Deaf Rehab Technology

In current years technology has advanced extremely quickly and has taken the world by storm. Technology has a range of positive contributions to the world but advanced technology has impacted the deaf community in a variety of ways: it has allowed people to connect regularly through different communication devices, improve access and receive and look for information and work to improve the safety in and around the household with everyday appliances.

To parents of a deaf daughter named Julia; “for all the beauty and history of sign language,...signers are equipped to interact primarily with other signers” (Reisler 2). This means that Deaf children raised manually are isolated from their peers, their family, and most of the world. Though their parents may be willing to learn sign language, the world is not. All countries rely on spoken languages and only few people learn sign language. With a cochlear implant, children, according to the FDA, “detected medium-to-loud conversational speech and environmental sounds, such as doorbells and car horns. Many showed improved ability to identify the the timing and rhythm of speech - a few actually recognized speech - without lip reading” (FDA 1). This new technology allows people like Julia to hear. Though this technology is not perfect, it can be a tool used to improve the oral approach; lip reading and speech therapy. This approach has gained strength and numbers with the recent improvements of the cochlear implants, of which the FDA says that only thirty-three out of two hundred children had an adverse reaction to the implant (FDA 1). They claim that the cochlear implant, along with other new inventions, can allow deaf children to be on the same level as their hearing

Fortunately, there are numerous resources available for people with disabilities that offer assistance and programs to meet their everyday needs. The Alabama Institute for Deaf and Blind serves as an educational resource for individuals who are deaf, blind, deaf-blind, and multi-disabled. I decided to research this agency because it has been referenced in my communicative disorders classes. As a future speech language pathologist, I want to learn about this agency and discover the programs it offers to help me with my future clients. The Alabama Institute for Deaf and Blind is relative to this course because as mentioned in the textbook and other course material, resources and programs that offer assistance to individuals with disabilities are essential to their successful futures. This agency is a means in which people who are deaf and blind can seek assistance to improve their skills of communication, and this is ultimately my goal as a speech language pathologist.

The Alabama Institute for Deaf and Blind serves as an educational resource for individuals who are deaf, blind, deaf-blind, and multi-disabled. I chose this agency because it has been mentioned in my communicative disorders classes. As a future speech language pathologist I want to learn about this agency and discover the programs it offers to help me with my future clients. The Alabama Institute for Deaf and Blind is relative to this course because as mentioned in the textbook and other course material, resources and programs that offer assistance to individuals with disabilities are essential to their successful futures. This agency is a means in which people who are deaf and blind can seek assistance to improve their skills of communication and this is ultimately my goal as a speech language pathologist.

The growing numbers of both hearing and deaf people wanting to understand the deaf community and be apart of it allows for an optimistic outlook. In 2001, Lucas, Bayley and Valli, emphasise the importance of pursuing research in sign language, commenting that it will help contribute to the empowerment of deaf people in society. (Johnston and Schembri 2004, p. 3). This empowerment will allow for deaf people to be treated and seen as equal members of

There are approximately 35 million people in the United States who are considered deaf or hard of hearing (Culture and Empowerment in the Deaf Community). The majority of these deaf people struggle in the hearing world until they can find a connection to their deafness. They constantly

According to the Deaf Culture Centre, Deaf Culture is defined as the “heart of the Deaf community everywhere in the world. Language and culture are inseparable. They are intertwined and passed down through generations of Deaf people.” It is estimated that nearly 20 percent of Americans live with some form of hearing loss, yet deaf and hard of hearing society members remain oppressed by the mainstream culture (Callis). These people that identify with the deaf culture, use American Sign Language (ASL) to communicate. ASL is a combination of hand signs and facial expressions that are unique to the Deaf community. Deaf people view deafness as a blessing and a unique way to live life. They are very proud and prideful. In the Deaf culture, the decision of getting a cochlear implant has been controversial for many years.

With new technology comes new ways to let disabilied people use more items. An example is, voice recognition screen readers can help peole who are blind. For instance, eye-tracking programs can make using computers simple for people who can´t move their hands.

