Cochlear Implant Persuasive Essay

Cochlear implants are becoming more and more popular now. Even babies as young as 12 months are receiving a cochlear implant. For hearing parents it’s more convenient to have their child get a cochlear implant rather then to learn sign language. Hearing parents usually just look for the simple way out because they don’t want to have a child who is “different.�

(n.d.). Part one: the deaf community and cochlear implants my child can have more choices: reflections of deaf mothers on cochlear implants for their children. Cochlear Implants: Evolving Perspectives. Retrieved February 09, 2018, from http://gupress.gallaudet.edu/excerpts/CIEP.html

In today’s society there is an ongoing debate of weather children who are deaf should receive cochlear implants. A cochlear implant is a device that takes sound wave and changes the waves into electrical activity for the brain to interpret. Wire called electrodes are surgically implanted into the cochlear nerve which receives a signal from the microphone attached to the transmitter and speech processor. The microphone captures the sound from the environment and the speech processor filters the noise versus speech. Then the transmitter sends an electrical signal through the electrodes to stimulate the cochlear nerve. Every person has a different thought depending on their experiences in their life whether deaf children should receive cochlear

To implant or not implant? Many parents’ who are hearing that have deaf children contemplate this question. Because they want to fix the “problem” of deafness. For they want the best for their son or daughters and the “best” is to hear. For those of the deaf culture, they believe a parent who implants their child is abusing the child. Deafness is not a “problem”, but a way of life. Who is right? Unfortunately, there is no right or wrong answer, there is no manual, or signs that say “this way will lead to a better future”; it’s a personal judgement call.

A Cochlear Implant is an electronic device that partially restores hearing in people who have severe hearing loss due to damage of the inner ear and who receive limited benefit from hearing aids (http://www.cochlear.com/wps/wcm/connect/au/home/understand/hearing-and-hl/hl-treatments/cochlear-implant). In some cases there are patients whose hearing did not adjust correctly, having a risk of developing a virus, complications after the surgery, the benefits of sign language without a cochlear implant and lastly children or adults with cochlear implants may not even develop a good speech. There are many positive and negative articles I have read on cochlear implants. As a parent you are not only putting your child at risk, you are also withdrawing them from the deaf community, the one they were naturally born into. I do not support cochlear implants, children should not be implanted until they are grown to the point where they can make their own choice

Sign language, cochlear implants, or both? It is the debate that has plagued parents of young deaf children all over nation. They are torn with the decision between potentially restoring the hearing of their child or immersing them in the beauty of Deaf culture. It seems that no matter what decision they make, there will be backlash. The Deaf community feels like a member is being taken away from them, and hearing people cannot understand why someone wouldn’t want their child to have the ability to hear. Though we cannot fully understand what it is like to be faced with this choice unless we have been in this position, we can explore the pros and cons of either side. So what is it that leads to some parents to make the leap for cochlear implants and turns others towards the sign language side?

Most doctors recommend that children with cochlear implant only use spoken language as a method of communication so they can maximize the benefits from the cochlear implant. However, the popular method of communication for children with cochlear implants is total communication which is the integration of oral communication and ASL. Although Heather Artinian was fluent in ASL before she received her cochlear implant, she was able to communicate with hearing and deaf people through both ASL and spoken language after years of intensive speech therapy (Aronson, Sound and Fury: Six Years Later). When cochlear implant users take it off, they cannot hear any sounds so they are technically still deaf. Even though they are able to hear sounds, cochlear implant recipients will not be able to identify themselves as hearing individuals. When they bridge the gap between the deaf and hearing world, they can still be a part of both cultures without defining themselves as a part of only one culture (TedX: The Heather World). Therefore, the cochlear implant can be a great device for deaf people who want to stay in the Deaf community but still be able to take advantage of additional opportunities in the hearing

Furthermore, a mandatory cochlear implant would place restrictions on the Deaf child’s free will. For starters, a forced cochlear implant would be seen disrespectful to the family’s ability to make their own decisions. As such, one of the major factors of the cochlear implant is the decision-making process that accompanies it; this concept is necessary in order for a family to conclude on whether or not they wish their child to have a cochlear implant. Studies show that many aspects of the decision-making process are influenced by outside sources such as extensive research from professionals and media portrayals of cochlear implants; they influence the parents, who are directly involved in the decision-making process, to be keenly aware of

