Hearing Impairment
Definition
As defined by IDEA: Deafness means a hearing impairment so severe that a child is impaired in processing linguistic information through hearing, with or without amplification, that adversely affects a child’s educational performance.
As defined by IDEA: Hearing impairment means an impairment in hearing, whether permanent or fluctuating, that adversely affects a child’s educational performance but is not included under the definition of “deafness.”
Retrieved from: https://successforkidswithhearingloss.com/for-parents/idea-law-summary-information/
Characteristics
There are four major types of hearing loss that are categorized by the site of the disorder in the auditory system. These hearing disorders can be caused by genetic or hereditary factors, infections, developmental abnormalities, or environmental/traumatic factors.
Conductive Hearing Loss is caused by damage or obstruction in the external or middle ear that disrupts the efficient passage or conduction of sound through those chambers. Most conductive losses can be treated medically; however, repeated conductive losses can affect children's language development.
Sensorineural Hearing Loss is caused by damage to the inner ear (cochlea) or auditory nerve that transmits impulses to the brain. Sensorineural hearing loss tends to be more severe, permanent, and usually affects oral language development.
Mixed Hearing Loss is a combination of both a conductive and a sensorineural hearing loss.
Central Hearing Disorders are the results of a disorder or dysfunction in the central auditory system between the brain stem and the auditory cortex in the brain.
It is useful to know that sound is measured by its loudness or intensity (measured in units called decibels, dB) and its frequency or pitch (measured in units called hertz, Hz). Impairments in hearing can occur in either or both areas and may exist in only one ear or in both ears. Hearing loss is generally described as slight, mild, moderate, severe, or profound, depending upon how well a person can hear the intensities or frequencies most greatly associated with speech. Generally, only children who cannot hear sounds generating less than 90 decibels (dB) are considered deaf for the purposes of educational placement.
Retrieved from: http://www.projectidealonline.org/v/hearing-impairments/
Educational Considerations
Hearing loss or deafness does not affect a person’s intellectual capacity or ability to learn. However, children who are hard of hearing or deaf generally require some form of special education services in order to receive an adequate education. Such services may include:
Children who are hard of hearing will find it much more difficult than children who have normal hearing to learn vocabulary, grammar, word order, idiomatic expressions, and other aspects of verbal communication. For children who are deaf or have severe hearing losses, early, consistent, and conscious use of visible communication modes (such as sign language, fingerspelling, and Cued Speech) and/or amplification and aural/oral training can help reduce this language delay.
By age four or five, most children who are deaf are enrolled in school on a full-day basis and do special work on communication and language development. Parents work with school personnel to develop an individualized education program (IEP) that details the child’s special needs and the services and supports that will be provided to meet those needs. IDEA requires that the IEP team address the communication needs of a child who is deaf or hard of hearing.
Retrieved from: https://www.parentcenterhub.org/hearingloss/
Resources
Project IDEAL (Informing and Designing Education for All Learners) is a project of the Texas Council for Developmental Disabilities. This site includes teaching modules, videos, articles, and activities as part of a teacher preparation program intended to better prepare teachers to work with students with disabilities.
Webpage: Hearing Impairments http://www.projectidealonline.org/v/hearing-impairments/
Center for Parent Information and Resources
What you will find on the Parent Center Hub:
DeafTEC: Technological Education Center for Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Students, a National Science Foundation Advanced Technological Education National Center of Excellence, serves as a resource for high schools and community colleges that educate deaf and hard-of-hearing students in STEM-related programs and for employers hiring deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals. Webpage: Best Practices for Teaching https://www.deaftec.org/classact/challenges
Article, Make a Difference: TIPS FOR TEACHING STUDENTS WHO ARE DEAF OR HARD OF HEARING https://www.umaryland.edu/media/umb/oaa/campus-life/disability-services-/documents/Tips-for-Teaching-Students-Who-Are-Deaf-or-Hard-of-Hearing.pdf
Supporting Success for Children with Hearing Loss began in 2011 and was created by Karen Anderson, PhD, with the goal of creating an ‘umbrella website’ for teachers of the deaf/hard of hearing. Karen had many practical materials that were frequently requested and had developed a personal website of these tools. Supporting Success built on the concept of making practical information readily available, resulting in the current resource-packed website.
Article: IDEA Law Summary Information https://successforkidswithhearingloss.com/for-parents/idea-law-summary-information/
TED is a nonprofit devoted to spreading ideas, usually in the form of short, powerful talks (18 minutes or less). TED began in 1984 as a conference where Technology, Entertainment and Design converged, and today covers almost all topics — from science to business to global issues — in more than 100 languages. Meanwhile, independently run TEDx events help share ideas in communities around the world. Video: When We Design for Disabilities We all Benefit, https://www.ted.com/talks/elise_roy_when_we_design_for_disability_we_all_benefit
World Health Organization, Article: Deafness and Hearing Loss https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/deafness-and-hearing-loss
As defined by IDEA: Deafness means a hearing impairment so severe that a child is impaired in processing linguistic information through hearing, with or without amplification, that adversely affects a child’s educational performance.
As defined by IDEA: Hearing impairment means an impairment in hearing, whether permanent or fluctuating, that adversely affects a child’s educational performance but is not included under the definition of “deafness.”
