Language Development of Deaf Infants and Children Essay

Language Development of Deaf Infants and Children My essay topic is the language development of deaf infants and children. In my opinion, this is an important topic to discuss, due to the lack of public knowledge concerning the deaf population. Through this essay, I wish to present how a child is diagnosed as having a hearing loss (including early warning signs), options that parents have for their children once diagnosed (specifically in relation to education of language), common speech teaching methods used today, typical language development for these children, and some emotional, social, and mental difficulties faced by the deaf child and the child’s family that have an immense effect on the child’s education. When most people†¦show more content†¦I want to state that, foremost, it is not my intent to advocate the teaching of speech and the English language to deaf children, nor is it my intent to advocate teaching a visual language. The decision of language for a deaf child is an extremely complicated and personal one, one that can only be made by the child’s family. This site also has limited space, and therefore does not include several facets of a deaf child’s development. This site is strictly limited to the development of language, whether it be visual or oral, and the controversies and research related to it. I also want to briefly point out the range of hearing impairments that a child can have. Even though a child may not be classified as â€Å"profoundly impaired† or deaf, this does not mean that the child will not face several of the obstacles a deaf child does. Therefore, even though this site is taken from a â€Å"worse case scenario† perspective, many of the methods and therapy situations may apply to those with less severe impairments. As a closing thought, please keep in mind the respect for â€Å"difference† that we all MUST have in this country. Deaf or hearing-impaired individuals are not necessarily â€Å"disabled†, but rather â€Å"different†. Although this difference may seem extremely complicated to the hearing world, it is one that is often embraced in the deaf world. Let us respect all people and their right to knowledge! Hopefully,Show MoreRelatedPre Lingual Hearing Loss, Or Deafness1420 Words   |  6 PagesPre lingual hearing loss, or deafness — â€Å"that is, severe to profound hearing impairment that prevents infants and young children from acquiring normally the capacity for intelligible speech† — affects tens of thousands of Americans (Murray, 1997). Accordingly, for this population of infants who were born severely or profoundly deaf and young children who became severely or profoundly deaf prior to developing any sort of communication, it is imperative t hat the child’s appointed professionals andRead MoreDeaf Studies And Deaf Education1736 Words   |  7 PagesMany of the cues used by the children or to categorize their reactions were auditory ones. If a parent called the child’s name, the child would often stop and look back to the mother. If the child heard a loud sound, they would look back to the mother for reassurance. Again, we see studies that indicate that the hearing capabilities of the child are valuable at least in examining the child’s responses, if not in creating the stimuli that the child is responding to in the first place. In theirRead MoreMaking Decisions For Children Is Difficult1511 Words   |  7 PagesMaking decisions for children is difficult; however, making decisions becomes even more complicated when the child has a hearing loss. Most parents know very little about hearing loss and the implications for their child. Before parents even have time to adjust to their child having a hearing loss, decisions need to be made and have no idea what is best for the child. Parents need to realize that just as all children are different, no one style of communication or educational assignment is rightRead MoreInnateness of Children’s Language Acquisition1371 Words   |  6 PagesThe subtlety of language acquisition has been the most fundamental question in the study of linguistics and human development. From Bow-wow Theory to Yo-He-Ho Theory, major theories on the origins and learnability of language have emerged in mid-20th century and heavily debated ever since. Among them, the idea of univer sal grammar in which is usually credited to linguist Noam Chomsky, remains the most notable and controversial theory over time. He introduced and developed the theory from 1950s toRead MoreThe subtlety of language acquisition has been the most fundamental question in the study of1500 Words   |  6 PagesThe subtlety of language acquisition has been the most fundamental question in the study of linguistics and human development. From Bow-wow Theory to Yo-He-Ho Theory, the major theories on language origins and learnability emerged at mid-20th century and has been heavily debated ever since. Among them, the idea of universal grammar in which is usually credited to linguist Noam Chomsky, remains the most notable and controversial theory over time. He introduced and developed the t heory from 1950sRead MoreThe Acquisition of Spoken Language in Deaf Children1839 Words   |  7 Pagesability to use language to communicate with the world around us. The capability to produce novel and co mplex sentences is a skill that every child learns if the conditions allow him or her to do so. What is most amazing about this is that children gain this capability in such a short amount of time. Within 5 years of life humans use the linguistic input of the world around them to produce novel ideas and thoughts. Regardless of where or how one lives, the process of acquiring language is often predictableRead MoreChilds Real Time Referential Processing Development1480 Words   |  6 PagesIntroduction Language processing has been a largely studied area of research over the past _ years. More recently, studies have looked into real-time referential processing abilities in children in order to understand how processing works as well as what contributes to levels of efficiency. Some factors that effect proficiency of this ability includes exposure to infant-directed speech, onset of exposure to first language, socioeconomic status, as well as various individual differences such as language impairmentsRead MoreLanguage Of Routines And Joint Attention Essay1107 Words   |  5 Pagesprovided to infants and toddlers who are at risk for, or showing signs of developmental delays† (Coleman, 1993). The intervention is individualized for each child and family and their specific needs. Thus, when the service providers work with the families, they can â€Å"create optimal environments for language learning† (Moeller, et. al., 2013). Research shows that language of routines and jo int attention are two successful evidence based practices families and interventionist can use with children who areRead MoreA Critical Evaluation Of Children Early Speech Perception And Implicated The `` Critical Period ``2005 Words   |  9 PagesIntroduction Infants are linguistic genius. Kuhl (2004, 2009) discovered that babies are born with the ability to make all the discrimination by languages of the world. Infants use computational strategies and statistically calculate the sound of their caregiver talking to discover all the phonemes and words. But babies lose the ability to hear those differences of other nonnative languages. Kuhl, Conboy, Padden, Nelson and Pruitt (2005) proposed the children early speech perception and implicatedRead MoreThe Effects Of A Deaf Child Cause Stress Within The Family887 Words   |  4 Pagescome together to conceive a child, their natural assumption is the child will also be a hearing person. However, that is not always the case. Over 90% of deaf children are born to hearing parents. The initial discovery of a deaf child causes stress within the family, because they are ignorant of Deaf culture within the US and also the abilities of deaf people. Nevertheless, despite the initial shock of the childà ¢â‚¬â„¢s inability to hear they are still able to bond together as a family and maintain a healthy