New here

[shel90]

Hi I am a deaf ed teacher and strongly invested in making sure every deaf child receives ASL in the academic setting. Full access to language is so critical in the classroom.

 

[Jane B.]

An Option School right? You do realize that they screen the students, and if a child is lower performing, then they ask the child to leave, correct? Also by academics, we mean actual real academics, not preschool/kindergarten level academics. You do realize that although there are not a lot of dhh kids who absolutly cannot learn to speak, the numbers who actually do master sophiscated spoken language is very low right? There's no indication that an oral education equates with a higher verbal IQ. Even the auditory verbal research says " except for vocabulary" dhh kids are doing well orally. Vocabulary is the building block of language. How someone can be said to have mastered oral language, while lagging behind on vocabulary is a feat in itself. Again, have you spoken to mainstream teachers, and seen what happens when those "cute little kids" hit the oral deaf ceiling or what happens in high school, when they are desperate for a boyfriend or a girlfriend, and are in lower level English classes, or may be failing an advanced grade?

Deafdyke
You seem to be ignoring some things the OP has already said. She is at a private school; so, of course, it is focused on serving a target population not just everyone that has some kind of hearing loss.

Also, she has already said that they only go through kindergarten! So, the kids would not be at the stage of learning how to deal with high school.

I have quoted those posts below.

I am new to this website. I am a teacher of the deaf. I work at a private school for students who have a hearing loss. I hope to get to know some people on this site.

Our kids don't fail grades. We only go through kindergarten. Our students listen because they wear cochlear implants or hearing aids or both. I have three students with implants and two with hearing aids.

 

[LoveBlue]

Deafdyke


Also, she has already said that they only go through kindergarten! So, the kids would not be at the stage of learning how to deal with high school.

Maybe YOU need to reread DeafDyke's post. She mentions high school as a scenario AFTER the kids she's teaching get the early education she's providing. She did not say Teacherofthedeaf was working with high school kids or preparing them how to deal with high school issues.

 

[Jane B.]

Maybe YOU need to reread DeafDyke's post. She mentions high school as a scenario AFTER the kids she's teaching get the early education she's providing. She did not say Teacherofthedeaf was working with high school kids or preparing them how to deal with high school issues.

To me what Deafdyke is saying they need for high school is something that comes at the next stage (elementary school rather than already at kindergarten) which is after where our OP is working.

 

[LoveBlue]

To me what Deafdyke is saying they need for high school is something that comes at the next stage (elementary school rather than already at kindergarten) which is after where our OP is working.

We learn vocabulary from the time we're babies, so it's not too early to teach that in preschool/kindergarten.

 

[Jane B.]

We learn vocabulary from the time we're babies, so it's not too early to teach that in preschool/kindergarten.

Who said they are not at her school. And that is not the only thing that Deafdyke talked about that seems to me to be mainly something that comes later than kindergarten.

By the way, LoveBlue, if I post something in any thread you seem to go out of your way to find something to disagree with and post. Why???

 

[LoveBlue]

By the way, LoveBlue, if I post something in any thread you seem to go out of your way to find something to disagree with and post. Why???

Because you seem to always find a way to make posters look like they're not smart enough think for themselves. And one doing home remodel, you always make suggestions - some making it sound like the person hadn't thought of that. You told me ways to get a closer look at the pool that was being demolished as if I couldn't have thought of those ways. You point out when YOU don't understand something as if everybody can't possibly have understood what was said.

And NO, I don't do go out of my way to find something to disagree with and post about it with any thread you post. You don't know how many times I've "held my tongue" with your posts.

 

[Mieke]

I do know ASL, but our school is a listen and spoken language program, so I do not use it in the classroom.

Thank you for the tips. I think I was clicking on the one that says multi-quote. Our kids don't fail grades. We only go through kindergarten. Our students listen because they wear cochlear implants or hearing aids or both. I have three students with implants and two with hearing aids.

Can you explain us please why you dont teach these kids ASL? Or use ASL with them?
It could be as simple as have one of the teachers or kindergarten cares sign to them and someone else speaks.

Kids are sooooo fast to pick up things, why not offer them both at that age.
I know so many people that have raised kids bilingual. They excell at both languages!

Even if they end up hearing perfectly, they will still be deaf even with CI or hearing aids, why not offer them a way in to Deaf culture when they are young, they can decide later on in their life what they want to do with it.
But the best time to teach them is exactly in kindergarten, kids are like a sponge then. They have no problem with picking up both languages.

Though, one should use the language chosen consistently, if you use ASL, you would always sign and not talk, if your colleague speaks to them, they would always speak.

