Finding the best learning for deaf children

The debate about the best method of teaching children who are deaf appears to be never-ending.

Parents of these children face some tough decisions. Despite this, parents, teachers, and professionals can act together to ensure that children who are deaf reach their full potential in life.

One of the most important questions is which approach should teach language skills? We all use language to communicate, but we need formal lessons to develop our understanding further. Most young babies learn language by simply having conversations with people around them, but they also need more structured learning for deaf children as they grow older. This structure is even more critical for those who cannot hear, so both sign and speech-based approaches may be taught simultaneously. It has been found that those who use both speech and sign from the start make the most progress.

In the past, hearing aids and other sound-producing devices were used to help children hear sounds and develop their speech skills better. These could be useful for some children but not for all. Despite this, we still know very little about how well they work or effective teaching language to deaf children. Apart from anecdotal evidence – hearing parents often give glowing reports of their child’s progress. So it has been challenging to determine if these interventions would also benefit other children.

Research has identified which aspects of spoken language are most important for understanding and speaking well: phonology, vocabulary, grammar, and pragmatics (e.g., knowing when and how to use language appropriately).

Many older children have had difficulty learning the fundamental aspects of spoken language, so it may be harder for them to catch up later. We often know more about results for younger learners, but there are very few studies that follow deaf children up into their teenage years. The best evidence suggests that signing alone does not lead to good English skills in adolescence. However, the debate is still ongoing.

Parents of these children face some tough decisions. Despite this, parents, teachers, and professionals can act together to ensure that children who are deaf reach their full potential in life. One of the most important questions is which approach should teach language skills? We all use language to communicate, but we need formal lessons to develop our understanding further. Most young babies learn language by simply having conversations with people around them, but they also need more structured learning as they grow older. This structure is even more critical for those who cannot hear, so both sign and speech-based approaches may be taught simultaneously. It has been found that those who use both speech and sign from the start make the most progress.

In the past, hearing aids and other sound-producing devices were used to help children hear sounds and develop their speech skills better. These could be useful for some children but not for all.