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The three models of deafness are rooted in either social or biological sciences. These are the cultural model, the social model, and themedicalmodel. The model through which the deaf person is viewed can impact how they are treated as well as their own self perception. In the cultural model, the Deaf belong to a culture in which they are neither infirm nor disabled, but rather have their own fully grammatical and natural language. In the medical model, deafness is viewed undesirable, and it is to the advantage of the individual as well as society as a whole to "cure" this condition. The social model seeks to explain difficulties experienced by deaf individuals that are due to their environment.
Deaf culture is the set of social beliefs, behaviors, art, literary traditions, history, values, and shared institutions of communities that are influenced by deafness and which use sign languages as the main means of communication. When used as a cultural label, especially within the culture, the word deaf is often written with a capital D and referred to as "big D Deaf" in speech and sign. When used as a label for the audiological condition, it is written with a lower case d. Carl G. Croneberg was among the first to discuss analogies between Deaf and hearing cultures in his appendices C and D of the 1965 Dictionary of American Sign Language.
Signing Exact English is a system of manual communication that strives to be an exact representation of English language vocabulary and grammar. It is one of a number of such systems in use in English-speaking countries. It is related to Seeing Essential English (SEE-I), a manual sign system created in 1945, based on the morphemes of English words. SEE-II models much of its sign vocabulary from American Sign Language (ASL), but modifies the handshapes used in ASL in order to use the handshape of the first letter of the corresponding English word.
Cued speech is a visual system of communication used with and among deaf or hard-of-hearing people. It is a phonemic-based system which makes traditionally spoken languages accessible by using a small number of handshapes, known as cues, in different locations near the mouth to convey spoken language in a visual format. The National Cued Speech Association defines cued speech as "a visual mode of communication that uses hand shapes and placements in combination with the mouth movements and speech to make the phonemes of spoken language look different from each other." It adds information about the phonology of the word that is not visible on the lips. This allows people with hearing or language difficulties to visually access the fundamental properties of language. It is now used with people with a variety of language, speech, communication, and learning needs. It is not a sign language such as American Sign Language (ASL), which is a separate language from English. Cued speech is considered a communication modality but can be used as a strategy to support auditory rehabilitation, speech articulation, and literacy development.
The Louisiana School for the Deaf is a state school for deaf and hard-of-hearing students in Louisiana, located in Baton Rouge, the state capital. It was established in 1852 as a joint school for blind students. In 1860, its first purpose-built facility was completed and admired as an elegant monument to philanthropy. The schools were divided in 1898, and in 1908, Louisiana School for the Deaf was renamed.
The National Deaf Children's Society (NDCS) is a British charity dedicated to providing support, information and advice for deaf children and young people, their families and professionals working with them.
A child of deaf adult, often known by the acronym CODA, is a person who was raised by one or more deaf parents or legal guardians. Ninety percent of children born to deaf adults can hear normally, resulting in a significant and widespread community of CODAs around the world, although whether the child is hearing, deaf, or hard of hearing has no effect on the definition. The acronym KODA is sometimes used to refer to CODAs under the age of 18.
The Learning Center for the Deaf (TLC) is a Framingham, Massachusetts-based non-profit organization and school serving deaf and hard-of-hearing children and adults. The mission of The Learning Center for the Deaf is to ensure that all deaf and hard of hearing children and adults thrive by having the knowledge, opportunity and power to design the future of their choice.
Rochester School for the Deaf (RSD) is a private, tuition-free school for deaf and hard of hearing students to attend in Rochester, New York. It is one of the oldest and most respected preK-12th grade schools for children with hearing loss and their families in the United States, and one of nine such school in the state of New York. Serving the Central and Western portions of New York State, it has been educating students since 1876.
The Colorado School for the Deaf and Blind (CSDB) is a K-12 residential school, located on Knob Hill, one mile (1.6 km) east of downtown Colorado Springs, Colorado, near the famous laboratory of Nikola Tesla. The school was founded in 1874 as The Colorado Institute for the Education of Mutes by Jonathan R. Kennedy, who had previously been steward at the Kansas School for the Deaf. The school began in a rented house in downtown Colorado Springs with seven students, three of whom were Kennedy's own children. One of his children, Emma, later married another student, Frank H. Chaney, and they became the parents of the actor Lon Chaney.
Deaf Children Australia (DCA) is a national not-for-profit organisation that supports deaf and hard-of-hearing children and young people and their families in Australia.
The Vermont Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, a non-profit organization, was the primary educational and support services resource for Deaf and Hard of Hearing residents in Vermont and surrounding areas. The Vermont Center, headquartered at Brattleboro’s Austin’s School For The Deaf, was launched by the Austine School in 1998 and operated until 2014. The Austine School was one of four independent schools and twelve outreach programs through which the Vermont Center assisted thousands of Deaf Vermonters.
