S ensory I mpairments Chapter 13

1. Sensory Impairments Chapter 13 Main goal: To understand the characteristics & attributes associated with sensory impairments & our role as educators in assisting the students in their educational process. Text : Special Education for Today’s Teachers, Rosenberg, Westling, McLeskey, 2008

2. Topics To Be Covered • What are the 3 main sensory impairments? • How common are those sensory impairments? • Where & how are students with sensory impairments typically served? • What are the unique challenges they represent? • How do sensory impairments affect learning? • What are the basic strategies to teaching students with sensory impairments?

3. Major Overriding Point Sensory impairments alone do NOT impact a students cognitive skills; they just affect how they acquire information. (pg 353)

4. Additional Educator Challenge Be able to distinguish between learning challenges caused by a lack of sensory input & those attributable to other learning disabilities & handicaps. (pg 354)

5. Definition Sensory impairments are disabilities that affect how a person acquires information. The goal of the educator is to assist the student in attaining the information they need for their education through various means.(pg 349)

6. 3 Sensory Impairment Categories • Blind or Visually Impaired • Deaf or Hard of Hearing • Deaf-Blind

7. Statistics & Background Information: • Of total US population about 10 million persons are blind or visually impaired & 42 million are deaf or hard of hearing. • Approximately half are over 60. • Among children between 0-12 about 82,000 are blind or visually impaired, 150,000 are deaf or hard of hearing & about 11,000 are deaf-blind. • Children with sensory impairments are taught either in a specialized school or in a general school setting with aid depending upon the severity of the impairment. (pg 357) • Adults: • Deaf: Literacy affects educational & employment opportunities. About 1/3rd of adults with profound hearing loss get some type of government assistance. Their average income is 40-60% of their hearing counterparts. About 30% leave high school functionally illiterate. (pg 369) • Blind: Only 42% of blind adults ever marry & only 32-46% are employed. • Deaf-blind: Few have jobs because they have other disabilities plus many problems interacting with others.

8. Deaf & Hard of Hearing • Deafness • A profound or total loss of hearing that prevents a person from processing linguistic information even with amplification. • Hearing Impaired • A mild to moderate loss of hearing whether permanent or fluctuating that adversely affects a child’s educational performance. What’s the difference? In a nutshell: the more severe hearing loss is defined as deafness while less severe hearing loss is defined as hearing impairment.

9. Deaf/Hard of Hearing • Goal is to start language development in the critical first 3 years of life. • Screening begins at the hospital. • Early intervention services focus on providing the family with support & services. Personal Note—Both our sons started services at 6 months & were fitted for hearing aids at 18 months.

10. Deaf/Hard of Hearing • Literacy remains a strong focus. • Sadly literacy rates for deaf/hard of hearing are very poor. • About 30% leave high school functionally illiterate. • The average reading level for 18 year old students who are deaf/hard of hearing is between 3rd & 4th grade. (pg 369) • The focus on literacy may cause work skill development to be left behind. (pg 370)

11. Terminology: Hearing Loss Degree of hearing loss is expressed in decibels (dB). • Normal (0-20 dB) • Mild (20-40 dB) • Moderate (40-60 dB) • Severe (60-80 dB) • Profound (80+) Type of Hearing Loss: describes the point in the auditory system where the loss is occurring. Conductive Loss: in the outer &/or middle ear Sensorineural Loss: cochlea, inner ear, or 8th cranial nerve Combination Loss: both conductive & sensorineural Configuration of Hearing Loss: a bilateral or unilateral loss, or if different frequencies are affected differently (slope)

12. Audiograms • This audiogram shows the sounds & where they would be represented on an audiogram. • The yellow banana shaped figure represents all the sounds that make up the human voice when speaking at normal conversational levels.

13. Audiograms: My son's example Taken 3/03/08 with new $1400 hearing aids. Notice that now with new aids correction is now over the threshold. Test done on 12/06/07. Notice the graph on the left shows that even with aids hearing falls below threshold level.