 

[shel90]

Can you explain us please why you dont teach these kids ASL? Or use ASL with them?
It could be as simple as have one of the teachers or kindergarten cares sign to them and someone else speaks.

Kids are sooooo fast to pick up things, why not offer them both at that age.
I know so many people that have raised kids bilingual. They excell at both languages!

Even if they end up hearing perfectly, they will still be deaf even with CI or hearing aids, why not offer them a way in to Deaf culture when they are young, they can decide later on in their life what they want to do with it.
But the best time to teach them is exactly in kindergarten, kids are like a sponge then. They have no problem with picking up both languages.

Though, one should use the language chosen consistently, if you use ASL, you would always sign and not talk, if your colleague speaks to them, they would always speak.

THANK YOU!!!!!

 

[deafdyke]

To me what Deafdyke is saying they need for high school is something that comes at the next stage (elementary school rather than already at kindergarten) which is after where our OP is working.

Many functionally HOH kids struggle in elementary school as well. It's not just high school.

 

[deafdyke]

Deafdyke
You seem to be ignoring some things the OP has already said. She is at a private school; so, of course, it is focused on serving a target population not just everyone that has some kind of hearing loss.

Also, she has already said that they only go through kindergarten! So, the kids would not be at the stage of learning how to deal with high school.

I have quoted those posts below.

Yes, Option Schools are PRIVATE. The problem is that a certain school of thinking with oralism, thinks that the problem is getting the kid oral enough. It does not acknowledge the problems that pretty much ALL dhh kids deal with later on. Bet you didn't know that the reason why Clarke, CID and St Jospeh's had dorms for so long wasn't b/c a lot of parents were sending off their 5 year olds to dorm it, but b/c around 3rd/4th grade kids would struggle in the mainstream and then transfer. It still happens sadly, but now when an oral kid struggles they end up at their state deaf school or dhh program.

 

[deafdyke]

Can you explain us please why you dont teach these kids ASL? Or use ASL with them?
It could be as simple as have one of the teachers or kindergarten cares sign to them and someone else speaks.

Kids are sooooo fast to pick up things, why not offer them both at that age.
I know so many people that have raised kids bilingual. They excell at both languages!

Even if they end up hearing perfectly, they will still be deaf even with CI or hearing aids, why not offer them a way in to Deaf culture when they are young, they can decide later on in their life what they want to do with it.
But the best time to teach them is exactly in kindergarten, kids are like a sponge then. They have no problem with picking up both languages.

Though, one should use the language chosen consistently, if you use ASL, you would always sign and not talk, if your colleague speaks to them, they would always speak.

EXACTLY. Auditory oral schools are based on the very wrong assumption that speech and HOH style interventions are neglected in Sign using programs. The overwhelming majority of Sign using programs offer a very very hefty dose of speech and HOH style interventions. As a matter of fact, I've seen three different parents from three different states in three different Sign using programs say that their Sign exclusive kids feel left out b/c......the other kids are SO ORAL?!?!?!? And actually Mieke pretty much NO kids with HAs or CIs hear perfectly. Even the best user of a HA or a CI is at best functionally HOH. There was a study by Johns Hopkins that said that 95% of CI kids still used everything from a 'terp up to closed captioned HOH is NOT hearing. But yes..... the best time to teach dhh kids ASL/Sign is early on, so they can learn it easily! Why is it so controversial that dhh kids should have access to everything......not just speech therapy/ development of oral skills?

 

[Mieke]

EXACTLY. Auditory oral schools are based on the very wrong assumption that speech and HOH style interventions are neglected in Sign using programs. The overwhelming majority of Sign using programs offer a very very hefty dose of speech and HOH style interventions. As a matter of fact, I've seen three different parents from three different states in three different Sign using programs say that their Sign exclusive kids feel left out b/c......the other kids are SO ORAL?!?!?!? And actually Mieke pretty much NO kids with HAs or CIs hear perfectly. Even the best user of a HA or a CI is at best functionally HOH. There was a study by Johns Hopkins that said that 95% of CI kids still used everything from a 'terp up to closed captioned HOH is NOT hearing. But yes..... the best time to teach dhh kids ASL/Sign is early on, so they can learn it easily! Why is it so controversial that dhh kids should have access to everything......not just speech therapy/ development of oral skills?

I know, that's also why I put it this way. Even if they would be able to hear perfectly through some kind of magic trick , they should still be given their way in to Deaf culture. And be given the choice.

