I am always looking for links to reliable, informative websites regarding educational research for D/deaf kids. When I find them, I pass them on. Here is one from RIT and Marc Marschart.
http://www.rit.edu/ntid/cerp/edcwebsite
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Friday, November 19, 2010
BKB-SIN test
I promised I would give an update of my daughter's booth test when I got it. She was tested last summer, but there was a mix up in getting the report out, so it took a bit longer than expected to get the results, but here they are:
She took the BKB-SIN test, which tests signal to noise ratio compared to "normal" hearing. In this case, it compares how loud the background noise is for a hearing person to get 50% correct answers, and compares it to how loud the background noise needs to be for the person with the hearing loss to get 50% correct. Here is an explaination from a BKB-SIN users manual.
"If a normal-hearing subject requires a +2 dB SNR to obtain 50% correct on a speech-in-noise test, and a hearing-impaired subject requires a +8 dB SNR to obtain 50% correct on the same test, the SNR loss for the hearing impaired subject is 6 dB."
Her SNR for both ears tested together was 3.5 dB. If I understand this test, that means that she needs 3.5 dB higher signal to noise ratio than kids her age with "normal" hearing in order to get the same amount of understanding of the verbal information given.
That just amazes me.
She took the BKB-SIN test, which tests signal to noise ratio compared to "normal" hearing. In this case, it compares how loud the background noise is for a hearing person to get 50% correct answers, and compares it to how loud the background noise needs to be for the person with the hearing loss to get 50% correct. Here is an explaination from a BKB-SIN users manual.
"If a normal-hearing subject requires a +2 dB SNR to obtain 50% correct on a speech-in-noise test, and a hearing-impaired subject requires a +8 dB SNR to obtain 50% correct on the same test, the SNR loss for the hearing impaired subject is 6 dB."
Her SNR for both ears tested together was 3.5 dB. If I understand this test, that means that she needs 3.5 dB higher signal to noise ratio than kids her age with "normal" hearing in order to get the same amount of understanding of the verbal information given.
That just amazes me.
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Myths
One of my biggest frustrations when doing my research on ALL THINGS DEAF was the vast amount of myths I encountered. If the people and groups giving me information would have just limited themselves to telling me what they did well and why, it would have been fine. But they could not seem to stop themselves from also telling me what "the other side" did poorly. And therein lay the foundation of MYTHS. I have to tell you, those spouting the words "AG BAD" really irritated me. They didn't help their cause at all. Badmouthing differing options cast them in a very poor light. Those who tried to use the 4TH GRADE READING LEVEL to try and promote their agenda got me angry as well. I encountered those who told me that kids with CIs could not take baths because they would have WIRES STICKING OUT OF THEIR HEADS. I was also told that my child would never learn language unless (take your pick) WE LEFT OUT SIGN LANGUAGE AND WENT WITH AVT/WE WENT STRICTLY ASL WITH NO ORAL LANGUAGE.
Give me a break.
The myth I dislike the most is the one where people told me that we should wait to have our daughter implanted because she should have a say in it. We just needed to wait until she got older so she could decide for herself. Any parents who buy into this myth are deluding themselves. The younger the child is at the time of the implant, the easier it is for that child to learn to process the signals into meaningful sound. The older they are, the harder it is. If the parents wait until the child is old enough to decide, chances are good that the child will not be able to make very good progress turning those signals into meaningful sound. The simple act of waiting itself makes the decision. Whether they want to or not, the parent does decide. The only exception is if the child's hearing loss is not profound, and they have good use of hearing aids. In that case, they are not even eligible for implants so the point is moot.
I have encountered myths both from the ASL Deaf Community, and the oral deaf. All these myths produce is anger and disappointment in the families who are new to these issues, trying to raise their baby in this new-to-them world of hearing loss. They lose trust in the people giving them the information, and they are very likely to reject those they find they cannot trust. And that is probably the saddest outcome of all.
What myths did you encounter?
Give me a break.
The myth I dislike the most is the one where people told me that we should wait to have our daughter implanted because she should have a say in it. We just needed to wait until she got older so she could decide for herself. Any parents who buy into this myth are deluding themselves. The younger the child is at the time of the implant, the easier it is for that child to learn to process the signals into meaningful sound. The older they are, the harder it is. If the parents wait until the child is old enough to decide, chances are good that the child will not be able to make very good progress turning those signals into meaningful sound. The simple act of waiting itself makes the decision. Whether they want to or not, the parent does decide. The only exception is if the child's hearing loss is not profound, and they have good use of hearing aids. In that case, they are not even eligible for implants so the point is moot.