The National Black Deaf Advocates (NBDA) is an advocacy organization for Black deaf and hard of hearing people in the United States.
Language acquisition is a natural process in which infants and children develop proficiency in the first language or languages that they are exposed to. The process of language acquisition is varied among deaf children. Deaf children born to deaf parents are typically exposed to a sign language at birth and their language acquisition follows a typical developmental timeline. However, at least 90% of deaf children are born to hearing parents who use a spoken language at home. Hearing loss prevents many deaf children from hearing spoken language to the degree necessary for language acquisition. For many deaf children, language acquisition is delayed until the time that they are exposed to a sign language or until they begin using amplification devices such as hearing aids or cochlear implants. Deaf children who experience delayed language acquisition, sometimes called language deprivation, are at risk for lower language and cognitive outcomes. However, profoundly deaf children who receive cochlear implants and auditory habilitation early in life often achieve expressive and receptive language skills within the norms of their hearing peers; age at implantation is strongly and positively correlated with speech recognition ability. Early access to language through signed language or technology have both been shown to prepare children who are deaf to achieve fluency in literacy skills.
Deafness has varying definitions in cultural and medical contexts. In medical contexts, the meaning of deafness is hearing loss that precludes a person from understanding spoken language, an audiological condition. In this context it is written with a lower case d. It later came to be used in a cultural context to refer to those who primarily communicate through sign language regardless of hearing ability, often capitalized as Deaf and referred to as "big D Deaf" in speech and sign. The two definitions overlap but are not identical, as hearing loss includes cases that are not severe enough to impact spoken language comprehension, while cultural Deafness includes hearing people who use sign language, such as children of deaf adults.
HASA is a social benefit 501(c)(3) organization located in Baltimore, Maryland, that specializes in facilitating communication. Established in 1926, the organization provides special education services through Gateway School, audiology and speech-language services through its Clinical Services Department, and interpreting services for the deaf through its CIRS Interpreting Department.
Language deprivation in deaf and hard-of-hearing children is a delay in language development that occurs when sufficient exposure to language, spoken or signed, is not provided in the first few years of a deaf or hard of hearing child's life, often called the critical or sensitive period. Early intervention, parental involvement, and other resources all work to prevent language deprivation. Children who experience limited access to language—spoken or signed—may not develop the necessary skills to successfully assimilate into the academic learning environment. There are various educational approaches for teaching deaf and hard of hearing individuals. Decisions about language instruction is dependent upon a number of factors including extent of hearing loss, availability of programs, and family dynamics.
The Language Equality and Acquisition for Deaf Kids (LEAD-K) campaign is a grassroots organization. Its mission is to work towards kindergarten readiness for deaf and hard-of-hearing children by promoting access to both American Sign Language (ASL) and English. LEAD-K defines kindergarten readiness as perceptive and expressive proficiency in language by the age of five. Deaf and hard-of-hearing children are at high risk of being cut off from language, language deprivation, which can have far-reaching consequences in many areas of development. There are a variety of methods to expose Deaf and hard-of-hearing children to language, including hearing aids, cochlear implants, sign language, and speech and language interventions such as auditory/verbal therapy and Listening and Spoken Language therapy. The LEAD-K initiative was established in response to perceived high rates of delayed language acquisition or language deprivation displayed among that demographic, leading to low proficiency in English skills later in life.
Out of nearly 59 million people in Italy, about 3.5 million Italians have some form of hearing loss. Among them, around 70,000 people are severely deaf. The European Union for the Deaf reports that the majority of the deaf people in Italy use Italian Sign Language (LIS). LIS has been an official sign language in Italy since 2021. Italy, among other countries, ratified the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and is slowly improving conditions for deaf humans in Italy. Many major organizations in Italy fight for deaf rights and spread awareness to the Italian National Agency for the protection and assistance of the Deaf and Associated Italian Families for the Defense of the Rights of Deaf and Hard of Hearing Individuals (FIADDA). Newborns in Italy also receive universal hearing screenings. Education in Italy is directed towards oralism, although sign language is also used. LIS is a stable language and is used by approximately 40,000 users in Italy.
The Global Coalition of Parents of Children who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing (GPODHH) is an international collaboration of parent-led support groups for families with children who are deaf or hard of hearing and provides support, information, and systemic advocacy. GPODHH advocates for the need for families to be active collaborators and partners throughout the development of new programs, services and systems directed to the lives of children who are deaf or hard of hearing and their families.
References
- ↑ "Culturally Competent Family Support". NCHAM. Archived from the original on 2012-08-21. Retrieved 4 October 2012.
- 1 2 Beck, D; Seaver, L (January 2006). "Hands & Voices says, the right choice for the child is the one that works". Hearing Journal. 59 (1): 77. doi: 10.1097/01.hj.0000286247.56310.b1 .
