Teaching Children with Disabilities - Free Paper Sample

Hearing impairment is a form of disability that affects individual conductive hearing abilities and speech frequency. According to the World Health Organization's global data release of 2020, there are more than 466 million people with 34 million children. The data is that 5% of the worldwide population suffers from hearing impairment. From that data, a third of the people are above 65 years and above. The prevalence of this group is expected in Pacific Asia, South Asia, and Sub-Saharan Africa (World Health Organization). The disability is common in middle and low-income countries.

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The causes of the disease are mostly associated with age and predisposing factors such as environmental pollution and also other associated illnesses. There is also evidence that some illness treatment can result in hearing disability (Cunningham & Tucci, 2017). The treatment of brain trauma, head fracture, and blast injury can result in hearing problems amongst older adults. There is also a relationship between people suffering from meningitis and diabetes experiencing a hearing problem. Furthermore, prolonged illness in a pregnant mother can contribute to hearing problems in the unborn child. Some types of hearing impairment are hereditary after exposure to genes that have mutated; these genes cause deafness at birth (Cunningham & Tucci, 2017). Exposure to both noise and dust pollution for a long time can contribute to hearing impairment, mostly in older adults. There is no defined prevention method for the illness, but protective measures like regular cleaning of both outer and inner ear with approved items and also avoiding noisy areas, and, if necessary, wearing earbuds when working in loud industries.

Regarding treatment, there is no immediate treatment when the ear is fully damaged, but many of the mechanisms used involve rehabilitative methods instead of curative means like cochlea replacement. Some viral gene studies have shown that viral-vector gene therapy can treat monogenic hereditary deafness (Kitterick & Ferguson, 2018). The treatment is dependent on early diagnosis before it develops to an extreme level.

Teaching students with hearing impairment can be regarded as a significant challenge to those without professional skills. The school systems have set in place schools for students who are suffering from a disability. Students in such schools are given special care and require professionals who have gone through special needs skills that deal with hearing impairment. Similarly, some colleges have specialized in teaching those interested in being teachers of students with hearing disabilities. The common language used in schools and colleges of those with a disability is called sign language (Pichler, 2011). The language involves hands, face, and body movements to pass a message; therefore, tutors have to master the different signs used to signify different meanings. Each alphabetical letter and number is represented with a specific finger sign. Communication involves the expression of words and statements by the use of gestures and body movements. The world has recommended sign language communication making sign language almost common in all countries. This understanding has made it a regulation that during general meetings and gatherings like even churches, there are usually sign language interpreters to facilitate good understanding by those who have a disability.

As discussed earlier, the only way to have a good conversation with a deaf person is through learning their language. In this case, I would invest in my part-time and enroll in a sign language class. By doing this, I will be able to express myself to my students with a good understanding. I will also try to research the type of disability the student is suffering from; eventually, I will get to understand whether it is partial or total deafness. Therefore, I will understand our mode of interaction and develop ways to assist him/her. Through understanding, I would organize some tutorial classes to familiarize the student with studies and also some counseling sessions to improve the student's self-esteem.

To make my student well academically equipped, I would help him get a relevant school in our State to accommodate students with a similar disability. A regular school will make the student feel out of place or alienated when holding verbal conversations. Many deaf schools in the world have specialized in hearing impairment. They have the same curriculum as the regular schools, although they have an additional subject on sign language. The students also share the same national exams with ordinary schools, but grading is usually favorable to disabled students. My already acquired skills would enable me to have a conversation without verbal communication.

As research from the World Health Organization indicated, many of those with hearing disability come from families with low income. If this is the case with my student, I will discuss his family's financial capabilities with him and develop a strategy to raise the transfer fees and facilitate the transfer. However, this might not be easy and would require me to utilize my many social networks and my mobilization skills to mobilize my friends to come and aid in my proposal. After he enrolls, I would then visit public financial institutions like banks and philanthropic individuals to seek the right scholarship formula. A scholarship will remove the burden of financial obligation from his parents and make him/her concentrate on their studies fully.

Upon settling the financial challenge and the student enrolling at school, I would introduce him to groups associated with the welfare of deaf people. Such enrollment will make him aware of the advantages available for such a group of people in society. Also, such a method of participation helps in improving the self-esteem of people with disabilities. High esteem is associated with good performance in both academic and other core-calicular activities like games. People with hearing impairment also participate in football, athletics, badminton, basketball, volleyball, and hockey. It is worth noting that their disability is only affecting their verbal part and not other of their body organs.

It is believed that noise pollution is one of the major causes of hearing impairment. I would advise my student on areas to avoid that can further the damage to his ears. Such an initiative will protect him from extreme damage in cases of partial hearing problems. I would also get a specialist and book him a regular ear clinic to have a routine ear checkup. The physician will establish if the disability is genetically generated and advise future generations regarding the student's family setup. Eventually, it will make it easier to notice improvements in the disability and advice where needed.

To help him have social improvement, I would encourage him we start a hearing disability in my school. In the club, we can create awareness in our school and the surrounding communities on causes and ways to protect ourselves from disability. The interactions would increase the student's social abilities and even motivate him to mentor others. Simultaneously, it's through this type of network that can connect to people who can guide career choices and future opportunities that the student can approach when looking for job opportunities.

Finally, I would consult and help him acquire the best hearing aid. The gadget will help in amplifying voices and make him get to understand some verbal conversations. Also, I would encourage the new school to adopt a policy that will make all teachers use speakers while communicating. The microphones will make their voices more audible and will make it possible for the students to understand better when speeches are louder. With improving technology, I can advise him to acquire a modified tablet to translate voices into readable texts. Such a device will make his learning easier and scale his academic progress higher.

Conclusion

In conclusion, hearing disability is a challenging problem and can lead to those suffering from the disease alienating themselves from the community due to low self-esteem. Connecting with this group of people makes them feel part of society and grow their abilities. Again, hearing impairment can be prevented by advocating for people to cease noise pollution in social areas and seeking early medical attention. Finally, the public should be aware of the primary sign language to help society understand people with hearing disabilities while seeking their services, such as public transport means and other social interaction areas.

References

Cunningham, L. L., & Tucci, D. L. (2017). Hearing Loss in Adults. New England Journal of Medicine, 377(25), 2465–2473. https://doi.org/10.1056/nejmra1616601

Kitterick, P. T., & Ferguson, M. A. (2018). Hearing Aids and Health-Related Quality of Life in Adults With Hearing Loss. Jama, 319(21), 2225. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2018.5567

Matheson, G. Sign Language Alphabets From Around The World. Ai. https://blog.ai-media.tv/blog/sign-language-alphabets-from-around-the-world.

Pichler, D. C. (2011). Sign Language Acquisition. Sign Language Studies, 11(4), 637–646. https://doi.org/10.1353/sls.2011.0005

World Health Organization. Deafness and hearing loss. World Health Organization. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/deafness-and-hearing-loss.