I have encountered myths both from the ASL Deaf Community, and the oral deaf. All these myths produce is anger and disappointment in the families who are new to these issues, trying to raise their baby in this new-to-them world of hearing loss. They lose trust in the people giving them the information, and they are very likely to reject those they find they cannot trust. And that is probably the saddest outcome of all.
What myths did you encounter?
Friday, October 15, 2010
Another Viewpoint
In an earlier blog, "Does It Have To Be Either/Or", a person added a comment that has stuck with me. I have been mulling it over for a while, and I thought it was important enough to repeat it here in its own blog.
The comment is as follows:
I can only respond to this comment with my experience as a hearing person who learned ASL as an adult. I am an interpreter and a teacher. I teach deaf and hard of hearing children. I came to teaching in a much different way than most teachers of the deaf as I was an interpreter before I was a teacher and therefore my bias is that I have a cultural perspective on the Deaf Community rather than a pathological or deficit perspective.
When I see little kids with implants, even though I realize their parents have made that decision out of love and desire for their children to be the happiest and most successful thay can be, my heart hurts. It isn't a logical response but an emotional response. One lovely little deaf kid who will no longer be Deaf. A future member of the community - lost. A next generation of leadership, one for the current group of teens to mentor, no longer there. If your child with a (working) implant is actually bilingual and bicultural - bravo! This is unusual.
I know one challenge to youth programs I am involved in today is including deaf kids with CIs who do not sign fluently but are learning. How do we make the most of the precious time the ASL using deaf kids who can't hear at all have to actually socialize with complete freedom and ease as equals with their peers and yet still accommodate those kids who can't sign well enough to understand fluent ASL? The ASL using kids NEED time in an ASL envorinment for their own linguistic and cognitive development - they are all mainstreamed and have hearing parents so they don't get this opportunity very often. However, once the CI kids arrive, the number of kids using English-based signing and speech alone rises. This means the ASL using kids are once again (in the long list of times they are marginalized - home, school, everywhere they go) out of the loop and wondering what people are saying. This is a dilemma. No easy answers in a world where Deaf people are an increasingly tiny minority.
I hear what s/he is saying (the comment was anonymous). I am sorry that the commenter's heart is sad at the growing number of kids who are implanted. It doesn't change how I feel about my decision to have my daughter implanted. My allegiance as a parent is to my child only, and making the best decisions I can for her future. I knew at the time that this would not be a popular decision in the Deaf Community, but they are not my responsibility. My child is. However, it doesn't change the fact that many Deaf, do feel this personal pain at seeing these little kids wearing implants and jabbering away like hearing kids do. Their feelings deserve my respect.
The commenter's last paragraph is very important and relevant to what is happening now. How do we try to integrate those kids with implants who want to learn ASL into the Deaf Community, while continuing to support those kids who use ASL as their primary language, and need the Deaf Community for most of their social support? If there is a Deaf event, it is important for parents and the adults involved in it to impress upon the CI kids how important it is for them to use ASL at all times. The CI kids need the practice signing, and the ASL kids deserve complete access to all conversations that are going on. Your thoughts?
The comment is as follows:
I can only respond to this comment with my experience as a hearing person who learned ASL as an adult. I am an interpreter and a teacher. I teach deaf and hard of hearing children. I came to teaching in a much different way than most teachers of the deaf as I was an interpreter before I was a teacher and therefore my bias is that I have a cultural perspective on the Deaf Community rather than a pathological or deficit perspective.
When I see little kids with implants, even though I realize their parents have made that decision out of love and desire for their children to be the happiest and most successful thay can be, my heart hurts. It isn't a logical response but an emotional response. One lovely little deaf kid who will no longer be Deaf. A future member of the community - lost. A next generation of leadership, one for the current group of teens to mentor, no longer there. If your child with a (working) implant is actually bilingual and bicultural - bravo! This is unusual.
