Communication Options for Children with Hearing Loss

1. Auditory-Verbal
2. Auditory-Oral
3. Cued Speech
4. Signing Exact English/English-based sign systems/Total Communication
5. Bilingual-Bicultural

(These have been placed in order to reflect auditory based to visually based communication systems)

The following descriptions can be viewed in ERIC (Education Resource Information Clearinghouse) in their entirety but have been condensed here.

1. The goal of Auditory-Verbal practice is for children who are deaf or hard of hearing to grow up in "typical" learning and living environments that enable them to become independent, participating, and contributing citizens in an inclusive mainstream society. The Auditory-Verbal philosophy supports the basic human right that children with all degrees of hearing loss deserve an opportunity to develop the ability to listen and use verbal communication within their own family and community. The principles of Auditory-Verbal practice are (as shortened here): early identification and aggressive audiological management, seeking best source of amplification for the child as early as possible, attaching meaning to sounds and teaching parents how to make sound meaningful for their child all day long, helping the child learn to respond and to use sound in the same way that children with normal hearing learn, using parents as models for learning speech and spoken communication, helping the child to develop an inner auditory system so that they are aware of their own voice and will work to match their own voice with those they hear, knowing how children with normal hearing develop sound awareness, listening, language, and intellect and using this knowledge to help children with hearing loss learn new skills, observing and evaluating the child's development, helping the child to participate educationally and socially with children who have normal hearing by supporting them in regular education classrooms.

Taken from ERIC EC Digest #E552 Author: Donald Goldberg, August 1997

2. The Auditory-Oral approach is based on the fundamental premise that acquiring competence in spoken language, both receptively and expressively, is a realistic goal for children who are deaf or hard of hearing. Further, this ability is best developed in an environment in which spoken communication is used exclusively. This environment includes both the home and the classroom. Elements of the auditory-oral approach that are critical to its success include: parent involvement, appropriate amplification, consistent quality speech training, developmentally appropriate language instruction, range of placement options.
Taken from: ERIC EC Digest #E551 Author: Patrick Stone, August 1997

3.. Cued Speech is a sound-based hand supplement to speechreading. Eight handshapes representing groups of consonants are placed in four positions around the face that indicated groups of vowel sounds. Combined with the natural lip movements of speech, the cues make spoken language visible. Cued Speech was developed by R. Orin Cornett, Ph.D. at Gallaudet University in 1965-66 (Cornett, 1967). His research was one of the responses to a report by a federal government study critical of deaf education, in particular, unsatisfactory literacy levels among high school graduates who were deaf. The purpose of this communication tool was to improve the early English language development of children who are deaf and provide them with a foundation for English reading and writing. Cued Speech has been adapted to approximately 60 other spoken languages and dialects. It is used in schools and programs for children who are deaf, but its primary use has been within hearing families of young children who are deaf and in regular education classrooms when those children enter school.
Taken from ERIC EC Digest #E555 Author: Barbara Caldwell, August 1997

4. Sign language as used by deaf adults may resemble English, or it may be American Sign Language (ASL), which has a grammar, syntax, and idioms distinct from English. ASL is sometimes called a natural language because it evolved through use by people who were deaf. In contrast, English-based sign systems were developed by educators. These systems adopted much of the vocabulary of ASL but added grammatical features of English. English-based sign systems follow English syntax.
Taken from ERIC EC Digest #E559 Author: Larry Hawkins and Judy Brawner. Total Communication (TC), a term coined by Roy Holcomb in 1967, is the title of a philosophy of communication, not a method (Scouten, 1984). Total communication may involve one or several modes of communication (manual, oral, auditory, and written), depending on the particular needs of the child. The original expectation of TC was for teachers to use the communication method(s) most appropriate for a particular child at a particular stage of development. Therefore, there would be situations when spoken communication might be appropriate, other situations where signing might be appropriate, others that would call for written communication, and still others where simultaneous communication might work best (Solit, Taylor & Bednarczyk, 1992). Total communication seemed to be the bridge that allowed a crossover from an oral-only philosophy to a philosophy that embraced sign language. During the 1970's and 1980's most schools and programs for children who are deaf, as well as most major organizations in the field supported the TC philosophy.
Taken from ERIC EC Digest #E556 Author: Gerilee Gustason, August 1997.

5. What does it mean to be Bilingual-Bicultural? "A person who is bicultural can move freely within and between two different cultures. Biculturalism implies an understanding of the mores, customs, practices, and expectations of members of a cultural group and the ability to adapt to their expectations" (Finnegan, 1992, p.1). Bilingualism involves the ability to use two different languages successfully. Some individuals may be stronger in one language, some in the other, some may blend the two languages into a pidgin (Maxwell, 1991). Individuals who are Deaf are considered bilingual if they are able to communicate effectively in both American Sign Language (ASL) and English or the spoken language of their country. They are considered bicultural if they are capable of functioning in both the Deaf community and the majority culture. Bilingual-bicultural programs differ from other programs most notably by their approach to first language acquisition. While bilingual-bicultural programs have respect for both ASL and English, these programs advocate for ASL to be the first language of children who are deaf. The Bilingual-bicultural approach does not support mainstreaming Deaf children in regular education programs. The bilingual-bicultural approach holds that cognitive, linguistic, and social competence are best achieved in environments that provide full communicative access to the curriculum.
Taken from ERIC EC Digest #E553 Authors: Sharon & Keith Baker, August 1997.