The word deaf usually refers to an individual with very little or no functional hearing and who often uses sign language to communicate. Hard of Hearing refers to an individual who has a mild-to-moderate hearing loss who may communicate through sign language, spoken language, or both. The many different circumstances under which individuals develop hearing loss can affect the way they experience sound, communicate with others, and view their hearing loss.
Because students who are deaf/hard of hearing (D/HH) are a low-incidence population, the state established Regional Day School Programs for the Deaf (RDSPD); therefore, every local district has access to services for D/HH students. Any student whose hearing difference impairs his/her ability to process linguistic information through hearing, even with recommended amplification, and which adversely affects educational performance shall be eligible for consideration for the Regional Day School Program for the Deaf, subject to the admission, review, and dismissal (ARD) committee recommendations. D/HH students may also be eligible for services in their home district provided by an itinerant Teacher of the Deaf/Hard of Hearing (TODHH). All services for D/HH students are determined by an ARD or 504 committee based on individual student needs.
Teachers of the deaf have an in depth understanding of hearing loss and its impact on academic, social/emotional, literacy, and language development in an educational setting. Teachers of the deaf are trained to adapt or modify curriculum to meet the specialized needs of students with hearing loss. We target IEP goals and objectives with the hearing loss in mind and are always thinking not only of what language structures and skills the student needs now, but also what the student will need in upcoming units so that we can pre-teach curriculum concepts and skills for more independent learning. Additionally, we can anticipate what some of the potential social/emotional and self-advocacy challenges may be for our students and preemptively give them strategies to handle these potential difficulties with confidence. See more from Hear Me OutLinks to an external site.