I’m involved with an agency that serves Deaf and hard of hearing people in Wisconsin. This past weekend, we had a “Breakfast with Santa” and while only a few kids came, they were new to our area, and the parents were looking for a resource to connect with other parents with Deaf kids. Their daughter was able to interact with the signing Santa for the first time in her life in her own language, and while she was incredibly shy, it was clear she enjoyed meeting him. We had a wonderful breakfast together, the kids got to visit with Deaf Santa, and each received a gift from and his trusty Elf, then the grownups received door prizes. We even had a woman “walk in” off the street with her granddaughter. They were not Deaf, but they were warmly welcomed. It was amazing how quickly she struck up a friendship with one of the Deaf kids and went right into playing with them. The parents met the Deaf adults, and an ASL storyteller read favorite holiday stories with the children. It was such fun. Even the caterer joined in for a brief while after packing up. The hearing parents asked if we will have another family activity soon - such encouraging feedback! We’ve already begun plans for an Easter family activity…
It’s these times, when the families get together and the parents can watch the kids meeting each other and the Deaf adults, and the adults, both Deaf and hearing can talk with each other, that I see hope.
The trend of mainstreaming the kids has gone on for well over 30 years, and while some may claim that mainstreaming works, I can see clearly that it does not. I’m living proof, and so are millions of other Deaf and hard of hearing adults, because of the trend of isolating the Deaf and hard of hearing children from the Deaf and hard of hearing adults who are their best role models for negotiating through life in this world. By preventing the kids from knowing their true identity, their community and their language, they cannot develop a “3-D” life. Giving them sound and speech does not give them the critical tools they need to develop their minds. It lets them hear stuff and learn to talk; the cognition and development of logic ability is neglected and even missed.
Don’t get me wrong. While I don’t object to hearing aids or cochlear implants or speech training, I don’t recommend them either. What I object to is keeping the child away from first having access to his/her own language, and to visual learning that will benefit her so much more, and empower her to learn and develop her mind. The child can put together the things that are learned in a visual framework and then connect them to the world in ways that make sense and help expand that child’s awareness of the world around her.
So, when a child is identified as being Deaf or hard of hearing, do that a child a favor. Give her the gift of a true visual language: American Sign Language (ASL). Learn it with your child. Find a Deaf mentor. Then give her exposure to the visual world, and help her make the connections to the rest of the world by developing cognitive skills. Take her to events where other Deaf and hard of hearing children will be, with their parents, and let them interact with their peers both child and adult. If at a later time the child is given a hearing aid, cochlear implant or speech training, she will be far better equipped to make the connections in the world around her, having first been exposed to it in a rich, visual language that communicates meaning. Learning to speak later isn’t the travesty you think it is. It’s never quite learning how to develop thinking that is a crying shame for a Deaf child. With the visual roots of ASL and visual access to learning, anything else she receives later will give her the wings to fly.
Note: While I refer to the child with a female gender, please understand I am actually talking about a child of either gender. It’s just easier to type…
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