What was school like for you?

[CrazehJess]

I went to a public school. There was a couple other deaf kids that I never met, but there's about 7000 kids in the school, so it didn't make much difference and apparantly, I was the deafest person in the school. The school was quite good for dealing with that kind of thing, I was offered help, but I refused it and was just like any other kid in school. I used to have radio-aids, but I ditched them in late primary school. Basically, the school before highschool, for you Americans. As for school itself, I found the work easy, lessons easy, but I had problems with friends and bullying. That's why I dropped out of school at 13 years old and now I have a couple days a week of education in a non-school building. My deafness only really made things hard for me, when my friends talked in big groups. I found it hard to keep up with the conversation and they had that irritating habit of saying 'it doesn't matter' whenever I asked for something I didn't hear to be repeated. And it was a nightmare in the canteen, it was noisy and I never went much. But when I did, it was pretty hard to have a conversation with more than one person. I could lipread easily, but when your friends are 13 year olds, they always forgot I was deaf and they never kept their head in the same place for long enough, so I didn't get much, heh.

So I'd say my school experience, was kinda bad concerning friends and the social side of it. Not to mention, things like mixing with the wrong crowds, rumors going round and friends falling out all the time, expecting me to patch it up. Then there's my hotheaded side which got me into physical fights and some secret let loose accidently on my part, resulted in a group of people who were 4 or 5 years older than me extremely annoyed with me. That ended in fights, too. There was also a bad experience with one of my teachers, who for some reason disliked me, and kept trying to put me down classes and giving me lower grades than I deserved. Hmmm... what else? Bitchy girls, idiot boys and a girl who I really crushed on for years messing me up with her mind games, that's it really.

Wow. Sounds depressing, huh? Despite all that, the school was very good concerning my deafness and I got on well with most of the teachers, therefore my deafness didn't affect my schoolwork. It probably affected some ways of being able to talk to my friends, but not enough to cause big problems. My deafness pretty much takes the back pedastal when it comes to life. It's not an affecting factor in my opinion. At least, most times.

 

[jillio]

Not that I can remember, wish they had. My grade two teacher realized I was nearly blind, I am very near sighted and can't see past about 4 inches. I think that as a result of this I am extremely intuitive, perceptive and some might say psychic...do you think these are common traits amongst our kind? I do.

I firmly believe that those who have sensory difficulties as in vision and hearing become very adept at intuiting information that would normally be recieved through those channels. There is also a type of personality called "untuitive" that can be identified through personality tests such as the MMPI. It involves an innate trait for a preference in the way one learns new information. It would be interesting to find out, via the MMPI, how many people with visual and hearing impairments would rate as "intuitive" in personality assessment.

 

[Pepsi]

When I was growing up and went to school it was bad. that is all i have to say about that.

 

[seki900]

As bad as this?

When I was growing up and went to school it was bad. that is all i have to say about that.

We had just moved, my family and I to the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountain range from the bay area. This was around 1972 as I was about to start 3rd grade. I had been just diagnosed as hard of hearing a short while ago and the hearing aides where on order but had not arrived yet. It was still however the first day of school.

Big changes new routines. It was very different from what I was used to. Before I could just walk to school just before the class started, now I had to take a bus that arrived at school about an hour before classes started. I played some of the schoolyard games before classes started and met some of my new classmates as well as some of the people that I had meet during the summer before school started.

The teacher assigned the seating alphabetically this put me near the back of the room. I quickly lost interest in the class I was waiting for recess. This came and went and I knew that the next break would be lunchtime. In the school that I came from we where just dismissed and made our way to the cafeteria I was expecting the same here.

It was different here it was a small school it didn’t really have a cafeteria or rather the cafeteria doubled as the kindergarten classroom. When the time came the teacher said “Alright it is lunchtime everyone line up by the door…” That was all I needed to hear, I made my way to the door.

Then it got strange there was a girl behind me that was seemed to be upset about something as far a I could tell it didn’t concern me. Until the teacher came up to me and said, “What are you doing here?” I told her, “Waiting to go to lunch.”

“Well we can’t go just yet, there is something out of place. Didn’t you hear me when I said girls in the front of the line and boys in the back?” I told her “No I didn’t.”
That got the teacher exasperated. “What’s the matter with you are you deaf or something?” she demanded. “Yes I am.”

“What! You know that’s not true. You’re just asking for a trip to the principal’s office.”
“No.” I told her, “It is true, it should be in my records, you did read them didn’t you?”
“Alright I have had enough of you, I am going to check those records and when I find that you are lying you are going straight to the principal.” Then she said “Class your going to be late for lunch and you can all thank this trouble maker here.”

