"What do you call a deaf person who does not speak?"
This chapter makes it very clear that all deaf people have the ability to vocalize, but then says that at most a profoundly Deaf child has only a 5% chance of developing intelligible speech. As a future speech-language pathologist this is a little discouraging. All I can hope is that I can make an impact on these children as well as others who have at some time had some hearing. I do understand why some people choose not to voice ever, If I was told that I sounded like an animal, or a freak I would be ashamed to vocalize as well.
This chapter said that "paradoxically, deaf children whose first language is Sign Language tend to develop better speech than those who are given intensive early oral training without exposure to signing." I think this is so interesting! It makes perfect sense though, the child already has a solid language background in ASL. I think more parents and professionals should be aware of this! I know that I will keep this information with me in hopes of relaying it to parents in the future.
I am really glad this chapter finally brought up Marlee Matlin, and her wonderful speech. This book does make a great point in saying that she has the luxury of the best articulation coaches, so parents of Deaf children should never try to relate their child to her. That would be like my parents comparing my writing to Jane Austin, or my acting skills to Aubrey Hepburn. Everyone is an individual.
Sunday, December 9, 2012
Chapter 35 :)
"If you're Deaf how come you can talk?"
I found chapter 35 to be very interesting! The farther I get into the book the more I realize how intricate and complicated Deaf culture is, I don't mean this is a negative way- I am just shocked that voicing or not is such a controversial topic among both Deaf and hearing people.
The "Identification-by-communication-modes" seemed a little straight forward to me... so people actually use them to "classify" each other?
In the first mode it described the Deaf as sometimes using hearing-aids labeled "Deaf," I had never heard of this. I looked on the internet for more information but nothing directly related to this concept came up. How would hearing aids help a born-deaf person? Do they help them hear?
Another concept discussed in this section that determines the person's mode is their label. A person can be: Deaf, they can have deaf-speech, or a HH-voice, be ex-hearing,or hearing-in-the head. I had no idea that there were this many classifications for Deaf peoples speech, or lack there of. I don't think I would label people according to these though, I mean I do think it is interesting to know when a person lost their hearing and if they have any Deaf people in their family but I think that it is their choice to voice or not and no one should be judged or categorized on the quality or quantity of speech.
The portion about the interpreter not using their speaking voice when out to dinner with Deaf friends was interesting. I do not think I would use my voice in that situation, I feel like it would be rude and as the book mentions "it puts everyone in the party on equal footing."
In the first mode it described the Deaf as sometimes using hearing-aids labeled "Deaf," I had never heard of this. I looked on the internet for more information but nothing directly related to this concept came up. How would hearing aids help a born-deaf person? Do they help them hear?
Another concept discussed in this section that determines the person's mode is their label. A person can be: Deaf, they can have deaf-speech, or a HH-voice, be ex-hearing,or hearing-in-the head. I had no idea that there were this many classifications for Deaf peoples speech, or lack there of. I don't think I would label people according to these though, I mean I do think it is interesting to know when a person lost their hearing and if they have any Deaf people in their family but I think that it is their choice to voice or not and no one should be judged or categorized on the quality or quantity of speech.
The portion about the interpreter not using their speaking voice when out to dinner with Deaf friends was interesting. I do not think I would use my voice in that situation, I feel like it would be rude and as the book mentions "it puts everyone in the party on equal footing."
Chapter 34 :)
Speech
I understand the writer at the beginning of the chapter wanting the co worker to verbalize, but if she is not comfortable with it then my opinion is that speech should be forced or even suggested.
Something I found to be interesting in this chapter is that "oralists maintain that career opportunities are better for speaking deaf than for non-speaking (sign-dependent) deaf." I do understand this but the book makes an interesting point by questioning that if speech = success than does non-speech = second class citizenship? I definitely don't think so, my reasoning is that even if a Deaf individual does speak they still don't have the ability to answer phones or do that type of work so how much does Deaf speech really improve job outlooks for the person?
This chapter brought up the question of "How well can you modulate your voice if you can't hear yourself speaking?" I actually had an experience recently that gave me a tiny bit of insight on this concept. I had a very bad ear infection in both ears and it caused my hearing to be very poor. Not only was it frustrating, I could never hear my speaking volume and I felt like my speech articulation was completely off. I can not imagine trying to learn to articulate, and control speaking volume while being Deaf.
