreign language credit, so many outings were arranged so that the hearing students learning sign would be exposed to deaf students, and deaf students would have expereince in socializing and forming friendships with hearing peers. This particular school makes every effort to educate the deaf child with other deaf children, utilizing teachers who are specialists in deaf education. But they don't stop there. They also seek to provide the realistic socialization that I speak of, and to promote an atmosphere that fosters understanding and empathy from both sides. Perhaps now you understand why I was so willing to moive 700 miles in order to send my son to this school. I did not want to send him to any school on a residential basis, and the only other option was to relocate.

 

[R2D2]

That is what I will never understand. If deaf children MUST be exposed to hearing people or other hearing children, then hearing children MUST be exposed to deaf people or other deaf children instead of just being exposed to only heairng people?

Sorry, I hope I didn't annoy you with my questions. The reason I asked was because my nephew has always gone to a deaf school and he just doesn't seem at all comfortable with hearing people even though he is from a mostly hearing family that can sign and has always attended as a day pupil. I don't think he has any hearing friends, so I was curious as to whether a true bi bi program addressed that. His school calls itself "bilingual" but I don't think it is really.

 

[R2D2]

In addition, during their Jr. and Sr. years of high school, students could opt to take some of their classes during the day at a local vocational school with hearing students, and come back tothe deaf school for their core classes. They also were partnered with a local public (hearing) school that offered sign language as foreign language credit, so many outings were arranged so that the hearing students learning sign would be exposed to deaf students, and deaf students would have expereince in socializing and forming friendships with hearing peers. This particular school makes every effort to educate the deaf child with other deaf children, utilizing teachers who are specialists in deaf education. But they don't stop there. They also seek to provide the realistic socialization that I speak of, and to promote an atmosphere that fosters understanding and empathy from both sides. Perhaps now you understand why I was so willing to moive 700 miles in order to send my son to this school. I did not want to send him to any school on a residential basis, and the only other option was to relocate.

Okay thanks for explaning that. When you described that I recall that my nephew also did try out a mainstream placement for a few of his lessons but he found it very unnerving and gave up. However, I think this was more to do with some negative family dynamics than the school itself.

 

[jillio]

Okay thanks for explaning that. When you described that I recall that my nephew also did try out a mainstream placement for a few of his lessons but he found it very unnerving and gave up. However, I think this was more to do with some negative family dynamics than the school itself.

Its possible that family dynamics could have come into play. Any one area of a child's environment has an impact on all others. Nothing occurs in isolation.

Perhaps when your nephew is older (I"m assuming he is still a youngster?) he will find a few classes in the mainstream to be more to his liking. That is one of the benefits of my son's school....the students were given an option of going to the vocational school or remaining at the deaf school for all of their classes. But they did restrict it to the older students in their final 2 years of secondary education. It was set up as sort of a transition service from secondary school to post-secondary, or for those who did not wish to attend college, the world of work.