Understanding Students with Hearing Loss - Research Paper Example

? and Section # of Understanding with Hearing Loss A vast majority of people in this world are born healthy, with all the senses working, a gift from God. Some unfortunate persons have a certain handicap. It may be a lack of sight, ability to walk or even some physical handicap in the human body. A mere minority have the problem of hearing. Hearing loss is of several natures starting from completely deaf to partially deaf, a fact discussed later. The main issue for such people is the acquiring of knowledge in daily life and especially in the classroom environment. This paper deals with the said issue, teaching and learning relationship when the student has the problem of hearing. Understanding Hearing Loss Before hearing loss is explained, a brief introduction to the process of hearing is very important in the context of this research. The listening of a sound can be described in two basic notations, one being audition on the other being vibration. Audition is the hearing process; whereas; vibration is the interpretation of pattern, of air molecules on the ear drum. Sound itself can be divided into two parts. The first one is the frequency on the sound and the second one is its loudness. Being deaf means unable to hear any kind of a sound but this is not the only form of hearing disability. Hearing disability can be broker down into two main parts. One is deaf, which means that the person has a hearing loss of 70-90 dB and cannot hear with any kind of amplification. The second part is the person who has loss of hearing in the range of 20-70 dB but can hear with use of amplification devices. Both there forms of hearing disability can cause great stress in every-day life of a human as well as being the sole reason for slow learning of this person. The report looks into the methods of overcoming this disability and making these students in a classroom attain good grades and live a normal life (Ann, 1995). Communication Options Communication between teachers and students on the same frequency is the only secret for the success of the teacher-student relationship, be it a normal one or one in which the student has some physical disability. There are many ways a teacher can communicate or transfer knowledge into the minds of a person who has a hearing disability. The first and foremost method is oral communication by enhancing or amplifying sound to develop language skills as well as understanding skills. After oral, the most used method is applied which is manual communication. In manual communication sign language or finger spelling is used. A universal sign language has been developed for the help of teachers and students alike. Finally the simultaneous method in which both amplification is sign language by the teacher to explain the phenomenon of science, math , literature or any other subject under light. Challenges Faced There are numerous issues faced by both teacher and the student alike, student more that the teachers though. The first basic and foremost challenge is one, especially to students in primary classes, is of reading and writing. As the process of learning to read is dependant on hearing and the one of writing is dependant on reading. Therefore it is the first challenge that comes across a hearing impaired child. The second problem is not directly related to the class environment but directly affects the emotional behavior of a student in class. This problem is due to a various number of interactions a hearing impaired child faces in his everyday life. His interactions with the parents, friends and the sense of social isolation all play a vital role. Teacher in these scenarios can play a vital role and sail the child from the storms of social disparities against such students (Elizibeth, 2010). Teaching Strategies Various steps can be taken by the teacher in a class for the teacher to enhance the learning abilities of a hearing impaired student and in turn have a better understanding of the student. Every student with this disability has different kinds of needs in the classroom environment. Bringing such students closer to you is the most important and difficult task for a teacher. Constant preaching about people with similar disability who moved forward and made their names in this world is one way to go. Listening to whatever way these children communicate is also very important. Even if you don’t understand what they are saying, the face expressions can be humble and one which are not presenting a rude nature. The self-esteem of these children is very delicate and has to be handled in an even more delicate manner. Speaking slowly and clearly is another method combined with hand actions bring a much better change in the students , deaf or not, but in this case it is more than required (Edward, 2005). Various other small gestures like smiling and proper attention helps them gain confidence which they lack due to the every day treatment they receive from the normal people. These children have a lesser sense in hearing but that has made their observation and feeling sense much stronger than normal people. Every gesture a teacher makes can be misinterpreted by them indulging them into their shells further. The sole purpose of a teacher trying to understand them is to bring them out of their shell, rather than pushing him or her more in it. Conclusion A very sad fact of this world is that people do not care about those who have not been gifted in all physical departments by God. These things are out of our control and should be kept that way. Understanding physically impaired students, be it any form of disability, is essential for imparting knowledge to them. Knowledge is a universal right which is above all the physical abilities and disabilities of mankind. Various methods have been used to understand and make understand the hearing impaired students. Various new methods have been devised. The job of understanding before teaching such students is not at all difficult, only extreme dedication is required. Teachers in this modern era have a very important job to play, especially in the lives of physically handicapped students. The teachers can bring about a huge change in the present and future lives of these children who need a little more attention in life to keep their lives on track for a prosperous future. Works Cited Keller, E. Strategies for teaching students with hearing impairments. (2005) www.as.wvu.edu 08-04-2011 http://www.as.wvu.edu/~scidis/hearing.html#sect0 Turnbell, A. Exceptional Lives: Special Education in Today’s Schools. Pearson Prentice Hall. (1995) Wistorm, E. Understanding Children with Hearing Disabilities and Their Special Needs (2010) 08-04-2011 http://www.brighthub.com/education/special/articles/16255.aspx#ixzz3gyZRTeK8 Read More