Deaf Abilities

We are two Deaf Studies minors at Boston University. Our main goal is to expose the Deaf community to all hearing people so that they know about their hearing privileges. There are privileges that the hearing do not know about and if we do not actively confront them, the Deaf community would go unnoticed. 

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Look at what our classmates did!

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“Like much of America, I was raised having minimal to no interactions with the Deaf community and I didn’t give it a second thought. That is, until I took two years of American Sign Language (ASL) in high school and a full year of ASL at the University of Washington. While completing these classes, I discovered that there is a very strong and rich sense of community within Deaf culture. Over the years, I have found myself troubled by how a group of people so large (approximately 1 in 20 people are deaf or hard of hearing) could play such a minor role in America with stereotypes continuously dampening their career aspects. When the opportunity presented itself to create a video aimed to educate hearing people about the Deaf person’s inequality, I took it. I created the “Have We Cured Deafness?” video as part of a class project within my Master’s program (Communication Leadership) at the University of Washington. I designed this three-minute video to both set the stage for and be the first of a series that will further break down stereotypes that plague the Deaf community. I hope you not only take the time to watch “Have We Cured Deafness?” but that you also do the due diligence of looking into Deaf culture and how we can improve our systems to better include these amazing people. As stated in the video, I recommend StartASL.com to learn more about Deaf culture.’ Director - Jacob Christensen Filming Assistant - Leigh Burmesch

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Signed languages can do so many things spoken languages can’t | Sarah Klenbort

Sarah Klenbort: The Deaf community is no utopia, but it does offer an alternative language, culture and social life to those who choose to be a part of it

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Some 37 million people suffer from hearing loss, yet most private medical insurance doesn't cover the cost of hearing aids.

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African refugee is blossoming at School for the Deaf

Students travel from around the state to attend the Kentucky School for the Deaf in Danville.

Students travel from around the state to attend the Kentucky School for the Deaf in Danville.

One student, however, had a long journey before he ever arrived in Kentucky.

A native of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and a refugee residing in Burundi, Ghilain Masudi and his family made their way to Lexington with the help of Kentucky Refugee Ministries, Inc., in July of 2015.

“The refugee service contacted us,” said Soraya Matthews, director of instruction for the high school at Kentucky School for the Deaf. “They had an 18-year-old who was from a refugee camp. They were not sure what his language exposure was, but they knew he had exposure to French and Swahili and possibly sign language. They wanted to know if we could provide some services for him.”

Because of his age, Ghilain is under a time crunch; he must complete his degree before he turns 21. Fayette County, the district through which Ghilain is enrolled, can choose to let him return after his birthday.

Either way, Ghilain remains determined to finish.

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In September last year a five-year-old boy arrived at preschool in Sydney with no language. Owen is deaf and for five years medical professionals instructed his parents not to sign. The boy had been fitted with cochlear implants and told these devices would eventually give him access to speech. They didn't.

As someone who works with students who didn’t have access to language until they were older ( any where from age 3 to age 9!). This creates HUGE deficits. Just because the kid has some access to sound does not mean they will develop language on their own. 

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Seconding the above comment. I work with deaf and hard of hearing kids who often don’t get language access until they’re older- one boy I met this summer is 13 and had just a few words and gestures to communicate with people. The effect is profound, and the kids are forced to play catchup for many years IF they gain access to fully accessible (signed) language. Hearing aids aren’t language. CIs aren’t language. They’re tools that are often, not always, helpful, and need to be learned. 

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“For most children, early childhood is the time for language acquisition and development.  What is known is that many DHH enter public education without sufficient language foundations.  What isn’t known is when children are ready for an interpreted education and how parents and educational professionals know when they are. Thinking, in and of itself, is interpretation.  For DHH students, watching an interpretation requires not only cognitive skills (for comprehension, monitoring, etc.), it also requires metacognitive skills to think about the interpretation, think about their own thinking, analyze their own learning and the thinking of others, and so on.  Few public schools educate DHH learners about what EIs do or how to use them, but their roles are unique and vary across grade levels.”

And yet, schools are putting D/HH kids, who may have minimal language skills, into mainstream classrooms with an educational interpreter at age 3 and 5 :/

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Study of Cognitive Development in Deaf Children Revisits Longstanding Debate - UConn Today

In deaf children, excluding sign language in favor of auditory implants may be a risky approach for their cognitive development.