The office for the school was in the next room there was a door that connected the two and that door had a window in it. I watched the teacher talk to the secretary asking for my records. I couldn’t make out what was being said but it didn’t look good. All the students were upset and they were pretty much sure that I was in for it. All I could do was just stand there and wait.

Both the secretary and the teacher where reading my records, finally the secretary pointed to something in the file and they both looked up and at me through the window. Then the teacher came back in, “I am sorry I didn’t know”, she told me. Then we went to lunch and after lunch I discovered that I wasn’t going to be included in the games anymore.

 

[Pepsi]

Oh my God, you too.

Seki900 your story sounds just like mine .when I went to school I had to sit in the back and I did not know what was going on in class.And boy I had to put up with alot of bullshit.

 

[J'explique]

It was ok. It'd be wonderful if it was not the half-assed principal who I, along with many, had to suffer through 4 years of hell. He was one who ruined pretty much of my high school years.

 

[Grummer]

I went to a public school. There was a couple other deaf kids that I never met, but there's about 7000 kids in the school, so it didn't make much difference and apparantly, I was the deafest person in the school. The school was quite good for dealing with that kind of thing, I was offered help, but I refused it and was just like any other kid in school. I used to have radio-aids, but I ditched them in late primary school. Basically, the school before highschool, for you Americans. As for school itself, I found the work easy, lessons easy, but I had problems with friends and bullying. That's why I dropped out of school at 13 years old and now I have a couple days a week of education in a non-school building. My deafness only really made things hard for me, when my friends talked in big groups. I found it hard to keep up with the conversation and they had that irritating habit of saying 'it doesn't matter' whenever I asked for something I didn't hear to be repeated. And it was a nightmare in the canteen, it was noisy and I never went much. But when I did, it was pretty hard to have a conversation with more than one person. I could lipread easily, but when your friends are 13 year olds, they always forgot I was deaf and they never kept their head in the same place for long enough, so I didn't get much, heh.

So I'd say my school experience, was kinda bad concerning friends and the social side of it. Not to mention, things like mixing with the wrong crowds, rumors going round and friends falling out all the time, expecting me to patch it up. Then there's my hotheaded side which got me into physical fights and some secret let loose accidently on my part, resulted in a group of people who were 4 or 5 years older than me extremely annoyed with me. That ended in fights, too. There was also a bad experience with one of my teachers, who for some reason disliked me, and kept trying to put me down classes and giving me lower grades than I deserved. Hmmm... what else? Bitchy girls, idiot boys and a girl who I really crushed on for years messing me up with her mind games, that's it really.

Wow. Sounds depressing, huh? Despite all that, the school was very good concerning my deafness and I got on well with most of the teachers, therefore my deafness didn't affect my schoolwork. It probably affected some ways of being able to talk to my friends, but not enough to cause big problems. My deafness pretty much takes the back pedastal when it comes to life. It's not an affecting factor in my opinion. At least, most times.

Simliar to my life in high school, it was dreadful, but difference is that
I stay on right thru to 7th form (like your year 12 the last high school year before leaving school or going to university or work) Had bullies too, I hope they die of cancer or something, like i hope fate (or karma, or whatever you will) will bite them back hard.

Had a couple of crush on girls , it was silly just fantasy based on their looks , they were goregous but they were aloof audists. (yes I tend to agree than MOST people are audists, especially you can't make your freindship with them on the basis of who you are, rather than on the basis of them 'giving you a 'chance' ....... but also I believe that the problems of bullism is not immune from even in deaf schools, its more on just how crappy society is.

this is a long time ago, though its hard to believe i got through it, and kind of , in a way its no wonder it was terrible while so there was a certain amount on incredible ignorance on my part that come audism to which denied my free thinking to question as 'why am I at this school" i must have be so stupid to trust all grownups back then, and while was STILL holdnig on to the 'dreams' to be successful in later life, - as working adult. It sad I mean ,
I know now that why some deaf adults likes to visit school, (usually deaf schools), of there about to inspire other deaf students, WHILE I know that feelings for them as a young student to feelng they 'dont need extra help' but while all so at same time, they ACTUALLY really NEED that help !!!
It takes a very skill/gift eaf adults with an unparrallel leadership quality (and no, no the one to "LEAD" bug companys i mean lives.......the Lives of young deaf generation.