I know one challenge to youth programs I am involved in today is including deaf kids with CIs who do not sign fluently but are learning. How do we make the most of the precious time the ASL using deaf kids who can't hear at all have to actually socialize with complete freedom and ease as equals with their peers and yet still accommodate those kids who can't sign well enough to understand fluent ASL? The ASL using kids NEED time in an ASL envorinment for their own linguistic and cognitive development - they are all mainstreamed and have hearing parents so they don't get this opportunity very often. However, once the CI kids arrive, the number of kids using English-based signing and speech alone rises. This means the ASL using kids are once again (in the long list of times they are marginalized - home, school, everywhere they go) out of the loop and wondering what people are saying. This is a dilemma. No easy answers in a world where Deaf people are an increasingly tiny minority.
I hear what s/he is saying (the comment was anonymous). I am sorry that the commenter's heart is sad at the growing number of kids who are implanted. It doesn't change how I feel about my decision to have my daughter implanted. My allegiance as a parent is to my child only, and making the best decisions I can for her future. I knew at the time that this would not be a popular decision in the Deaf Community, but they are not my responsibility. My child is. However, it doesn't change the fact that many Deaf, do feel this personal pain at seeing these little kids wearing implants and jabbering away like hearing kids do. Their feelings deserve my respect.
The commenter's last paragraph is very important and relevant to what is happening now. How do we try to integrate those kids with implants who want to learn ASL into the Deaf Community, while continuing to support those kids who use ASL as their primary language, and need the Deaf Community for most of their social support? If there is a Deaf event, it is important for parents and the adults involved in it to impress upon the CI kids how important it is for them to use ASL at all times. The CI kids need the practice signing, and the ASL kids deserve complete access to all conversations that are going on. Your thoughts?
Monday, October 11, 2010
Bullying
All the recent tragedies in the news about suicides from bullying and harrassment has me concerned. I have seen some nasty bullying in comments over the years on various blogs in DeafRead. It is the biggest reason I won't yet let my daughter participate on this blog. I just can't trust the commenters to behave themselves around a 12 year old girl. The anonymity of the blogesphere seems to breed comtempt. But it is not just here. As noted above, people seem to be getting more callous and hard-hearted everywhere. Somewhere during the "Me" generation, parents forgot to teach their kids compassion for others. The things they can get away with online seem to have blurred the lines with face-to-face interactions as well. People simply seem to no longer care about the feelings of others. It seems that as long as they can justify their behavior to themselves, anything goes. If a teen takes her own life, and the bullys that made her life hell can justify laughing at her during her own funeral, there is something seriously wrong with how those kids were raised.
There is really only one solution to the problem, and it starts with the parents. We must, absolutely MUST start teaching our kids respect and tolerance for others. In. All. Situations.
If we are to teach this, we must first live this. Online, and in real life, we must learn how to respect one another even if we disagree with their opinion. Every human being deserves to be safe, in body and soul. There is no justification for putting somebody else down because you disagree with something they have done, or believe, or how they live. Tolerance for others must become a priority in our lives. Religious, cultural, sexual orientation, physical differences, and for the D/deaf community - choices in D/deaf lifestyle. I don't care how you feel about someone's implant. They have a right to have or not have one, and parents have the right to choose this for their kids. An implant or the lack of one, does not make the person. We all have the responsibility to respect each other and not put them down or bully them because of their or their parent's choices. If kids in a deaf school are teasing another kid because s/he has an implant, it is probably because they learned at home that it was ok to get down on someone with an implant. If you as a parent have allowed that attitude, and your kid has become a bully because of it, you have some serious mirror work to do. Can any of us look at ourselves in the mirror without shame if we have allowed intolerance to fester in ourselves or our kids?
The only thing we cannot tolerate is intolerance. Please talk to your kids. Please look at the message you are sending them with your own words and actions. Please teach the difference between having an opinion different from someone else's and disrespecting them because of it. You never know when it will save a life.
There is really only one solution to the problem, and it starts with the parents. We must, absolutely MUST start teaching our kids respect and tolerance for others. In. All. Situations.