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Bangor-area police officers learn sign language basics

Area police officers learned a new skill Monday thanks to a program called American Sign Language for Police.

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The professor is doing a good imitation of a whooping crane. He is so good he has the attention of everyone in the lecture hall. Almost.

This article was written 19 years ago. I thought the perspective and dated information was really interesting. It’s hard to believe that Signed English was used at the university level as the only signing modality.

“While on duty, interpreters are required to wear a dark blue smock which identifies them in the classroom and helps reduce glare for the observer. But beyond the dress code, the job requirements get more difficult.”

“At CSUN, interpreters use a language called Signed English to translate classroom lectures. In Signed English, every word, including conjunctions and articles, is communicated using the grammatical structure of speech.”

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A little light reading :) Happy belated Birthday to myself.

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All-American Family: Deaf football team inspires town - CNN Video

"All-American Family" tells the story of how a high school football team made up of deaf players have captured the hearts and minds of Pleasanton, California. Directed by Andrew Jenks.

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Hearing educators of the deaf, listen to us

But when you believe in us, when you trust in our abilities instead of being fixated on what you consider a disability, how we can soar! We take flight at last, going far and high, finding our way to unexpected freedoms.

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I’m actually laughing right now because when I was trying to get to the link to show the source… it’s taking forever to open (and I still can’t get it). Yet the ASL related links, are so fast in opening. I’m thinking it’s my internet connection, nope! It won’t even open on my mobile phone.

FINALLY GOTTEN THE SOURCE!

Clearly, Spoken Language isn’t the BEST ONLY option for deaf/hoh children. Yes it’s unfortunate how people think spoken language and medical perspective is the best only option when in reality it’s visual language. People believe that Sign Language will ‘decrease language acquisition”  When in reality, it (ASL) flourishes tremendously and that individual. Giving the option of BOTH can be beneficial to a Deaf/HOH child/adult. Bilingualism is best too, Sign Language and English can be amazing. Focusing on Literacy instead of “becoming like a hearing person, learn to speak!” Many Deaf/HOH children feel isolated and are delayed within social interaction because of the many outings for speech therapy.  Also, many Deaf/HOH individuals I now don’t say “I am so thankful for my parents to teach me spoken language!” many say “I wish I knew Sign Language as a child because it would have helped me so much. Gain my confidence, social interaction, and understanding of my surroundings”

Also, our ears aren’t something to be a cure for and can be cured. No matter if we have the assistive technology, it doesn’t mean it “restores our hearing”. We will still forever struggle within the environment and surrounding. They assist but they do not “restore” what we don’t have. 

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The current president of A.G. Bell is the worst! Most of the things I read from her leave my blood boiling. If you want to read more…here is her response to the Pediatrics (that recommended sign for deaf infants) article a while back. 

http://www.agbell.org/AGBellResponsetoPediatrics/?utm_source=eNEWS.072115.MedEl&utm_campaign=eNews.072115&utm_medium=email

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Payton Bogert is a straight-A student taking advanced high school classes, yet she knows she'll likely struggle on a part of Florida's upcoming language arts exam.

My students have to do this too and that section drives me nuts. I have to sign the story and was told to do so with limited inflection and expression so that it models the spoken voice track (which I never had access to)…WTF

They only get to see the story twice and it is a huge struggle for students who are new to sign language and/or do not have strong auditory skills. 

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“Beyond Inclusion is a short fictional film that takes place in the near future. The word “disability” has been replaced with “human diversity,” and innovations in technology make it possible for meaningful connections between all people. Even with these advances in laws and technology, it may not be enough. Will our culture change? Will certain groups of people still be “cured” or removed? Or are we strong enough to stand together, to fight for and preserve all kinds of human diversity?”

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ASL Unlocking Communication

“April 15 is celebrated as National ASL Day and marks the last day of Deaf History Month. On April 15, 1817, the first school for the deaf in the United States opened and the language we know as ASL began to form— born from a mix of Native American Signs, French Signs, and Martha’s Vineyard Sign Language.

ASL is a language created right in America by deaf Americans for deaf Americans. It is the key to a visual culture that has its own folk tales, stories, and sense of humor. Offering yet another tool to figure out this crazy world, sign language is the birthright of every deaf child.”