 

[Grummer]

just for that last part on my last post, i was very tired i got sloppy,i wasn't making any sense at all so here some corrections. Not perfect, still just a freindly rant as below;

It takes a very skill/gift eaf adults with an unparrallelled leadership quality to lead the Lives of young deaf generation into a truely richer understanding of themselves so transistion from school to adulthood would be constructive. we've got a loooooong way to way to even get started for results

 

[Buffalo]

I went to an oral day school for the deaf. It was the pits educationwise. In that last year, I challanged the teacher to give out more difficult tests. He did that once and it was easy. Although the school was oral (it changed to TC after I left it), I learned sign language from classmates and friends on the sly at the school. The school bus was the only place I can signed openly.
For high school, I convinced my mother to send me to a private catholic school for the deaf. The education is better there and sign language is allowed. Like J'explique, few people sort of ruined my experience.

 

[Calphool]

We had just moved, my family and I to the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountain range from the bay area. This was around 1972 as I was about to start 3rd grade. I had been just diagnosed as hard of hearing a short while ago and the hearing aides where on order but had not arrived yet. It was still however the first day of school.

...

Both the secretary and the teacher where reading my records, finally the secretary pointed to something in the file and they both looked up and at me through the window. Then the teacher came back in, “I am sorry I didn’t know”, she told me. Then we went to lunch and after lunch I discovered that I wasn’t going to be included in the games anymore.

Hi Seki900,

I read your story with great interest. Some day it would be very interesting to collect stories from the deaf community about their school experiences. Around here, the public school system has a lot of trouble dealing with deaf kids -- especially in small districts.

My wife learned ASL over the past few years, but she isn't certified yet. A year ago or so, she applied for a teacher's aid position at a small elementary school near our home. She wasn't looking necessarily for a job working with deaf kids, but she did list her ASL training on her resume, because it was recent schooling. She was very surprised when she was asked at the interview if she would mind being an interpretter for a little girl in first grade. My wife explained that she wasn't certified, but the principal still wanted her to accept the position. She declined the offer, because she felt like it wouldn't be ethical, and the girl deserved someone who could clearly communicate and teach ASL. My wife also told the principal that he needed to go learn about the law in our state. She did meet with the little girl and her parents, and explained to them that they needed to find an advocate to make sure that their daughter was supported properly, because the school administrators clearly didn't know what they were doing.

 

[kimpossible]

(yes I tend to agree than MOST people are audists, especially you can't make your freindship with them on the basis of who you are, rather than on the basis of them 'giving you a 'chance' ....... but also I believe that the problems of bullism is not immune from even in deaf schools, its more on just how crappy society is.

I couldn't agree more. Hmm does anyone ever realize that, within this sort of social hierarchy that exists in public schools, the people willing to "give you a chance" are the "desperate" ones, i.e. (at the risk of insulting some people maybe), the loners. But I don't mean to suggest that these people aren't worthy of being your friends; it's just that, because of this whole social complication, befriending people at the bottom of the proverbial social latter even further distances you from making more friends. When people start to notice that you're friends with such and such, it subconsciously confirms to them that you weren't worth befriending in the first place - uncool by association. Fortunately, the friends you do make (if any, that is!) are the ones that last, and I made a small but tight circle of friends in high school, even if we were the losers.

in elementary school, I was literally friendless for about 3 years and I realize now how seriously depressed I was around those times. It took me until the past year or two to get over what I experienced way back when I was a kid. I even felt shameful of my hearing loss until about midway through high school, and I'm still not very good when it comes to self advocacy.

 

[Miss-Delectable]

I'm now in year 1 of 4 at an art school and the accommodation is probably worse than high school... they're kind of doing a half-assed job. but they're "trying," at least. :roll:

Heh, so schools are all the same for most of us. I'm glad we're not in high school any longer. I pity the future generations, which might be our kids, going to school and facing pressures & bullying.

Hey, I know what you're undergoing at the art school, too. In my 1st & 2nd year of University, accomodations were either nonexistent (except for notetakers) or terrible. I remember starting my first day at University and finding out I didn't have any terps or noteaker so I had no recourse, but to go home. It's not often I'd have terps present at lectures and tutorials.

I believe that, in a way, has affected my grades.

Ironically, my last year at Uni was the best I've had accomodation-wise.

Hang in there and keep your disability service working their behind off to accomodate you to the fullest.

 

[dreama]

I was born with Asperger Syndrome and a mild hearing loss. I think I started at a mainstream primary school but for some reason it didn't work out so I went to the local special school. The first teacher I had was horrible and kept punishing me for things I couldn't help doing. There was also a lot of bullying in the taxi as they took a very mixed bunch. Some were just there because they had challanging behavior. It was sort of like a dumping ground that way. However the other teachers were ok and their was less bullying later on.
I really enjoyed it in later years. However my dad pulled me out after finding that I would not be taking exams in that school. He didn't think much of the standard of education either.

