Activity 2c

C&I 335

Summer, 1998

Michelle Tjelmeland

Franklin Middle School

Springfield, Illinois

Most of the articles I have read pertaining to individuals with disabilities focus on the visually impaired students.  Unfortunately, I feel there are other impairments that have been significantly overlooked.  For instance, in most of the articles I have reviewed, there was little information about how to make the classroom accessible for deaf or hard of hearing students.

I am sure that most teachers probably don't think much about hearing impairments because they feel students who have a hearing loss would be in a special classroom.  However, I can attest this is not the case. Issues concerning deaf and hard of hearing students intrigue me. This is simply due to the fact that I have a hearing loss.  What do I mean by a hearing loss?  Specifically, I have a severe hearing loss in the C and D range, which basically means I am tone deaf.  Let me explain, there are four ranges of sound:  A, B, C, and D.  The A and B range are sounds like voices.  The C and D range are sounds like sirens, alarm clocks, and telephones. 

With my loss, I cannot hear ambulances, which is very scary when driving and one is coming my direction.   I can not hear alarm clocks or telephones ringing or the school bell or door bell when it rings or birds chirping on a beautiful day or the apnea monitor that my daughter was sent home from the hospital with.  In addition to the C and D range hearing loss that I have, I also have a mild hearing loss in the A and B range.  So I struggle with everyday situations like talking on the phone or talking to someone who has their back toward me.   I read lips so when someone is in another room or has their back to me I cannot see what they are saying.  I cannot understand the television (unless, of course, it has closed captioning) or the radio.  I cannot carry on a conversation in a noisy social situation because I cannot block out the background noise. 

Each day I struggle to understand what goes on around me.  Most people probably don't recognize this disability because you can't see a hearing loss.  For instance, when one sees an individual in a wheel chair, we will open the door or assist them while getting through a small aisle.  But, when one has a hearing impairment, we often do not recognize it because we cannot see it.  Although, I do wear hearing aids they are discrete so most people don't notice. Because, I understand how frustrating it is to have a hearing loss, I want people, specifically teachers, to understand just how easily a hearing loss can be overlooked.

I was one of those students who would always be called on to read and never knew where the class was, not because I wasn't paying attention but because I couldn't hear.  I was the student in the class who never remembered anything from a lesson plan that was lectured because I couldn't hear.  I was the student in the class who never volunteered to do anything in fear of not being able to hear others around me. 

The scariest thing about all of this was that I passed every school hearing examination.  So my parents assumed that I could hear.   It was not until 4 years ago age 20 that my hearing loss was finally diagnosed.  After months of researching to find a hearing specialist, my parents located a doctor in Tennessee who finally diagnosed me with a severe hearing loss associated with nerve damage.  He claims that it was amazing that I made it through school and college.  He said my loss was so severe that I should have gone to school for the deaf.  The saddest thing to me is that no one caught it--not the school, not my parents, and not even me!!

I learned how to accommodate. I would sit in the front of the class so I could see the teacher's mouth, I would tape record lectures, I would spend hours reading what a teacher lectured to us in class.  In my own classroom, I constantly walked around the room so that when students asked questions I would be close enough to watch their mouths.  I learned how to accommodate a loss that I didn't know I even had.  My hope is that this story will help a teacher diagnose a student who may have a hearing loss that has been overlooked. 

Below are links that are related to deaf and hearing impaired individuals.

Click here to visit CAST:  Access through multimedia captioning.

This web site deals with creating captioning for any video material from classic films to student produce materials.  By using captioning materials, teachers create easy accessibility for students with a wide range of auditory impairments and reading skills.  This systems allows users to create a variety of fonts, colors, icons, and images. 

Click here to visit NCAM (National Center for Accessible Media) Success Stories.

This site contains 15 Success Stories that illustrate effective learning with multimedia, videotape, the Internet, and telecommunications for deaf and hard of hearing students.  Each story contains information about the implementation procedures, people to contact for concerns or questions, and creative ideas for the classroom.  These stories were written by Mardi Loeterman and Judith E. Harkins, Ph. D of Gallaudet University.  These stories are a result of qualitative research funded by the U.S. Department of Education.   For more information about about this site or the Center of Applied Special Technology (CAST) contact Carol Vallone, President and CEO of Universal Learning Technology at 978-538-0036.

  Click here to visit a Teacher Resource site related to deaf and hard of hearing students.

This site contains a list of detailed resources including videotapes, books, e-mail addresses, web sites, and educational kits designed to educate teachers on how to work with deaf and hard of hearing students. This site has information about telecommunication, video captioning, Internet use, classroom computer networks, multimedia demonstrations, computer notetaking software, books on computers, and software evaluation all related to hearing impaired individuals.   For information about this site, contact the National Center for Accessible Media in Boston, MA at 617-492-9258 (voice/TTY)

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