In America, there are more than 28 million deaf people but there are many different services available to meet their needs. A hearing person can have a casual conversation without even realizing the difficulties that 202,613 (5.58%) hard of hearing people might face in the world (Stat. on Deafness). It doesn’t have to be so difficult for a deaf/hard of hearing person to have a conversation even if the person they are talking to is in another state. With popular services such as Maryland Relay, the TTY and various telecommunications relay services- it is now possible for deaf people to have a phone conversation.

Deafness or hard of hearing, is defined by the medical society as a disability, but those who are diagnosed with the disability think otherwise. They think of themselves as a community, embrace it as an identity, or a culture with their own language, sign language, and they believe their community is being threaten. They label themselves as a minority endangered of being wiped out because of one leading cause, cochlear implants. Those serious about their ideals of their community see cochlear implants as a threat, because cochlear implants are considered as cure. Countless number of controversies over cochlear implants have been brought up, but the Deaf community should see cochlear implants as gift for patients rather than an extreme threat.

Communicating solely through signing can make everyday tasks such as ordering lunch or scheduling a doctor’s appointment notably difficult, but there have been great strides made in bridging the gap between the deaf and hearing world such as the Teletypewriter (TTY) invented by Robert Weitbrecht in the 1960’s. This revolutionary device allowed Deaf people to make calls by having the user type a message on the screen and then connecting them to a service communication assistant who will then read the message aloud to whomever the Deaf person was calling. The TTY has been phased out through the increased popularity of texting and Facetime calls, this is another example of how the Deaf and hearing worlds are becoming less disconnected. Another issue non oral Deaf people face is the need for an interpreter. Interpreters can often be hard to locate and highly expensive. In the ABC Family hit series Switched at Birth, the predominantly Deaf main character, Daphne, struggles to find an interpreter for her college chemistry test. She couldn’t use just any average interpreter, she had to find someone that understood advanced chemistry as well so that they could fully express the concepts to her (Switched at Birth S:4 E:1). American Sign Language is not just English with signs; many words or situations are expressed through body language and some

My first observation is that Martha exudes a tremendous amount of self-confidence. She thoroughly enjoys communicating with people and continually honing these skills. This girl has big dreams of being in the medical field. Martha is faced with some challenges as a Hard-of-Hearing individual, however, she overcomes them with grace and an eager willingness. She copes with communication challenges by using technology such as her videophone. This technology enables her to use American Sign Language with friends and family. In addition, Martha will write notes with people who may not know how to sign. Though this method may be time-consuming, it allows her to deal effectively with a communication challenge. Martha’s positive outlook on life shines through when she speaks to the camera; her positivity is infectious. She seems very approachable, and discusses how hearing individuals should be assertive and should not be afraid to speak with Hard-of-Hearing individuals. Also, Martha says she has many friends, and she appears to lead a relatively normal family life. She does not live in isolation, and she does not fear others’ perceptions of her disability. In fact, Martha welcomes individuals to communicate with her so she can better her communication skills with normal hearing people. Martha’s confidence, excitement, and approachability draw me to her and make me want to get to know

Deafness has been an obstacle thousands of people have had to overcome since the dawn of time. Even in the not so distant past, the future was typically very bleak for individuals who were born or became deaf. However, the future of an individual who is Deaf has become much brighter due to the development of American Sign Language. As the name describes, this language relies solely on visible movements and facial expressions with no auditory expression needed.

Despite the perceived limitations of being Deaf or hearing impaired and various forms of oppression and social injustice, Deaf Americans identify themselves as members of a cultural community and linguistic group – which highly values literacy. Through the use of American Sign Language (ASL), Deaf and hearing impaired individuals and groups are given a unique way to express themselves personally – and with that, a totally different way to communicate through hands, faces and bodies without the use of sound. “Deaf culture focuses on the stimulation of the eyes and the enhanced visual

I was asked to produce a presentation that will raise awareness on the deaf and how to help in that situation. I have called this presentation “Hearing Loss – A Growing issue”. The Reason I have called my presentation this is because I wanted it to make an impact at first glance. I also wanted to make people aware that hearing loss isn’t just a small minority but can be seen as a bigger