Support children with cochlear implants in school as if they were hard of hearing, with ongoing professional development and strong clinic-school communication links¶

Strategy · All strategies
Evidence · 1 claim (1 for) · 1 study (1 associational), q2 · 0 of 1 report an effect size · 1 claim rests on one study

Description¶

The study recommends that educators treat children with cochlear implants as functionally similar to children with moderate or severe hearing loss, since even children with high spoken language proficiency have listening difficulties in particular contexts. It further recommends professional development about CI devices for teachers of the deaf and general class teachers, and strong communication links among teachers, parents, and implant professionals for equipment maintenance. As the paper states, "children with cochlear implants should be supported by teachers and school authorities essentially as if they were hard of hearing".

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Educators involved with children with CI need access to professional development and training about CI device equipment and children's needs.

Constraints¶

• Even children whose spoken language capacity is high are likely to have listening difficulties in particular social and educational contexts and will not have full access to school curricula.

Target Learners¶

• deaf children and adolescents with cochlear implants in early intervention, primary, and secondary settings

Target Learning Goals¶

• full access to school curricula
• social inclusion
• academic achievement commensurate with communication potential

Claims¶

• Children with cochlear implants had difficulty following spoken conversation in groups, with teachers reporting far more difficulty than parents [+W]

Related Strategies¶

• Present signed communication to families as a complement to, not a fallback from, oral communication, with information-giving repeated and extended: the same study's recommendation for counselling families

Examples¶

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Key Sources¶

• Punch, R., & Hyde, M. B. (2011). Communication, Psychosocial, and Educational Outcomes of Children with Cochlear Implants and Challenges Remaining for Professionals and Parents. International Journal of Otolaryngology. https://doi.org/10.1155/2011/573280