If we are to teach this, we must first live this. Online, and in real life, we must learn how to respect one another even if we disagree with their opinion. Every human being deserves to be safe, in body and soul. There is no justification for putting somebody else down because you disagree with something they have done, or believe, or how they live. Tolerance for others must become a priority in our lives. Religious, cultural, sexual orientation, physical differences, and for the D/deaf community - choices in D/deaf lifestyle. I don't care how you feel about someone's implant. They have a right to have or not have one, and parents have the right to choose this for their kids. An implant or the lack of one, does not make the person. We all have the responsibility to respect each other and not put them down or bully them because of their or their parent's choices. If kids in a deaf school are teasing another kid because s/he has an implant, it is probably because they learned at home that it was ok to get down on someone with an implant. If you as a parent have allowed that attitude, and your kid has become a bully because of it, you have some serious mirror work to do. Can any of us look at ourselves in the mirror without shame if we have allowed intolerance to fester in ourselves or our kids?
The only thing we cannot tolerate is intolerance. Please talk to your kids. Please look at the message you are sending them with your own words and actions. Please teach the difference between having an opinion different from someone else's and disrespecting them because of it. You never know when it will save a life.
Monday, September 20, 2010
Does It Have To Be Either/Or?
If there is one thing that confuses me about Deaf Culture, it is the seemingly insurmountable wall between ASL Deaf and oral deaf. I know absolutely that there are people out there who happily live in both spaces. They sign, they talk, they live their lives. But there also seems to be this attitude that proclaims "If you were oral and are part of the ASL Deaf Culture, then being oral deaf must have failed for you." People seem to question the success of implants if they see a Deaf person with a CI who is signing and an active member of the Deaf Community. Is there no room for someone who wants a Deaf Identity, who also enjoys the use of their implant?
My daughter is developing her Deaf Identity. She knows she is deaf, and would not change that. She likes being around other D/deaf people. She doesn't care if they are CI recipients, have hearing aids, or if they are ASL Deaf. She feels comfortable being around other D/deaf people. I would not change that for anything. I think it is important for her to have a good self image, and feel good about who she is. But she also loves her implants. She used to cry if we tried to take them off for naps or at bed time. She has an extensive CD collection, and loves music. She talks naturally and easily to her hearing friends. She even talks in her sleep.
I would not be surprised if she chooses to go to Gally for college. If her dream is to become an interpreter, that would be the best choice for her. I see in her, the ability to accept all types of deafness in other people, without judgement or prejudice. But I cannot say the same thing in return. If you see a deaf person with a CI using ASL, do you think "Their choice, their life, fine with me." or do you think "The CI must not work if they have to sign."
Some Deaf have said that they would welcome CI deaf into the Deaf Community if they respect and use ASL, even if they continue to use their implants. But the moment they show up, the response seems to be, "See, they need ASL. The implant must not work because here they are." I see it differently. I see that the Deaf Community is doing something right if CI deaf feel comfortable enough to want to participate in the Deaf Community even if they can easily speak and hear with their implants. What do you think? Please keep the comments respectful, or I will use my delete option. This is a moderated site.
My daughter is developing her Deaf Identity. She knows she is deaf, and would not change that. She likes being around other D/deaf people. She doesn't care if they are CI recipients, have hearing aids, or if they are ASL Deaf. She feels comfortable being around other D/deaf people. I would not change that for anything. I think it is important for her to have a good self image, and feel good about who she is. But she also loves her implants. She used to cry if we tried to take them off for naps or at bed time. She has an extensive CD collection, and loves music. She talks naturally and easily to her hearing friends. She even talks in her sleep.
I would not be surprised if she chooses to go to Gally for college. If her dream is to become an interpreter, that would be the best choice for her. I see in her, the ability to accept all types of deafness in other people, without judgement or prejudice. But I cannot say the same thing in return. If you see a deaf person with a CI using ASL, do you think "Their choice, their life, fine with me." or do you think "The CI must not work if they have to sign."
Some Deaf have said that they would welcome CI deaf into the Deaf Community if they respect and use ASL, even if they continue to use their implants. But the moment they show up, the response seems to be, "See, they need ASL. The implant must not work because here they are." I see it differently. I see that the Deaf Community is doing something right if CI deaf feel comfortable enough to want to participate in the Deaf Community even if they can easily speak and hear with their implants. What do you think? Please keep the comments respectful, or I will use my delete option. This is a moderated site.
Monday, August 2, 2010
Audiogram
I have said before that my daughter has made amazing use of her implants. She has especially good use with her left one, which she has had since she was 12 months old. She had a booth test the other day, along with testing in noise. I don't have the noise test report back yet, but here is her audiogram. CL is her left cochlear implant hearing, and CR is her right cochlear implant hearing.
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