Low quality of education

A considerable majority of the teachers state that the level of education is poor, low and not acceptable, even in countries where there is a reported bilingual approach. There is a danger that the diagram regarding education of Deaf children show a more positive picture than the reality, since it is only provided with the information about whether there is Legislation on Education for Deaf children, if there are any Deaf schools and if bilingual education is offered. It is not provided with any qualitative information about the situation as it exists in the schools. There are the numbers of schools in many of the countries, but there are no numbers about the percentage of Deaf children that are enrolled in schools or how large the schools are, so it is not possible to determine how many Deaf children actually receive any kind of education in any of the regions. Our country has a high score in the regional diagram below, it is a sign that there are some domestic resources or knowledge about Deaf children’s right to receive an education, and that bilingual education is one of the approaches used. Low scores mean that not even the formal rights are there, and/or that there is a massive ignorance in the education system about the importance of sign language in Deaf education.

Eastern Europe and Middle Asia Table 2. Regional overview

In the given region all governments in all countries recognise Deaf children’s right to receive an education, there is legislation on Deaf education in each country and there are schools for the Deaf in all countries. Two countries reported bilingual education as one of the educational approaches, but it is not known in how many schools or classrooms a bilingual approach is used in those two countries. Only Kazakhstan expressed an opinion that the literacy level of Deaf children and Deaf students is satisfactory.

Acceptance of Sign Language in Deaf Education

It is not yet possible to detect how widespread the bilingual approach really is, or indeed how many Deaf children receive any kind of education at all. Due to different research approaches and different questions, it is not possible to make any direct comparisons between the results in the report “Deaf People in the Developing World” and the “Deaf People and Human Rights” report. However, it is worthwhile to note that in 1992 thirteen countries (Argentina, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Kenya, Lesotho, Mauritania, Nicaragua, Panama, Swaziland, Tanzania, the Gambia and Zimbabwe) reported the oral method as the only approach. Of those 13 countries, in 2008 Cuba, Kenya and Nicaragua say a bilingual approach is used in their countries. Only Argentina and Zimbabwe still report the oral method as the only approach used in their countries. In Dominican Republic, Gambia, Haiti, Lesotho, Mauritania, Panama, Swaziland and Tanzania, oral methods and sign language are used simultaneously. Looking at the development in those 13 countries could be an indication that the pure oral method is gradually giving way to educational approaches that include the use of signs or sign language.

Kazakhstan acknowledge that Deaf people have a formal right to enter a school, but unfortunately we do not have an education system whereby education is delivered in the most appropriate language for Deaf students (the bilingual approach); and very few Deaf people receive an education in an environment which maximises academic and social development. It is said by most of the teachers that the literacy level among Deaf people in our country is low. As well, opportunities to obtain and hold a job to earn a living to support oneself and a family are severely limited.

Teaching the Deaf

Learning How to Teach Deaf or Hard of Hearing Children

University programs in the United States that prepare teachers of children who are deaf or hard of hearing provide both teacher certification and opportunities for research. Teachers of the deaf and hard of hearing in the United States may work in public or private programs. Some students with hearing loss attend state residential schools and private day schools. Larger cities have public school programs that include small classes for children who are deaf or hard of hearing as well as resource programs for children who spend part or all of their time in the regular classroom. Many rural areas serve their deaf or hard of hearing students using sign language interpreters and traveling teachers known as itinerants. University research in the area of deaf education focuses on various aspects of deafness:  deaf culture and the deaf community, native signed languages, technology advances, and teaching methods for children who are deaf or hard of hearing.

Deaf Culture

Most graduate programs can offer to international students, both hearing and deaf, the opportunity to study deafness as a culture and apply that knowledge to their own countries of origin. Almost every country has a community of deaf individuals. In the United States, this community is active, and reaches out to other communities around the world through Deaf Way celebrations, Deaf Connection, and the presence of deaf international students in college programs such as Gallaudet University and the National Technical Institute for the Deaf.

Linguistic Studies

Many deaf education programs require students to become proficient in American Sign Language. Part of cultural experience is a shared language. There are several graduate school programs throughout the United States that research sign language linguistics. The faculty and students from these programs attend national and international conferences where American Sign Language is compared with the national signed languages of many other countries.

Technology Research

Technology research by faculty in universities in the United States focuses on three primary areas: communication, education, and audiology research. Communication technology includes rapidly growing fields such as computer-based communication, visual telephone relay services, and captioning for film, and television. Educational technology includes computer software designed for the learning needs of children who are deaf or hard of hearing, real time captioning for the classroom, and use of the world wide web, videotapes and compact DVDs to help students learn to read and write. Audiology technology includes work in improving hearing aids and cochlear implants, as well as improvement of FM sound systems in classrooms, businesses, and community centers such as churches and theatres. Professors in Deaf Education do not usually conduct audiology research; however, many universities have programs in both audiology and deaf education that may work together.

Educational Research

Research studying various methods for improving education for students with hearing loss is taking place in graduate programs in universities across the United States. Education for children who are deaf or hard of hearing is a topic in which there are deep divisions in American universities and schools. Professionals, parents, and members of the deaf community disagree about whether children with hearing loss should speak or use sign language or both, whether cochlear implants are ethical for use with young children, and whether young children with hearing parents should be introduced to members of the deaf community. Although many American deaf individuals are literate in English, language and reading progress has been very limited for the majority of deaf children leaving secondary school. Unemployment and underemployment is high for deaf individuals in the United States.