Deaf Professors Challenges - Case Study Example

Deaf Challenges Deaf Challenges Julia is a new assistant in the University of America’s department of deaf education, deaf studies and speech hearing language .In this department, there are fifteen faculty members out of which four are deaf. The first semester goes well for her until the next semester when she begins to notice that some tasks given to her are supposed to be performed by senior faculty. Some faculty members even ignored her even those who knew sign language .Julia continues to achieve more and working hard and even after her reward with the grant she had applied for, no one appreciates her. She then receives negative comments the following year on issues of being unfriendly and absenteeism in some faculty meetings. She is even interrupted in her conversations or ignored completely (Szybinski & Jordan, 2010, p. 4-6 & L. 1-99). Julia’s situation has to do with her positive attitude towards her new job, something that is not tradition in the department. Most of the faculty members are not motivated to apply for grants or get involved in research with students but Julia wants to make a difference. This is in accordance with the academic duty of a professor. This makes her colleagues feel like she is trying too hard to make an impression. The senior faculty then decides to put her down by ignoring her and giving negative feedback during review. They see her as unfriendly because she doesn’t exchange pleasantries with colleagues. She looks like she is alienating herself from the rest of the faculty members by no attending some meetings. Her situation is made worse when she does not involve herself with office gossip. This makes the seniors feel like she is being intimidating and rebellious (Cariaga-Lo, et al, 2010, P.19-22 & L. 1-98). Julia’s colleagues refuse to vote for her tenure because as they stated, she does not relate well with her colleagues. This however is much deeper than that. Considering that she has the best skills in research and worked for the benefit of the department, the seniors did not take this positively. The faculty feels that they are being undermined by a junior staff. They alienate her and use it against her during evaluation. Julia makes the situation worse when she decides to take matters in her own hands. She ignores her colleagues completely by closing her office door and only opening it during office hours. She makes it even worse when she decides to discuss her colleagues with other faculty members from other departments instead of taking her concerns to the department chair. This is not professional at all. It is against the academic duty of the professoriate. She might have received negativity but how she handles the situation leads to her problems. If I were Julia’s department chair, I would explain to her that there are laws against discrimination of deaf people. These are included in the Americans with Disabilities act. If none of those rules have been violated, I would then advise her to try and be sociable for a start. This could start by exchanging pleasantries with her colleagues. I would advise her that ignoring people and alienating herself is not the solution to the problem. She cannot force people to like her but she could at least try to be likeable. She should not also start undermining senior faculty (Marschark, 2007, P. 8 & L.1-17). This will make her life more difficult since these people will determine her future in her career. The least she can do in her situation is to try and build a relationship with people. She should have given them time to adjust to her way of teaching instead of going to discuss her colleagues with others and distancing herself. She should have tried harder to get along with her colleagues and maybe they would have learnt to accommodate her and see her in the positive side. Julia’s case is not unique at all. These are some of the issues that face many people in their places of work. Julia is saddened by the fact that the hearing faculty is insensitive about the deaf faculty and ignores the need to use sign language in the department hallways. This is in violation of the Americans with Disability act. The act prohibits any form of discrimination towards people with any disability. In 1990.President bush used speech cards at the signing ceremony of the act. The faculty has failed to honor the rights of deaf people in their department (Ladd, 2003, P. 457 & L. 1-27). There are various reasons why relationships in departments are strained. Lack of trust is one of them. In the above case study, Julia loses trust for her colleagues. This means she cannot approach them for any meaningful conversations. She ends up alienating herself. Another reason is tenures. These are usually determined by colleagues. People can either choose to have you fired or to let you stay. Colleagues use their attitude against her to get her fired. This is like revenge for them. Tenures can cause negativity in departments especially when it comes to voting. People tend to misuse this by punishing colleagues for personal issues (Marschark, 2005, P.85 & L.1-30). Deaf professors are not different from their hearing colleagues. The way to make a first good impression is to show that the disability does not withhold you from achieving anything. It is also very important to make people judge you from your confidence and achievement as opposed to sympathy. Relating to people is very important. One should not be distant from others just because of the disability. Deaf professors should also try to show people that sign language is easy and fun and not something to feel embarrassed about. There is still hope for Julia before her fifth year. She can still redeem herself before her tenure case is determined. She can convince her colleagues to look at her from a different view. She can change her attitude towards her colleagues by being more open to them. She could approach them personally by making her concerns known to them instead of discussing issues with other people which is equivalent to gossip. This way, people will see her as a professional. This will make her colleagues become open to her and it will enhance team work. It is very important to have a good relationship with colleagues not just to ensure you get tenured but to have a conducive environment to work and have a peace of mind. Dealing with people can be challenging but it’s possible. All one needs to do is to understand their working environment especially if they are new to the place. They can then start to relate from that point so as not to appear intimidating and rude. References Szybinski, D., & Jordan, T.(2010). Navigating the Future of the Professoriate. AAC&U, 4-6. Cariaga-Lo, L., Dawkins, P., Enger, R., Schotter, A., & Spence, C. (2010). Supporting the Development of Professoriate. AAC&U, 19-22. Marschark, Marc. Raising and Educating a Deaf Child: A Comprehensive Guide to the Choices, Controversies, and Decisions Faced by Parents and Educators. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007. Internet resource. Marschark, Marc. Sign Language Interpreting and Interpreter Education: Directions for Research and Practice. New York: Oxford University Press, 2005. Internet resource. Ladd, P. (2003). Understanding deaf culture: In search of deafhood. Clevedon, England: Multilingual Matters. Read More