14. Major Issues of Hearing Loss • Even a mild hearing loss can affect learning. • Example: a student might have trouble understanding a teacher if the teachers back is turned or a student may have a hearing loss in only one ear. • Issues that must be checked through an audiologist include the level of loudness required & ones ability to recognize words at a certain volume. • Deaf & hard of hearing persons have the cognitive ability to become proficient readers & expressive writers, this ability is often hampered by delays in language development. (pg 354) • They can learn language through ASL, signed English, or learning to master spoken language. Example-students can learn to lip read & speak clearly. • The learning process of students who are deaf or hard of hearing can be enhanced through use of visual teaching aids such as pictures, graphic organizers, posters, or demonstrations. (pg 355)

15. Language Development • Extensive focus on literacy skills is a top priority for teachers of the students who are deaf & hard of hearing! • People should not assume that because information is printed that a Deaf person is literate. (pg 365) • Many people believe making something available in writing makes that information accessible for individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing. These common adaptations such as closed captioning, text messaging & TDD/TTY are only effective if individuals are literate. • Teachers of students who are deaf or hard of hearing are trained to provide literacy instruction in cooperation with their content instruction. (pg 366)

16. The “Deaf” (with a capital D) pg 351 • They share a common means of communication (like ASL) that provides a basis for group identity. • Share a common language (ASL) & culture. • Primary means of relating to the world is all through visual means.

17. Deaf Culture & Community • About 50% of deafness is genetic. Therefore, deaf persons have created a separate group identity. • Some deaf do NOT want deafness to be even classified as a disability & may even find it insulting.

18. Schools for the Deaf • The Deaf community views residential or self-contained programs as a vital link to the transmission of Deaf culture & language because children are immersed in an environment rich in communication that is accessible to all. • Example – In a regular classroom with hearing children the Deaf child only “hears” what an interpreter tells them. Children who attend Deaf schools also can be around Deaf role models. (pg 351)

19. Preschool Services • School districts take over the responsibility at age 3 from Infant-Toddler. • Goal in the classroom setting is to increase vocabulary.

20. Elementary & Middle School Programs • Deaf/Hard of Hearing • Students who are in a general educational setting often receive services through consultants who come in periodically & meet with students & teachers. They will support the student in accessing the general education curriculum & possibly tutoring of specialized skills. (pg 364) • Students in the general educational setting will often have an interpreter. • Teachers who have a deaf/hard of hearing student may need to use more visual aids & make sure the student has no gaps in learning. • Classroom amplification systems are often used. (note-our sons teachers were all provided with sound systems.)

21. Residential Services • About 15% of students who are deaf or hard of hearing attend school at a separate facility (like KSD). • These schools are taught ASL and deaf culture as well as facets of hearing culture & English.

22. Kansas School for the Deaf (KSD) • Olathe, KS is home to the Kansas School for the Deaf, the Kansas Deaf Cultural Center & Deaf Museum. • Various businesses accommodate the large deaf population. • The McDonalds across from KSD has a touch screen ordering system. • The AMC theatre has captioned movies. • WalMart has certain employees where badges signifying they sign.

23. Blind & Visually Impaired • Definition: Impairment in vision that even with correction, adversely affects a child’s educational performance. • Note: if you wear glasses & they correct your vision--you are not visually impaired. • Not to be confused with the term “Legal Blindness” • “Legal blindness” is a level of visual acuity used to determine eligibility for various benefits. • Example--Government assistance, transportation.

24. Some Technical Terms • Visual acuity: • How clearly a person sees at a specific distance. • Visual field: • The area one can see without turning their head. Same as peripheral vision.

25. Interventions • Identification between 0-3 years. • Early intervention programs are designed to help infants and children who are blind or visually impaired achieve early milestones & being learning basic concepts. (pg 363) • Special preschools are designed to specifically address the sensory needs. (pg 363). (example--Childrens TLC in Kansas City, MO)

26. Teaching Strategies: Visually Impaired • For students with visual impairments can include worksheets with larger print & magnifying devices. • For Blind the most common strategy is to convey information either in an AUDITORY or TACTILE formats.