As a future SLP I do think some oral training is important, in emergency situations or other tricky times speech is useful and important, but I would never push anyone to speak in public if they did not feel comfortable.
I understand the writer at the beginning of the chapter wanting the co worker to verbalize, but if she is not comfortable with it then my opinion is that speech should be forced or even suggested.
Something I found to be interesting in this chapter is that "oralists maintain that career opportunities are better for speaking deaf than for non-speaking (sign-dependent) deaf." I do understand this but the book makes an interesting point by questioning that if speech = success than does non-speech = second class citizenship? I definitely don't think so, my reasoning is that even if a Deaf individual does speak they still don't have the ability to answer phones or do that type of work so how much does Deaf speech really improve job outlooks for the person?
This chapter brought up the question of "How well can you modulate your voice if you can't hear yourself speaking?" I actually had an experience recently that gave me a tiny bit of insight on this concept. I had a very bad ear infection in both ears and it caused my hearing to be very poor. Not only was it frustrating, I could never hear my speaking volume and I felt like my speech articulation was completely off. I can not imagine trying to learn to articulate, and control speaking volume while being Deaf.
As a future SLP I do think some oral training is important, in emergency situations or other tricky times speech is useful and important, but I would never push anyone to speak in public if they did not feel comfortable.
Thursday, December 6, 2012
Chapter 33 :)
Speech-Language Pathologists
Chapter 33 was so insightful to me, I am currently working on my undergrad in speech-language pathology. Before taking this class I had never really thought about having Deaf and hard of hearing patients. I am no where near a proficient signer, but just from one semester of ASL I have learned so much about Deaf culture and signing. This chapter was a little discouraging for a future SLP to read.
I understand that "how the doctor or audiologist handles "breaking the news" can have profound repercussions to the parents and children" I think this is another reason that medical professionals should be more informed about Deafness and Deaf culture. I work with a few audiologists, and my mom does hearing screenings on the babies at the hospital. Since taking this class, I have began asking them how often they diagnose deafness and how the parents often react. My mom (she does hearing screenings about once a week) said that she was very shocked at the number of babies who fail the screenings. And one of the audiologists at UofL Hospital had so many heartbreaking stories about parents who took their child's deafness as a sort of death sentence. This is very sad to me, I read something the other day (I can't remember where) that said "deaf people can do anything a hearing person can except hear. I really like this saying, I wish more people would see deafness this way.
Anyways... now that I am off topic
I thought it was interesting how the book said that "speech pathologists take up where doctors and audiologists leave off" from this phrase I get the impression that we SLPs have a big job, not only with the child but with the parents. I understand how some can see speech therapy as a "monotonous grueling work," but I believe that with a good speech therapist it can be slightly intriguing and hopefully effective.
It was very warming to read that "most ASL-Deaf people are not opposed to speech training" I am glad to know that they see its importance, I do however wish that speech therapy with Deaf individuals had a better rep, I know that if I have heard how awful and boring something is, then I go into it with a closed mind and never allow that activity to have the chance to be enjoyable.
The portion of this chapter that discussed some SLPs views of the Deaf as being "defective" or broken is very sad. The exert about the person who was pinched for mispronouncing words is so awful as well. This chapter gave me more insight as to why some Deaf people have negative feelings towards SLPs, but it also was a reminder of how important it is to always encourage students and make lessons enjoyable/ effective.
Recollections:
I could go on and on about my feelings on the recollections in this chapter. Perhaps the most disturbing was the SLP who didn't appreciate the group of Deaf students signing, and found it distasteful. How could someone with a MASTERS DEGREE not recognize the beauty and complexity of ASL. Yes as a SLP I do think some speech is important, but I would never (even before taking ASL) discourage anyone from signing.
The recollection about honesty between the SLP and client was interesting to me. I understand the SLP wanting to encourage and praise their student, but it is not fair to the student to be lied too. I have the feeling that the speech therapist did not mean to mislead the girl, but she had gotten to know her well, and "Beckey" may have shown great improvement. I am sure cases like this happen, I bet the therapist could understand her because she had gotten used to her speech. Much like in 32 when they explained how the Deaf man read the lips of people he knew better than strangers.
Overall this has been one of my favorite chapters! Probably because it directly pertains to my future, but this is a chapter I will keep bookmarked for future reference.