Those that oppose cochlear implants argue mostly from a minority standpoint. The deaf community feels that as the minority, the hearing majority is threatening their way of life. “The deaf community is a culture. They’re much like the culture of the Hispanic community, for example, where parents who are Hispanics, or shall we say deaf, would naturally want to retain their family ties by their common language, their primary language, which is

Claire is now transitioning into preschool, and her parents are worried about what Claire's first school experience will be like but luckily for Claire her new teacher, Ms. Williams, is a veteran preschool teacher and in the past, Ms. Williams has taught students with disabilities who use alternative communication systems but from what I read in the article Ms. Williams doesn't have any experience in working with children cochlear implant nevertheless she is very eager to learn and work with Claire. Ms. Williams seems a bit nervous to work with Claire and has several questions about cochlear implants. Ms. Williams has heard that the cochlear implant devices are very expensive and she is worried about simply keeping track of Claire's device, she also worries about the troubleshooting of the device if something goes wrong, is there a difference between teaching a child with a cochlear implant and teaching other children with disabilities. Although Ms. Williams is anxious to learn more about cochlear implants and how to best support Claire's developing listening and communication skills. Ms. Williams assumes Claire will need a variety of visual supports and she wonders about the different types of visual supports and accommodations that Claire might

When faced with having to make a major decision for their children, parents are often thrown into a difficult and perplexing situation. These decisions become even more difficult for the parents when the decision involves putting their children through something they cannot relate to. This is the case when parents are required to decide whether to have cochlear implant surgery performed on their deaf child. The decision of whether to go through with this procedure, which, when successful, provides a deaf individual with the ability to hear, puts parents in a position to make an epistemically and personally transformative decision for their child. Ultimately, the decision comes down to the experiences and preferences of the parents; whether

CI’s were manufactured in order to create ease of function in day to day lives of deaf people but has conjured up ethical and social issues amongst specific cultures. Across different cultures there are opposing and parallel beliefs regarding cochlear implants and the benefits and harms regarding the process of implanting one. Many deaf communities within western cultures such as America and Australia view CI’s as unnecessary and offensive towards deaf culture. According to a majority of cultures, receiving CI’s is seen as inappropriate and takes away a person’s identity. Heather Artinian, in the annual TED conference who is a deaf person who wears cochlear implants explained that receiving cochlear implants places the individual between two identities, neither deaf nor hearing. This is because once receiving her cochlear implants, the deaf community within her western culture no longer perceives her as a deaf person because, following receiving the implants, she was able to hear sounds and communicate in ways which deaf people who hadn’t received the implants could not. She too described that she was also not part of the hearing culture as she was not considered as a hearing individual due to being born deaf and despite receiving the CI’s, is still regarded as deaf opposed to as a

I found this eye-opening. I don't have any close personal relationship with anyone in the deaf community, nor did I realize there was such an exclusivity. According to the article assigned, many in the deaf community are against the notion that being deaf is a disability that doesn't need to be "fixed." Many are also against parents of deaf children having cochlear implants because of this. It has been pointed out that many that are deaf have gone on to lead very normal and very successful lives, which is wonderful, and proves that hearing loss isn't necessarily a disability. Those of us outside the deaf community may have a difficult time understanding the lives of deaf people, so if hearing parents bear a deaf child, making a decison on behalf

The article “Parents of deaf children with cochlear implants: a study of technology and community” focus mostly on the clinical structures and how parents decide to use cochlear implant or not. The data shows that the clinic, the state and local school districts are working together to anticipate parental needs.

People who are hearing take for granted the ease social cues are picked up, and how that associates with self-identity. A hearing person can listen to a conversation, while writing notes, or reading a book, or can pick up on how someone is feeling based on tone. There is less concentration involved in getting the message from the sender to the receiver for a hearing person. For a person who is deaf conversation means complete focus on the sender to get the message that is being receive. Depending on parents of deaf children, they may or may not get language exposure until three or five years old. In an article called Should All Deaf Children Learn Sign Language, doctors discuss the importance of giving children language at the earliest age, even if parents choose Cochlear implants later on. Tom Humphries, PhD, said “The most important advice anyone can give parents of deaf children is to immediately join an active signing community of both parents and children. This first step is vital in achieving the type of language, cognitive, and social development that deaf children will need for school” (Mellon, 2015). Dr. Humphries’ comment can be taken when looking at children on the autism spectrum and the need for family support in learning ASL. By teaching children with autism ASL at a young age, along with parent support can affect the way children learn