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Sign of hope for deaf kids - The Standard
Three years ago Heidi Wong Suet-ying, who is deaf, was too shy to make friends with other children.
But after learning sign language, the nine-year-old Primary Two girl has been given assistance to attend classes with students who have no hearing problems, and is now more outgoing, said her mother, Choi Tsz-wan.
"She's now cheerful. There were only six in the class when she studied at a kindergarten for deaf children. She had been too shy to talk to others.
"But now she realizes she is not much different from others, and has come out of her shell."
The confidence boost, according to Choi, is due in part to an education program that enables totally or partially deaf children to be in the same class as those without impairment, learning with the use of visual aids in Chinese and English and with sign language.
Most lessons involve a school teacher, deaf instructor and sign language specialist. The visual aids include PowerPoint slides and pictures.
Students can speak or use sign language to answer questions.
Heidi is one of the 25 totally or partially deaf kindergarten and primary students who have joined the Chinese University's Centre for Sign Linguistics and Deaf Studies program.
Funded by the Jockey Club Charities Trust, the HK$64.84 million scheme kicked off in August 2006 and will run until the 2012-13 school year.
Six deaf students now study under the program at Peace Evangelical Centre Kindergarten (Ngau Tau Kok) and 19 at Kowloon Bay St John The Baptist Catholic Primary School.
Project manager Chris Yiu Kun- man, of the university's department of linguistics and modern languages, said both deaf and hearing students have benefited from this learning model.
He said some 3,000 students from kindergartens to secondary schools have hearing impairment. But most were not taught sign language, be it in schools for the deaf or normal schools.
Deaf children studying in common schools are often left helpless as a single teacher in each classroom cannot cater for their special education needs and learning pace, Yiu added. Neither can they find a companion to share their problems with as there is only one deaf student in many cases.
Many lag behind in their studies and perform below their potential, Yiu said.
But deaf children can see light at the end of the tunnel with the help of the scheme, titled the Jockey Club Sign Bilingualism and Co-enrolment in Deaf Education Programme.
They have been found to perform as well as their hearing peers in examinations overall, with improved communication and social skills.
Choi said Heidi scored around 80 in her latest mathematics exam and about 70 in Chinese language.
Shirley Yau Sau-lai said she sees her Primary Three daughter Angel Yung Mei- ki, eight, who has perfect hearing, gaining confidence after learning sign language.
"She is proud of what she has learned. She will teach us sign language at home," Yau said. "She is also motivated by her deaf classmates to work harder as she sees them doing well despite the disability."
Three years ago Heidi Wong Suet-ying, who is deaf, was too shy to make friends with other children.
But after learning sign language, the nine-year-old Primary Two girl has been given assistance to attend classes with students who have no hearing problems, and is now more outgoing, said her mother, Choi Tsz-wan.
"She's now cheerful. There were only six in the class when she studied at a kindergarten for deaf children. She had been too shy to talk to others.
"But now she realizes she is not much different from others, and has come out of her shell."
The confidence boost, according to Choi, is due in part to an education program that enables totally or partially deaf children to be in the same class as those without impairment, learning with the use of visual aids in Chinese and English and with sign language.
Most lessons involve a school teacher, deaf instructor and sign language specialist. The visual aids include PowerPoint slides and pictures.
Students can speak or use sign language to answer questions.
Heidi is one of the 25 totally or partially deaf kindergarten and primary students who have joined the Chinese University's Centre for Sign Linguistics and Deaf Studies program.
Funded by the Jockey Club Charities Trust, the HK$64.84 million scheme kicked off in August 2006 and will run until the 2012-13 school year.
Six deaf students now study under the program at Peace Evangelical Centre Kindergarten (Ngau Tau Kok) and 19 at Kowloon Bay St John The Baptist Catholic Primary School.
Project manager Chris Yiu Kun- man, of the university's department of linguistics and modern languages, said both deaf and hearing students have benefited from this learning model.
He said some 3,000 students from kindergartens to secondary schools have hearing impairment. But most were not taught sign language, be it in schools for the deaf or normal schools.
Deaf children studying in common schools are often left helpless as a single teacher in each classroom cannot cater for their special education needs and learning pace, Yiu added. Neither can they find a companion to share their problems with as there is only one deaf student in many cases.
Many lag behind in their studies and perform below their potential, Yiu said.
But deaf children can see light at the end of the tunnel with the help of the scheme, titled the Jockey Club Sign Bilingualism and Co-enrolment in Deaf Education Programme.
They have been found to perform as well as their hearing peers in examinations overall, with improved communication and social skills.
Choi said Heidi scored around 80 in her latest mathematics exam and about 70 in Chinese language.
Shirley Yau Sau-lai said she sees her Primary Three daughter Angel Yung Mei- ki, eight, who has perfect hearing, gaining confidence after learning sign language.
"She is proud of what she has learned. She will teach us sign language at home," Yau said. "She is also motivated by her deaf classmates to work harder as she sees them doing well despite the disability."