 

[deafdyke]

Looks like she hasn't returned. I do want to say in case she is lurking....and in case others are lurking, many of us here are HOH, either functionally or audilogically. HOH doesn't mean "more hearing then deaf." It simply means that a child has a bit more residual hearing then a deaf kid. They CAN use their residual hearing very well... But just b/c a kid can use their residual hearing, it doesn't mean that additional approaches like ASL, Deaf ed, cued speech to create a safety net wouldn't be helpful. As a matter of fact, if a child didn't have to work so hard with listening, they could put all their energy into actually acheiving. So the addition of Sign, Deaf ed (either deaf school or regional dhh program) and cued speech could all work together so that a child could THRIVE in a way that couldn't be accomplished with an approach that only focuses on the weaknesses of a student. Remember the HARD in the hard of hearing. It's hard for us to hear. Why its controversial to suggest that HOH kids deserve a variety of tools, life, social and educaitonal experiences (and not just ones that will " magicaly restore us to the glorious utopia of the hearing world/mainstream) is beyond me. There are many different pieces to the puzzle. If hearing and speech automaticly guarenteed success in life, then all hearing people should be fablously successful. Yet they aren't.

 

[Teacherofthedeaf]

An Option School right? You do realize that they screen the students, and if a child is lower performing, then they ask the child to leave, correct? Also by academics, we mean actual real academics, not preschool/kindergarten level academics. You do realize that although there are not a lot of dhh kids who absolutly cannot learn to speak, the numbers who actually do master sophiscated spoken language is very low right? There's no indication that an oral education equates with a higher verbal IQ. Even the auditory verbal research says " except for vocabulary" dhh kids are doing well orally. Vocabulary is the building block of language. How someone can be said to have mastered oral language, while lagging behind on vocabulary is a feat in itself. Again, have you spoken to mainstream teachers, and seen what happens when those "cute little kids" hit the oral deaf ceiling or what happens in high school, when they are desperate for a boyfriend or a girlfriend, and are in lower level English classes, or may be failing an advanced grade?

Before I worked at this school I was an itinerant teacher of the deaf, so I do know what happens to these students as they get older.

 

[Teacherofthedeaf]

Can you explain us please why you dont teach these kids ASL? Or use ASL with them?
It could be as simple as have one of the teachers or kindergarten cares sign to them and someone else speaks.

Kids are sooooo fast to pick up things, why not offer them both at that age.
I know so many people that have raised kids bilingual. They excell at both languages!

Even if they end up hearing perfectly, they will still be deaf even with CI or hearing aids, why not offer them a way in to Deaf culture when they are young, they can decide later on in their life what they want to do with it.
But the best time to teach them is exactly in kindergarten, kids are like a sponge then. They have no problem with picking up both languages.

Though, one should use the language chosen consistently, if you use ASL, you would always sign and not talk, if your colleague speaks to them, they would always speak.

The families I serve have not chosen ASL. They have chosen spoken language. If they want ASL or ASL and spoken language, there are other schools nearby that would be a better fit.

 

[Mieke]

The families I serve have not chosen ASL. They have chosen spoken language. If they want ASL or ASL and spoken language, there are other schools nearby that would be a better fit.

And I'd argue with that, that you as a teacher who has an insight into ASL and the strength of the language, should offer the kids you work with all opportunities.

Do the parents or family, know Deaf culture, have you explained them ?

 

[Jane B.]

And I'd argue with that, that you as a teacher who has an insight into ASL and the strength of the language, should offer the kids you work with all opportunities.

Do the parents or family, know Deaf culture, have you explained them ?

She is an employee of the school and not in a position to decided if ASL will be used at the school.

 

[Teacherofthedeaf]

And I'd argue with that, that you as a teacher who has an insight into ASL and the strength of the language, should offer the kids you work with all opportunities.

Do the parents or family, know Deaf culture, have you explained them ?

Parents have gone through Early Intervention and have chosen spoken language before they get to me. I am not going to force a different choice on them. My parents are all very well informed. Believe it or not, out of the 5 students I work with, one has a Deaf mother and one has a Deaf uncle. They both use ASL at home.

 

[Mieke]

Parents have gone through Early Intervention and have chosen spoken language before they get to me. I am not going to force a different choice on them. My parents are all very well informed. Believe it or not, out of the 5 students I work with, one has a Deaf mother and one has a Deaf uncle. They both use ASL at home.

Glad to hear that, and those who use ASL at home are getting a bilingual education. And I assume chances are high that the kids who learn ASL at home will also use it with their school friends so they will have an opportunity to learn.

I'm not judging you, I just want those kids to get all opportunities just like I would for any kid