Virtual environments as a tool for improving sequence ability of deaf and hard of hearing children.

The study examined the efficacy of an early intervention program to improve children's sequential time perception through virtual versus pictorial training in arranging episodes of temporal scripts. The researchers examined 65 deaf and hard of hearing children ages 4-7 years who were divided into two groups: (a) virtual environments technological intervention and (b) pictorial nontechnological intervention. Participants completed pretest and posttest measures.

Fathers' involvement in preschool programs for children with and without hearing loss.

The authors compared the involvement in children's development and education of 38 fathers of preschoolers with hearing loss to the involvement of a matched group of 36 fathers of preschoolers with normal hearing, examining correlations between child, father, and family characteristics. Fathers completed self-reports regarding their parental involvement and parenting self-efficacy and reported on their family cohesion and adaptability. Mothers also reported on their husbands' involvement.

[Hearing loss due to chemotherapy and radiation therapy in young children].

Introduction: Modern treatment of pediatric cancer patients has improved survival and life expectancy. However, treatment is associated with significant side-effects, including hearing loss. Hearing impairment has an important impact on language, communication and social skills, as well as on academic performance in school.

Enhancing sequential time perception and storytelling ability of deaf and hard of hearing children.

A 3-month intervention was conducted to enhance the sequential time perception and storytelling ability of young children with hearing loss. The children were trained to arrange pictorial episodes of temporal scripts and tell the stories they created. Participants (N = 34, aged 4-7 years) were divided into 2 groups based on whether their spoken-language gap was more or less than 1 year compared to age norms.

Social competence, sense of loneliness, and speech intelligibility of young children with hearing loss in individual inclusion and group inclusion.

The study focused on social competence (SC) and perceived sense of loneliness of preschool children with hearing loss (HL) in group inclusion (GI, a small group of children with HL is integrated in a standard classroom) and individual inclusion (II, each child with HL is individually integrated into a standard classroom). The relations between these factors and the child's speech intelligibility were performed. Sixty-four children aged 4-7 years participated: 22 from an II and 42 from a GI.

Actual versus desired family-centered practice in early intervention for children with hearing loss.

Early intervention programs (EIPs) for children with hearing loss (HL) are increasingly characterized by a growing family-centered orientation. This article examined mothers' and professionals' assessments of actual and desired parental involvement in 6 educational centers in Israel that implement an EIP for young children with HL and their parents. Hundred twenty mothers and 60 professionals participated in the study.