Do you feel that hearing teachers restrict Deaf children in learning?

Shel90, I am curious about one thing. You say it does not matter if one is deaf or not, and I can agree on that in theory.

In practice, it looks like many(note I don't say ALL) hearing teachers have poor sign language skills. What happens then, is that the deaf students don't really understand the hearing teacher and vice versa, and expectations from the teacher towards the students are lowered. It's not my experience that this is more common in mainstream settings than in deaf schools, but I have no stats, and can't tell for sure.

So if it does not matter if a teacher is deaf or not, the sign language skills among all the teachers must be fluent, regardless of hearing loss, from my understanding. Is that the case where you work? Or can it be other reasons that it does not matter if one is hearing or deaf? Do you have a program or quality test for sign language? I have never seen a workplace where both hearing and deaf teachers have equally low/high expectations toward deaf students, so I am really curious if it exists places like that, and how they came to existence.
 
QuietlyAnointed said:
I grew up hard of hearing but have years of experience working with hearing children (toddlers and preschoolers). I was an opened teacher and followed the interest of the children. If the were interested in planets, I taught planets. If they were interested in the air, I taught air.

Since my hearing has been getting worst, I decided to change my focus from hearing children to Deaf children. When presenting my ideas to the teachers and assistants at this school for the Deaf, they are very resistant to them. And make comments like "They wouldn't understand. They are deaf." or "It's too abstract for them".

Those statements made me do a little research on Deafness and Education. I found the high percentages of people who are Deaf who dropped out of high school, or who do not read past 3rd grade reading levels, etc.

This makes me wonder if it is the teachers who put those restrictions on the children because they are Deaf and the teachers themselves do not believe that the children are CAPABLE.

I believe that ALL children are capable and it is my responsibility as a teacher to understand how they learn so that they CAN.

I would love to read your thoughts
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This is what I see ,too, and I think you are far from the only one that have experienced this.
 
A hearing teacher cannot provide one thing that a deaf teacher can provide, though. A deaf teacher models success as a deaf person to her students. A deaf teacher is like the students and she had academic success. A deaf student should have at least one deaf person who is a positive role model (preferably more).
 
sallylou said:
A hearing teacher cannot provide one thing that a deaf teacher can provide, though. A deaf teacher models success as a deaf person to her students. A deaf teacher is like the students and she had academic success. A deaf student should have at least one deaf person who is a positive role model (preferably more).
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I agree. I had only one deaf teacher and the rest of those hearing teachers. That wasn't enough for me to understand what deaf role model was all about. Until I enrolled Gallaudet and i was in a shocking culture with everything that applies to my experience life about deaf culture.
 
rockdrummer said:
Is this something that you see and expect to see at a school for the deaf?
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Hearing teachers with low expectations toward deaf students at a school of deaf, yes, I expect to met them. But if that school have a deaf principal/superintentend, I wouldn't be so sure I would met any. A former interpreter in a high position can also help keep lower expecations away. That's my impression, nothing that I know for sure.
 
flip said:
hearing teachers with low expectations toward deaf students at a school of deaf, yes, i expect to met them. But if that school have a deaf principal/superintentend, i wouldn't be so sure i would met any. A former interpreter in a high position can also help keep lower expecations away. That's my impression, nothing that i know for sure.
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wow!
 
QuietlyAnointed said:
I grew up hard of hearing but have years of experience working with hearing children (toddlers and preschoolers). I was an opened teacher and followed the interest of the children. If the were interested in planets, I taught planets. If they were interested in the air, I taught air.

Since my hearing has been getting worst, I decided to change my focus from hearing children to Deaf children. When presenting my ideas to the teachers and assistants at this school for the Deaf, they are very resistant to them. And make comments like "They wouldn't understand. They are deaf." or "It's too abstract for them".

Those statements made me do a little research on Deafness and Education. I found the high percentages of people who are Deaf who dropped out of high school, or who do not read past 3rd grade reading levels, etc.

This makes me wonder if it is the teachers who put those restrictions on the children because they are Deaf and the teachers themselves do not believe that the children are CAPABLE.

I believe that ALL children are capable and it is my responsibility as a teacher to understand how they learn so that they CAN.

I would love to read your thoughts
Click to expand...
yes i do feel so, isn't it after all easier for them to teach the hearing kids? i think that they do not spend the time and effort that is necessary for these kids to go further
 
angel1303 said:
yes i do feel so, isn't it after all easier for them to teach the hearing kids? i think that they do not spend the time and effort that is necessary for these kids to go further
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Isn't anyone catching the fact that the OP stated this is at a deaf school
 
deafskeptic said:
There's a reason why I consider myself largely self taught. I don't care much for the low execptations that the hearing teachers have for the deaf.
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Count me in....when I lost my hearing (in 7th grade)...went to a deaf school, was placed in the 8th grade.....fell asleep in every class becuz it was too boring/easy and I'd already studied the subjects, placed into the 10th grade, then skipped the 11th and into the 12th!...I believe I actually got a 9th grade diploma....even tho' I graduated. I'm "self-taught" also with a lot of hard knocks. Several of my teachers were hearing. But....this was a "long time ago"!
Assure me that times have "changed"??...Here at AD, so many members, so intelligent. And I'm sure that not all have been to college?
Does it take a year of college to equal a diploma that hearing schools achieve?
 
flip said:
Shel90, I am curious about one thing. You say it does not matter if one is deaf or not, and I can agree on that in theory.

In practice, it looks like many(note I don't say ALL) hearing teachers have poor sign language skills. What happens then, is that the deaf students don't really understand the hearing teacher and vice versa, and expectations from the teacher towards the students are lowered. It's not my experience that this is more common in mainstream settings than in deaf schools, but I have no stats, and can't tell for sure.

So if it does not matter if a teacher is deaf or not, the sign language skills among all the teachers must be fluent, regardless of hearing loss, from my understanding. Is that the case where you work? Or can it be other reasons that it does not matter if one is hearing or deaf? Do you have a program or quality test for sign language? I have never seen a workplace where both hearing and deaf teachers have equally low/high expectations toward deaf students, so I am really curious if it exists places like that, and how they came to existence.
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Generally, most hearing teachers arent as fluent as deaf teachers with a few exceptions.
 
sallylou said:
A hearing teacher cannot provide one thing that a deaf teacher can provide, though. A deaf teacher models success as a deaf person to her students. A deaf teacher is like the students and she had academic success. A deaf student should have at least one deaf person who is a positive role model (preferably more).
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I totally agree..if I had met or had a deaf teacher educating me, for sure I wouldnt feel so ashamed of my deafness and so scared of my future as a child.
 
shel90 said:
Generally, most hearing teachers arent as fluent as deaf teachers with a few exceptions.
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Doesn't that generally make deaf people fit better as deaf teachers than hearing people?
 
Shel has already addressed that point. She said that it depends on the individual teacher not hearing status.
 
I never personally met a Highly-educated deaf person (the one who was born deaf) in my whole life.
 
Lighthouse, that doesn't mean that those people don't exist. That's my point about students having deaf role models. How can the students know what's possible if they don't see it?

Shel is a good role model for deaf kids. She's smart and highly educated.
 
Lighthouse77 said:
I never personally met a Highly-educated deaf person (the one who was born deaf) in my whole life.
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Oh that's too bad. Have you visit gallaudet before? There are plenty of highly educated deaf people who works there and students.
 
flip said:
Doesn't that generally make deaf people fit better as deaf teachers than hearing people?
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One has to really have the passion for teaching but if a hearing person really doesnt go out of his/her way to become fluent in ASL, then he/she shouldnt teach deaf children.
 
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