Retrieved from: https://successforkidswithhearingloss.com/for-parents/idea-law-summary-information/
Characteristics
There are four major types of hearing loss that are categorized by the site of the disorder in the auditory system. These hearing disorders can be caused by genetic or hereditary factors, infections, developmental abnormalities, or environmental/traumatic factors.
Conductive Hearing Loss is caused by damage or obstruction in the external or middle ear that disrupts the efficient passage or conduction of sound through those chambers. Most conductive losses can be treated medically; however, repeated conductive losses can affect children's language development.
Sensorineural Hearing Loss is caused by damage to the inner ear (cochlea) or auditory nerve that transmits impulses to the brain. Sensorineural hearing loss tends to be more severe, permanent, and usually affects oral language development.
Mixed Hearing Loss is a combination of both a conductive and a sensorineural hearing loss.
Central Hearing Disorders are the results of a disorder or dysfunction in the central auditory system between the brain stem and the auditory cortex in the brain.
It is useful to know that sound is measured by its loudness or intensity (measured in units called decibels, dB) and its frequency or pitch (measured in units called hertz, Hz). Impairments in hearing can occur in either or both areas and may exist in only one ear or in both ears. Hearing loss is generally described as slight, mild, moderate, severe, or profound, depending upon how well a person can hear the intensities or frequencies most greatly associated with speech. Generally, only children who cannot hear sounds generating less than 90 decibels (dB) are considered deaf for the purposes of educational placement.
Retrieved from: http://www.projectidealonline.org/v/hearing-impairments/
Educational Considerations
Hearing loss or deafness does not affect a person’s intellectual capacity or ability to learn. However, children who are hard of hearing or deaf generally require some form of special education services in order to receive an adequate education. Such services may include:
- regular speech, language, and auditory training from a specialist;
- amplification systems;
- services of an interpreter for those students who use sign language;
- favorable seating in the class to facilitate lip reading;
- captioned films/videos;
- assistance of a notetaker, who takes notes for the student with a hearing loss, so that the student can fully attend to instruction;
- instruction for the teacher and peers in alternate communication methods, such as sign language; and
- counseling.
Children who are hard of hearing will find it much more difficult than children who have normal hearing to learn vocabulary, grammar, word order, idiomatic expressions, and other aspects of verbal communication. For children who are deaf or have severe hearing losses, early, consistent, and conscious use of visible communication modes (such as sign language, fingerspelling, and Cued Speech) and/or amplification and aural/oral training can help reduce this language delay.
By age four or five, most children who are deaf are enrolled in school on a full-day basis and do special work on communication and language development. Parents work with school personnel to develop an individualized education program (IEP) that details the child’s special needs and the services and supports that will be provided to meet those needs. IDEA requires that the IEP team address the communication needs of a child who is deaf or hard of hearing.
Retrieved from: https://www.parentcenterhub.org/hearingloss/
Resources
Project IDEAL (Informing and Designing Education for All Learners) is a project of the Texas Council for Developmental Disabilities. This site includes teaching modules, videos, articles, and activities as part of a teacher preparation program intended to better prepare teachers to work with students with disabilities.
Webpage: Hearing Impairments http://www.projectidealonline.org/v/hearing-impairments/
Center for Parent Information and Resources
What you will find on the Parent Center Hub:
- Family-friendly information and research-based materials on key topics for Parent Centers
- Private workspaces for Parent Centers to exchange resources, discuss high-priority topics, and solve mutual challenges
- Coordination of parent training efforts throughout the network
- A twice-monthly e-newsletter with key topics, new resources, upcoming events, and materials to share with families
- Materials from Parent Centers themselves
DeafTEC: Technological Education Center for Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Students, a National Science Foundation Advanced Technological Education National Center of Excellence, serves as a resource for high schools and community colleges that educate deaf and hard-of-hearing students in STEM-related programs and for employers hiring deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals. Webpage: Best Practices for Teaching https://www.deaftec.org/classact/challenges
Article, Make a Difference: TIPS FOR TEACHING STUDENTS WHO ARE DEAF OR HARD OF HEARING https://www.umaryland.edu/media/umb/oaa/campus-life/disability-services-/documents/Tips-for-Teaching-Students-Who-Are-Deaf-or-Hard-of-Hearing.pdf
Supporting Success for Children with Hearing Loss began in 2011 and was created by Karen Anderson, PhD, with the goal of creating an ‘umbrella website’ for teachers of the deaf/hard of hearing. Karen had many practical materials that were frequently requested and had developed a personal website of these tools. Supporting Success built on the concept of making practical information readily available, resulting in the current resource-packed website.
Article: IDEA Law Summary Information https://successforkidswithhearingloss.com/for-parents/idea-law-summary-information/
TED is a nonprofit devoted to spreading ideas, usually in the form of short, powerful talks (18 minutes or less). TED began in 1984 as a conference where Technology, Entertainment and Design converged, and today covers almost all topics — from science to business to global issues — in more than 100 languages. Meanwhile, independently run TEDx events help share ideas in communities around the world. Video: When We Design for Disabilities We all Benefit, https://www.ted.com/talks/elise_roy_when_we_design_for_disability_we_all_benefit
World Health Organization, Article: Deafness and Hearing Loss https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/deafness-and-hearing-loss