BabyPhat21

What do you think about the mainstreamed and residential education for the deaf in terms of Deaf cultural and personal identity........

I think that the mainstream schools are good but it does not teach you anything about deafness, just that you know you are different from everyone else and have to work twice as hard to prove yourself. It does you strong sometimes since you are focused and have more motivation to keep going and prove the others wrong.......

Deafness

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Freaky

I was fortunate to come from a 6th generation Deafie family and my Deaf parents did place my Deaf sister and I in the Deaf school setting first. My parents were told by my teachers that either I had to be placed in a grade higher than my age because my english comprehension was above my peers or mainstream me. My parents did not want me to be with older Deaf peers because I would be socially immature. They decided to mainstream me at 6 years old and I was mainstreamed since 6 to graduation. I have had no problems with my identity. You see.. I was raised with the Bi-Bi approach, my parents were radicals.. strongly believed in teaching us oralism and then ASL because they knew that one day, strong english comprehension skills are a MUST! Whether the fact you had Deaf education or you were mainstreamed did not matter.. it all mattered when you were a young child. It is best to expose the child in the forming years when you have your innate abilities to form educational skills. Once you learn something using your innate abilites.. it stays with you forever. The window of learning for a young child closes really early.. before they are nine years old... that's why I strongly believe in mainstreaming Deaf and/or HoH children that CAN function in a mainstreamed setting. I simply refuse to set a Deaf child that will end up with an identity crisis in the adult years, in a mainstreamed setting. I would prefer putting a Deaf child that cannot function in a mainstreamed setting in a Deaf classroom with his/her peers and relate well with the Deaf teacher as an excellent role model. This is my philosophy.

Willy

I think mainstreaming is better for educational, and deaf school is better for socialize.

BabyPhat21

if you had a deaf child which would you put the child in???

Willy

I'd start off with deaf school, and if it doesn't seem like my child learn alot, or ssomething, I WOULD pull him out and move to mainstream. That's life.

lilredridinhood

i would place my child in a mainstreamed school until they were in middle school, then i would let them decide if they wanted to go to a deaf school or stay mainstreamed. This way, they'd be able to get a hold of the english language and everything.

Waz

I went to residential deaf school/college before as the education is alot better than been in Mixed school, i shall explain to u why, Deaf School offer better support than hearing impaired unit where they offer limited support without deaf awareness, that the major problem in England, there is 2 very good residental deaf school 11-18 is Mary Hare Grammar school for the deaf with highly educational provides also Ovingdean hall school for the hearing impaired!

GoKiGOki48rs

uh-huh i m down with u mm-mmm

Teekie

I agree.

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javapride

i ll start him/her off in mainstreamed to get the grammars in the english and comphrension awareness then once thier in the middle school i ll ask if wanna try out the deaf schools and one thing i will do is send them to MSSD or CSDF either school that has strong deaf ties and knowledge to the community, where my kids go is where i ll go!

WonderBum

I'd go for Home-Schooling... its more fun and educational in some ways. But on the other hand deprives the child of being in a peer environment on a regular basis....

Still I'd give Home-schooling a go...

vphreak

I grew up in deaf class at hearing school. and come home after school. Then my teacher started putting me in some hearing class at 4th grade, it was tough but I learned a lot than in deaf class. And meeting more friends there. It was a good experience. I enjoyed my time in hearing class plus more homeworks! But it worth it. I was young and I don't know what's ahead in my future. Some of my classmates from deaf class left me.. and went to Riverside. I told my parent, I want to go to Riverside deaf school. My dad refused to let me go. So I had to look for different school around my area. But couldn't find a better school. Then my old teacher said I say stay in 5th grade for one more year w/ her. So I did. After a year later, Finally my dad let me go to Riverside. I was so excited. As I got to Riverside, there's a lot of deaf people there. It was an amazing experience for me. Yes, I enjoyed it there, because I m away from my parents!. On my own, with all the new friends I have made over the year. I was SEE, but they transformed me into ASL automatic. My life has changed there. They put me in 4th grade for the 1/2 year.. then 5th grade.. I was supposed to be in 6th grade but they pulled me down.. so I m one year behind. Just I don't understand why. My old teacher doesn't see what education they have there.. and she think I suit better in their 5th grade education. It's not true. I learned nothing in 5th grade there. then.. go on.. 6th grade, so fucking easy.. I get A, good grade. how come they don't see it. I m so smart than my peers. I don't get it. My math level was high. Just finally they teach me more math at 8th grade. It took 4 years for them to caught up to my level. What a shame. 4 years ago, they should have gave me the right book for me to learn. I wasted my education there. I was young and unable to fight for my education right. Instead I had all the fun, free ride to graduation. Because all the years wasted, and it's too late to go back to hearing school while they already learned more than what i know now.

