About Communication in Deaf Children

About 1 million children under the age of 18 have a permanent hearing loss, according to raisingdeafkids.org. Early intervention is important to help deaf children develop language skills, both in sign language and English.

  1. Significance

    • About 90 percent of deaf babies are born to hearing parents, and tend to start communicating in sign language later than the 10 percent born to deaf parents (see reference 2).

    Considerations

    • Early language acquisition in deaf children has a positive correlation to literacy development, making it important to introduce sign language as early as possible, according to an article in the Winter 2005 issue of the Kappa Delta Pi record, .

    Types of Communication

    • Deaf children communicate primarily through sign language. Lip reading and written communication are other options, although those methods are less effective.

    Technological Developments

    • Cochlear implants are devices designed to send sound signals to the brain by way of the auditory nerve. The implants are most beneficial to communication when fitted to young children, according to the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders

    Misconceptions

    • Fluency in sign language does not hinder a deaf child's ability to learn English.

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