27. Auditory • Method of conveying visual information through sound. • Examples include giving verbal descriptions of the environment & using audio books. Tactile • Allowing students to explore objects through touch such as using models.

28. Other Specialists • Orientation & mobility specialists teach students to recognize auditory cues, physical & even olfactory cues to maneuver independently though the environment.

29. Braille • A 6 dot code used to represent text in a tactile format (pg 355) • Assistive technology can include Braille keyboards & Braille computer screens.

30. Text to speech software Assistive Technology Templates Text & graphic magnifiers Trekker is a GPS system for the blind & visually impaired that uses GPS & digital maps to help blind persons find their way in urban & rural areas.

31. Teaching Environments Few blind kids attend schools for the blind & those that do, do so mostly because they have other disabilities. Some students only attend for short times like an intense Braille instruction. (pg368)

32. Social Development for Sensory Impaired Students • Students with impairments miss out on “incidental learning opportunities”. Also must be given instruction on social norms & behaviors. Restrictive settings often impede this. (pg 356) • Example—A blind person might not know that picking ones nose is not acceptable. Participation in groups, clubs & community classes can often be an easier way to provide structure to the development of social relationships. (pg 357)

33. Blind/Visually Impaired • Identified between ages 0-3. • Most toddlers learn through by watching others, visual cues, or exploring their environments. • Special preschools (example – Childrens TLC in Kansas City, MO) all have specific aspects to be effective. (page 363).

34. Blind/Visually Impaired • Trend is low levels of self determination. • Only 42% are ever married & 32% are employed. • There is strong need for more emphasis on career development. (pg 370)

35. Blind/Visually Impaired • Consultation Services • A major fallacy of teachers of the blind/visually impaired students is that their “materials” just need to be in Braille or enlarged print. Reality is these students miss out on what the “sighted” take for granted: visual cues, demonstrations, metaphors w/o experiences & other incidental learning…(pg 366) • Consultants can work with the general educators to incorporate simple strategies for these students.

36. Strategies for the General Education Teacher • Provide opportunities for tactile exploration. • Allow space for adaptive/assistive equipment. Example-- include text readers or magnifiers. • Give verbal descriptions of visual information. • Learn details about the implications of vision loss for the student. Example--change the colors used on papers & bulletin boards or adjust lighting. • Allow the student to indicate their preferred seating. (pg 367)

37. Residential Services: Blind • About 13% of students who are blind or visually impaired receive their full instruction at separate facilities . Example--Kansas State School for the Blind in Kansas City, KS. • Most have other learning disabilities in addition to their visual impairment or they may attend only for a short term to learn specific skills. (pg 368) Note: KSB 2007 enrollment had approx. 65 K-12 students.

38. Deaf/Blind • About 63% of students classified as deaf-blind have other intellectual disabilities. • Face increased learning challenges because reduced from 5 senses to 3. • Students who are deaf-blind often require individualized instruction for nearly all areas of learning. (pg 370)

39. Deaf/Blind • Have few options partly because of other disabilities & limited life experiences. • The Helen Keller National Center for Deaf-Blind Youths & Adults (HKNC) in New York is devoted to developing job skills. They claim a 50% employment rate for graduates of their program. (pg 371)

40. Transition: School to Adult Life • This can be the most critical period in the life of ANY young person. For a student with sensory disabilities the process may present several obstacles. (pg 369) • Planning & Preparing • Developing Independence • Exploring Interests • Pursuing Employment • Additional Schooling

41. Implications for the Teacher So what--does this mean to me? • Teachers of students with sensory impairments have a rewarding & challenging career. • Main role is to provide direct services to students. • Spend additional time consulting with other teachers, adapting curriculum materials, accommodating lesson plans, & completing paperwork. • Work with a wide variety of students in age, grade &ability level. (pg 371)