Also I think that .. mainstream is better for ur future kids, or kids right now. If they started at their early ages.. They will learn a lot than what residential kids learn. Also they will have more family values and turn out a good student.. While residential kids only see their faimly on the weekend and have less family vaules. And doesn't do well in school, they would just be "partyhead" in the future life. Just like me, it took a long time for me to realized what I have done wrong in my life.

Fly Free

i agree with that too

deafdyke

Actually I would probaly do what Freaky's parents did, that is send my deaf/HOH kids to deaf school at first (for preschool and kindergarten) and THEN I would mainstream them. I'd probaly move near the deaf school so that my kids could benifit from the early childhood programs, (or maybe even become a houseparent for the time they would be at the school) Then if they wanted to attend res school as a middle schooler or a high schooler I'd sit down with them and figure something out.
I don't think that little kids should be sent away to live at school without their family (unless they are homeless, foster kids or live in an extremely rural area where its' fifty miles to the nearest supermarket)
However I do think that deaf and hoh kids do initially need specialized early intervention. I think part of the reason why my generation (post IDEA) did not see enormous gains in literacy is b/c so many of us fell through the cracks. Most of us were just given very basic early intervention services. Some of us did get specialized EI services for deaf and hoh kids, but most of the time we just got an EI person who knew maybe four or five signs.
If my kids wanted to go into the work force right after school, instead of going to college, I'd make sure that the deaf school had a really good voc-ed program.

CatoCooper13

I mainstreamed for my first 4 years of education and it was quite a challenge because I was placed in a grade or 2 ahead in hearing classes -- I skipped one year in Deaf school but decided to stay back one more year as I knew I was socially immature and not ready to graduate.

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Til I hold my bub in my arms.

Liza

fuck residential and mainstreaming schools.


homeschooling for me personally. ultimately it's up to the parents with informed options. need I say more?

CatoCooper13

Ok, Liza...that's fine...you're entitled to your opinion of how kids should be schooled. If it worked for yours, great! Unfortunately, it doesn't always work for every kid. It really depends on how the kids fare in those types of situations.

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Til I hold my bub in my arms.

Liza

My post was made with much levity.
I wasn't saying that schooling is supposed to be done in a certain way, and everybody should follow it. I'm sorry if my post gave you that impression, but there was no intention of giving off that impression nor it was ever an intention to control people's choices.

That's why I said parents, additionally. They are entitled to their children's education suitability. As a parent, I would homeschool my kids. I am not currently satisfied with today's educational systems. There are probably some good teachers out there who really do care about the kids, though. It's somehow risky for me, along with the mixture of teachers' learned values and the materials they are supposed to teach kids. I'd rather have a big hand in my kids' upbringing and learned values.

One downside is that kids might not make new friends through homeschooling... Even though the peer pressure is lessened.

Bam-Bam

For me, I would rather puttin my kids in mainstreaming until the high school years approach them in 8th grade. I would let them decide on where they wanted to go for their freshman year of High School.. Let them take a visit to several high school and the deaf school, to find out which my kid prefer and let him/her decide..

That's what my parents did for me. I grew-up mainstreamed until 8th grade year. I had IEP meeting, they asked me where I wanted to go to for high school year. I had chose mainstreaming at first.. Visited one of the biggest high school in my town. I sat in 1 classroom, English Literature.. I was That they teach English in College Level.. I found out that I was in the honor english class visiting. I was like oh my god. and Decided to visit Deaf School. Their education was so easy when I visited. It was difficult decision. It was challenging, so I decided to try Deaf school for 1 semester. I hated it. Beggin to transfer to high school. But I couldn't, since we had moved that fall to a small town. I was disappointed. Mom didn't want to pay for out school district. So I end up graduating at a deaf school with a poor education. Even though my grades doesn't show it. Its becuz I would rather to be with friends over homeworks. heh..

But I think it's better to put kids mainstreamed until late middle school year, before approaching High School level. That way they get a better english grammer, better reading level, and better knowledge with history. Then learn about deaf culture during ur high school year. 4 yrs won't hurt to do that..

That's my opinion

Bam-Bam

Oh BTW, forgot to mention something

If that kid complained that the english or reading classes are too easy for them, They could take some courses at local high school. That's what I did for 1 semester. It was good and challenging.. Instead of suffering with the poor education in english and reading courses at Deaf school.. They could take some courses at the local high school for better education in some areas..