Chapter 33 was so insightful to me, I am currently working on my undergrad in speech-language pathology. Before taking this class I had never really thought about having Deaf and hard of hearing patients. I am no where near a proficient signer, but just from one semester of ASL I have learned so much about Deaf culture and signing. This chapter was a little discouraging for a future SLP to read.
I understand that "how the doctor or audiologist handles "breaking the news" can have profound repercussions to the parents and children" I think this is another reason that medical professionals should be more informed about Deafness and Deaf culture. I work with a few audiologists, and my mom does hearing screenings on the babies at the hospital. Since taking this class, I have began asking them how often they diagnose deafness and how the parents often react. My mom (she does hearing screenings about once a week) said that she was very shocked at the number of babies who fail the screenings. And one of the audiologists at UofL Hospital had so many heartbreaking stories about parents who took their child's deafness as a sort of death sentence. This is very sad to me, I read something the other day (I can't remember where) that said "deaf people can do anything a hearing person can except hear. I really like this saying, I wish more people would see deafness this way.
Anyways... now that I am off topic
I thought it was interesting how the book said that "speech pathologists take up where doctors and audiologists leave off" from this phrase I get the impression that we SLPs have a big job, not only with the child but with the parents. I understand how some can see speech therapy as a "monotonous grueling work," but I believe that with a good speech therapist it can be slightly intriguing and hopefully effective.
It was very warming to read that "most ASL-Deaf people are not opposed to speech training" I am glad to know that they see its importance, I do however wish that speech therapy with Deaf individuals had a better rep, I know that if I have heard how awful and boring something is, then I go into it with a closed mind and never allow that activity to have the chance to be enjoyable.
The portion of this chapter that discussed some SLPs views of the Deaf as being "defective" or broken is very sad. The exert about the person who was pinched for mispronouncing words is so awful as well. This chapter gave me more insight as to why some Deaf people have negative feelings towards SLPs, but it also was a reminder of how important it is to always encourage students and make lessons enjoyable/ effective.
Recollections:
I could go on and on about my feelings on the recollections in this chapter. Perhaps the most disturbing was the SLP who didn't appreciate the group of Deaf students signing, and found it distasteful. How could someone with a MASTERS DEGREE not recognize the beauty and complexity of ASL. Yes as a SLP I do think some speech is important, but I would never (even before taking ASL) discourage anyone from signing.
The recollection about honesty between the SLP and client was interesting to me. I understand the SLP wanting to encourage and praise their student, but it is not fair to the student to be lied too. I have the feeling that the speech therapist did not mean to mislead the girl, but she had gotten to know her well, and "Beckey" may have shown great improvement. I am sure cases like this happen, I bet the therapist could understand her because she had gotten used to her speech. Much like in 32 when they explained how the Deaf man read the lips of people he knew better than strangers.
Overall this has been one of my favorite chapters! Probably because it directly pertains to my future, but this is a chapter I will keep bookmarked for future reference.
Monday, December 3, 2012
Chapter 32 :)
"Can you Read my Lips?"
Chapter 32 addressed an issue I have been curious about, I know that not all
Deaf people can read lips but I wasn't sure if it was rude to ask. I was surprised at first when I read that all Deaf people could speech read, but after time i suppose a skill like this is learned with anyone. Another point this chapter made was that often even when the Deaf person indicates that yes, they can read lips people still exaggerated lip movements and speak slowly. This might sound bad, but I think I would do the same thing, but it makes perfect sense that speaking slowly and more exaggerated would only make communication more difficult.
I was really surprised to read that only 30% of all spoken sounds are visible on the lips. (As a future SLP I feel like I should have already known this lol) Also everyone makes sounds a bit differently. The concept of speech reading was a new one to me as well, I found it interesting that "speechreaders don't just look at the mouth; they look at the entire face: the eyes, the way the eyebrows tilt, or the brows knot when certain words are emphasized. They note changes in expression, shoulder shrugs, posture, and gestures. This is so much to notice, I know now why it is so difficult to speech read/ read lips. I have no doubt that it is exhausting.