So I went to a hearing High school. Thats when I first got hearing aids. The bullying was very bad. I was unhappy and wanted to go back to the special school. Eventually the bullying was so bad in the 3rd year that I had to leave.

I went to another mainstream school with a partial hearing unit. It was very oral. No sign language permitted. The educational standards were not as high as the first high school as it was a big inner city school. The PHU wasn't too much help. They just provided hearing equipments and that was where I was sent if the teachers had any problems with me.

It was nice to mix with other deaf kids though as in the first high school I was the only deaf there. The level of bullying was nothing compaired to my first high school.

I would have liked to go to a signing deaf school right from the start even if I only had a minor hearing loss, or a school for those with Asperger syndrome who would introduce me to sign language.

 

[Grummer]

Dreama,
is PHU = Public high school?

 

[dreama]

Dreama,
is PHU = Public high school?

No, It stands for Partial Hearing Unit. A unit for the deaf and HOH within a mainstream school. Wouldn't have been so bad if it worked but they were oralist and so didn't provide terps so were only ever helping the teachers with extra disopline for the deaf.

 

[seki900]

Seki900 your story sounds just like mine .when I went to school I had to sit in the back and I did not know what was going on in class.And boy I had to put up with alot of bullshit.

I bet, being in the system just after 501 passed was a bear. I am hopeful that things are better today. I have heard from a lot of parents that seem to think so, but then, remembering just how little I told my parents about what was happening in school I wonder.

 

[seki900]

Hi Seki900,

I read your story with great interest. Some day it would be very interesting to collect stories from the deaf community about their school experiences. Around here, the public school system has a lot of trouble dealing with deaf kids -- especially in small districts.

My wife learned ASL over the past few years, but she isn't certified yet. A year ago or so, she applied for a teacher's aid position at a small elementary school near our home. She wasn't looking necessarily for a job working with deaf kids, but she did list her ASL training on her resume, because it was recent schooling. She was very surprised when she was asked at the interview if she would mind being an interpretter for a little girl in first grade. My wife explained that she wasn't certified, but the principal still wanted her to accept the position. She declined the offer, because she felt like it wouldn't be ethical, and the girl deserved someone who could clearly communicate and teach ASL. My wife also told the principal that he needed to go learn about the law in our state. She did meet with the little girl and her parents, and explained to them that they needed to find an advocate to make sure that their daughter was supported properly, because the school administrators clearly didn't know what they were doing.

I agree that it would be interesting to see some generational stories from the beginning of the mainstream movement to now. Just as a general guide to the changes and improvements that have been made since the start. There is now a 30 year period that could be drawn from and I bet it would make a heck of a thesis for someone. Of course to gain meaning and acceptance there would need to be more than these anecdotal experiences.

I applaud your wife's sense of ethics. While I agree that it would be nice if the school administrators knew what they where doing, I get the feeling that they would no longer be administrators:

Those who can, do.
Those who can't, teach.
Those who can't do or teach, administrate.

 

[shel90]

Hi Seki900,

I read your story with great interest. Some day it would be very interesting to collect stories from the deaf community about their school experiences. Around here, the public school system has a lot of trouble dealing with deaf kids -- especially in small districts.

My wife learned ASL over the past few years, but she isn't certified yet. A year ago or so, she applied for a teacher's aid position at a small elementary school near our home. She wasn't looking necessarily for a job working with deaf kids, but she did list her ASL training on her resume, because it was recent schooling. She was very surprised when she was asked at the interview if she would mind being an interpretter for a little girl in first grade. My wife explained that she wasn't certified, but the principal still wanted her to accept the position. She declined the offer, because she felt like it wouldn't be ethical, and the girl deserved someone who could clearly communicate and teach ASL. My wife also told the principal that he needed to go learn about the law in our state. She did meet with the little girl and her parents, and explained to them that they needed to find an advocate to make sure that their daughter was supported properly, because the school administrators clearly didn't know what they were doing.

It is no wonder that many deaf children in the mainstreamed programs dont do well cuz of situations like these. I see that way too much.

 

[Pepsi]

I could write a book on my school days.It was not easy, it was down right bad.

 

[deafdyke]

I gotta say a lot of times its like pulling teeth to try to even get good accomondations.
And yes, kimpossible, social issues can be a nightmare. I didn't even have any other "losers" to hang out with in high school............I really think that it should be mandatory for dhh and other disabled kids to undergo a "we know high school is tough.......here's some other educational options that might help you," right before jr high