DeafSCUBA98

i would put my children in mainstream school where there's also deaf program. because my children will also need to socialize with deafies, it's not fair if my children is only deaf in school.
If my children wants to go to residential school when they are in middle school age, then that's fine as long they learn from that school.

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Nucleus Freedom 04/18/05
activiated 05/16/05

The Heretic

Hi babyphat.

Personal Identity is a individualist enterprise - that means the setting (mainstream or institution) doesn't matter one damned bit. I am sure my personal identity would have been different if i attended an all-deaf institution instead of being mainstreamed from 2nd grade up. But we will never know, and all we can do is compare the actual evidence of the personal identities of those who attended public schools and institutions. Frankly i don't see much of a difference enough to make a solid generalization. So, i don't think it matters much in regards to the private, personal development of different individuals in different backgrounds.

Deaf Culture on the other hand is dramatically nurtured in the institution as opposed to the mainstream/public high school where the deaf person is extra-self-conscious of his or her disability. The deaf person will feel like he or she is normal among his peers, and his or her signing skills and relationships will develop to a greater degree than the isolated deaf person in the public realm. One of the positives about deaf culture is that it has its own values that will not alienate the deaf person, and that may contribute to a better sense of well-being.

However, there's a positive side to the deaf person who is readily integrated in the hearing world in public school - he or she may be more able of relating with the hearing people than the coddled deaf person who has grown up in an institution. That's about the only advantage i see with the integrated deaf person, who might be a tad bit more prepared for the real world which is full of hearing people. I am not promoting integration/mainstreaming/public schools as a one-size fits all thing.

Suppose the person does not have any support system, won't he or she develop an inferiority complex, have a self-defeating attitude, and fall through the cracks? Not everyone can motivate themselves, because not everyone is the same.

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Self-esteem is cleverer than the cleverest person in the world.

kalboy

You hit a critical point here: “that is fine as long they learn from that school”. From what I have experienced thought my years of mingling with deaf from mainstream schools and deaf from institutions, I have reached the conclusion that deaf kids learn a LOT less in institutions compared to those who grew up in mainstream schools. Take, for example, the other day when I was talking to two Gallaudet graduates who thought that the Sun is evolving around the Earth!!! NO, I kid you not; they really thought that the earth is the center of the universe! This is just one example that justifies my point that mainstream deaf students learns a lot more, because they are exposure to challenging classes and hearing peers which can be a motivation for them to learn. Environmental factor plays an important role in the deaf students’ education. Mark Twain once said never to let your school infer your education, but it is nowhere near true when it comes to put kids in institutions.

pinkster

As much as peopole are agreeing with this, i dont. I would prolly place my kid in a hearing school, but stress after school activities with other deaf children. When you're young, you're at a crucial age to learn English, as well as other subjects. I got mainstream education, and did not receive the social aspects of kiddie life till i was in 8th grade. By then I was already set in what I felt I was (which later changed) but I know I cld never be considered 100% deaf, nor 100% hearing. Im not going to put my kid through that.

And if my child is just like me, (who is just like my father, my uncle.. etc, which we can be classified as CODA-LDA) Im going to stress interaction with deaf kids even more. Im not going to have them miss out for 14 years like I did.

Lantana

IF I had a deaf child and lived in the same town as the state-run deaf school, I would allow my child to be a DAY STUDENT only, NOT residential -- until the child is of high school age and can decide for himself what is right from wrong.

Sex abuse is much too common in residential schools. I know, I retired from one after 25 years.

The very young children belong at home with their parents for guidance until they are of high school age.

The exception being deaf children of deaf adults, they have the proper guidance and upbringing and should not have a problem either way.

deafdyke

What if a deaf child doesn't have parents? Or what if their parents are really crappy? Mostly I agree with you Lantana...I think the majority of very young deaf/hoh kids should live at home with their parents. However if the deaf kids are in the foster system or homeless or live in an extremely rural enviroment ( like if they live in a Native villigage where it's 50 miles to the nearest supermarket) it might be better for them to attend a res school. Homeless and foster kids experiance a lot of instabilty. They are moved around from placement to placement...very often they are behind in their education. Not to mention that it's really difficult to place special needs kids in the foster system. Sending them to a res school might provide them with a sense of stabilty. Does that make any sense?
I also think that some kids are ready to go off to res school, by 4th grade/ middle school age. Why I know kids who are seven and eight who went to summer camp for a MONTH!
I think that the busing limit should be expanded for deaf schools, to increase the amount of day students. Espcially in very rural states. Why at KSD the busing limit is 30 miles!!!! In my state(MA) the limit is an hour's bus ride each way.
Also, more regional day programs with qualified TODs for Signing Deaf kids should be created.
Pinkster, I totally agree 100% with you!!!