Deaf child in public school?

Question

How does it work for an interpreter for a Deaf child in public school? How much does the child receive from the lesson? How do the other students handle having an interpreter during class? Does it distract them or would a Deaf Child be put into General Ed?

Answer 1

I am not deaf but hearing impaired. I was mainstreamed and in special ed. I had note takers in my class or sometimes I would be in two different classrooms. The problem may be is that the interpreter may be behind as far as what the speaking teacher is saying and what the interpreter is saying. The other students may tease your child but if the other students know up front that its not nice, etc then things should go fine. You can always meet with the teacher/teachers as well as the principal and any other authoritative figure that will make an impact in your child's life. You can express your concerns and what you hope for.

For me, we had an IEP set up, the teachers met with my mom before hand and luckily I went through a great school system for 5th grade, 8th grade and high school. Also the school I went to for those grades already had students like me and a few deaf students so the hearing students knew what to expect.

Answer 2

I'm not Deaf or Hard of Hearing, but I wouldn't put my child in public school with an interpreter. Especially if the school is oral only. I think the child would benefit from going to a school that allows him/her to sign [if that's what the child is learning at home]. Using an interpreter may not work as well as far as the child learning because there is a lot of confusion when information is passed from the teacher to the interpreter to the child.

What if your child has a question about information that was said a long time ago? It would be kind of hard to catch that child up if they have to go through a middle man just to get the question and answer back and forth.

Answer 3

My public school has had a D/HH program for 16 years and most of the teachers and students are comfortable with d/hh kids in their classes however it is a full time job for me, the d/hh resource teacher to stay ahead of the teachers and consult with them as to what modifications need to be made on written/reading work. Many but not all d/hh kids have less experience with English word order/vocabulary and may need those classes to be taught in resource.
Kids in other schools in my district have a variety of levels of d/hh service: itinerant teachers who monitor/teach in a pull out situation. When more service time is needed my d/hh resource school is recomended. There are about 40 d/hh kids in the district with all levels of hearing impairment- some oral ,some using ASL interpreters.
I have seen kids do very well without additional time or support and I have recomended others going back to the local school for the deaf for some who seemed to need more than the public school could offer- but all my decisions are made with the parents and on an individual basis as deliniated in their IEP.
Many teach .ers teach their whole class the manual alphabet and there are usually several kids in each class who really want to learn sign and always try to communicate with the deaf child. Our interpreters go to all classes and interpret everything. Hearing kids get used to interpreters and usually learn a few signs from them. Schools have trouble keeping interpreters because they can make more money outside of school setting.
I've had a few kids whose skills were so low that they really didn't get much out of the lessons but their parents insisted on public school. That was hard because I could see that the program wasn't right for them... Right now I have a very motivated bunch of kids who are mainstreamed for most of the day, coming to resource just for reading and writing. They are doing great and the ones who have gone on to H.S. seem to be doing great too. A lot depends on the child, the background and education he/she has had and of course the close connection between the teachers and the school. Some kids adapt well others do not..the thing is.. a parent can try it and if after a few months..call a meeting and make some changes!