I feel that I learned a lot from the words of advice section of this chapter. Men with full beards and thick mustaches being hard to speech read would have never crossed my mind, but I see how it would be difficult. Some advice that is more applicable to me as a female would be to remove sunglasses or hats that may cast a shadow on the face. Even as a hearing person I have trouble reading people's expressions when they have sunglasses on. My boyfriend always wears big aviator sunglasses and it bugs the crap out of me because I can't tell where he is looking (silly I know). Another good tip is that when asking if one can speechread, it is not necessary to point at the lips. I think this would be a bit instinctive, but it is good to know that this is not necessary. The last tip "What Comes Next" makes a great point in saying, "two persons who have a language or modal barrier and really want to communicate will usually find a way around it." My best friend in high school was born in Cuba, and while she spoke perfect English, her parents spoke none. Our senior year she was in a very bad car accident and when the paramedics tried to contact her parents (her only family in America) it was difficult, but eventually they understood that their daughter was in trouble and the doctors and nurses found ways to relay information to her parents.
Chapter 32 addressed an issue I have been curious about, I know that not all
Deaf people can read lips but I wasn't sure if it was rude to ask. I was surprised at first when I read that all Deaf people could speech read, but after time i suppose a skill like this is learned with anyone. Another point this chapter made was that often even when the Deaf person indicates that yes, they can read lips people still exaggerated lip movements and speak slowly. This might sound bad, but I think I would do the same thing, but it makes perfect sense that speaking slowly and more exaggerated would only make communication more difficult.
I was really surprised to read that only 30% of all spoken sounds are visible on the lips. (As a future SLP I feel like I should have already known this lol) Also everyone makes sounds a bit differently. The concept of speech reading was a new one to me as well, I found it interesting that "speechreaders don't just look at the mouth; they look at the entire face: the eyes, the way the eyebrows tilt, or the brows knot when certain words are emphasized. They note changes in expression, shoulder shrugs, posture, and gestures. This is so much to notice, I know now why it is so difficult to speech read/ read lips. I have no doubt that it is exhausting.
I feel that I learned a lot from the words of advice section of this chapter. Men with full beards and thick mustaches being hard to speech read would have never crossed my mind, but I see how it would be difficult. Some advice that is more applicable to me as a female would be to remove sunglasses or hats that may cast a shadow on the face. Even as a hearing person I have trouble reading people's expressions when they have sunglasses on. My boyfriend always wears big aviator sunglasses and it bugs the crap out of me because I can't tell where he is looking (silly I know). Another good tip is that when asking if one can speechread, it is not necessary to point at the lips. I think this would be a bit instinctive, but it is good to know that this is not necessary. The last tip "What Comes Next" makes a great point in saying, "two persons who have a language or modal barrier and really want to communicate will usually find a way around it." My best friend in high school was born in Cuba, and while she spoke perfect English, her parents spoke none. Our senior year she was in a very bad car accident and when the paramedics tried to contact her parents (her only family in America) it was difficult, but eventually they understood that their daughter was in trouble and the doctors and nurses found ways to relay information to her parents.
Chapter 31 :)
Children with Hearing Problems
I found chapter 31 to be very interesting, I am an assistant in a special needs classroom so the information in this chapter was especially relevant for me. The opening paragraph about the little boy with Deaf parents was very interesting to me. I feel like all semester we have talked about Deaf children with hearing parents, but not much about hearing children with Deaf parents. The fact that the boy was translating the ASL that he saw at home to spoken English is fascinating to me, this is a perfect example of why educators should be more informed about ASL and Deaf culture. I found through doing research for a CD class that often even children who are not Deaf can benefit from learning ASL and other signed languages or Augmentative and Alternative Communication. This chapter really emphasized how many resources there are out to find information about Deaf education. Some knowledge that was new to me is that "Maryland together with Washington D.C. has the nations heaviest concentration of Deaf organizations and agencies." I have used Gallaudet's online research resources for projects and research for projects in my Communication Disorders classes.
I found chapter 31 to be very interesting, I am an assistant in a special needs classroom so the information in this chapter was especially relevant for me. The opening paragraph about the little boy with Deaf parents was very interesting to me. I feel like all semester we have talked about Deaf children with hearing parents, but not much about hearing children with Deaf parents. The fact that the boy was translating the ASL that he saw at home to spoken English is fascinating to me, this is a perfect example of why educators should be more informed about ASL and Deaf culture. I found through doing research for a CD class that often even children who are not Deaf can benefit from learning ASL and other signed languages or Augmentative and Alternative Communication. This chapter really emphasized how many resources there are out to find information about Deaf education. Some knowledge that was new to me is that "Maryland together with Washington D.C. has the nations heaviest concentration of Deaf organizations and agencies." I have used Gallaudet's online research resources for projects and research for projects in my Communication Disorders classes.
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