Reading Fluency in Young Elementary School Age Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Children.

The Center on Literacy and Deafness examined the language and reading progress of 336 young deaf and hard-of-hearing children in kindergarten, first and second grades on a series of tests of language, reading, and spoken and fingerspelled phonological awareness in the fall and spring of the school year. Children were divided into groups based on their auditory access and classroom communication: a spoken-only group (n = 101), a sign-only group (n = 131), and a bimodal group (n = 104). Previous work reports the overall data (Antia, S.

Modality and Interrelations Among Language, Reading, Spoken Phonological Awareness, and Fingerspelling.

Better understanding of the mechanisms underlying early reading skills can lead to improved interventions. Hence, the purpose of this study was to examine multivariate associations among reading, language, spoken phonological awareness, and fingerspelling abilities for three groups of deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) beginning readers: those who were acquiring only spoken English (n = 101), those who were visual learners and acquiring sign (n = 131), and those who were acquiring both (n = 104). Children were enrolled in kindergarten, first, or second grade.

The Effects of Theory of Mind Training on the False Belief Understanding of Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Students in Prekindergarten and Kindergarten.

Data from a growing number of research studies indicate that children with hearing loss are delayed in Theory of Mind (ToM) development when compared to their typically developing, hearing peers. While other researchers have studied the developmental trajectories of ToM in school-age students who are deaf, a limited number have addressed the need for interventions for this population. The present study extends the current research on ToM interventions to the Prekindergarten and Kindergarten levels.

Reading among diverse DHH learners: what, how, and for whom?

Students whO are deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) face challenges in learning to read. Much has been written about the relative importance of the different factors associated with success in reading, but these factors are disputed within the literature on DHH readers. The Center on Literacy and Deafness, funded by the Institute of Education Sciences, is engaged in a nationwide project to identify child-by-instruction interactions related to instructional factors that are malleable within the classroom context.

Effects of Morphographic Instruction on the Morphographic Analysis Skills of Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Students.

Deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) students have delayed morphographic knowledge that negatively affects their morphographic analysis and decoding abilities. Morphographic analysis instruction may improve DHH students' morphographic knowledge delay. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of morphographic instruction on the morphographic analysis skills of reading-delayed, late-elementary DHH students.

Foundations for literacy: An early literacy intervention for deaf and hard-of-hearing children.

The present study evaluated the efficacy of a new preschool early literacy intervention created specifically for deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) children with functional hearing. Teachers implemented Foundations for Literacy with 25 DHH children in 2 schools (intervention group). One school used only spoken language, and the other used sign with and without spoken language.

The effect of enhanced storybook interaction on signing deaf children's vocabulary.

The link between vocabulary and later literacy is well documented in the research base. One way children gain vocabulary is through incidental learning. Deaf or hard-of-hearing children (D/HH) often struggle with incidental learning and require vocabulary intervention to increase their lexicon.

Increasing children's ASL classifier production: a multicomponent intervention.

The Authors examined classifier production during narrative retells by 10 deaf and hard of hearing students in grades 2-4 at a day school for the deaf following a 6-week intervention of repeated viewings of stories in American Sign Language (ASL) paired with scripted teacher mediation. Classifier production, documented through a multiple-baseline-across-participants design, was followed by visual analysis and calculation of the percentage of non-overlapping data (Scruggs, Mastropieri, & Casto, 1987). Following the intervention, most students increased specific elements within their classifier production during narrative retells of stories they had watched and showed improved performance from pre- to postintervention measures.

Investigating deaf students' use of visual multimedia resources in reading comprehension.

A mixed research design was used to examine how deaf students used the visual resources of a multimedia software package that was designed to support reading comprehension. The viewing behavior of 8 deaf students, ages 8-12 years, was recorded during their interaction with multimedia software that included narrative texts enriched with Greek Sign Language videos, pictures, and concept maps. Also, students' reading comprehension was assessed through reading comprehension questions and retelling.

Phonological awareness: explicit instruction for young deaf and hard-of-hearing children.

The goal of this study was to explore the development of spoken phonological awareness for deaf and hard-of-hearing children (DHH) with functional hearing (i.e., the ability to access spoken language through hearing).

States' reading outcomes of students who are d/deaf and hard of hearing.

Historically, researchers have identified that reading outcomes for students in upper grades who are d/Deaf and hard of hearing (d/Dhh) have typically rested around the late 3rd to early 4th grade. In recent years, wide-scale state-level testing has called into question these prognostications. The authors conducted a descriptive, multiunit, embedded-designs case study of 7 states' data from multiyear annual assessments of reading of participants in grades 3, 5, and 8, and in high school.

Improving DHH students' grammar through an individualized software program.

The purpose of this study was to determine if the frequent use of a targeted, computer software grammar instruction program, used as an individualized classroom activity, would influence the comprehension of morphosyntax structures (determiners, tense, and complementizers) in deaf/hard-of-hearing (DHH) participants who use American Sign Language (ASL). Twenty-six students from an urban day school for the deaf participated in this study. Two hierarchical linear modeling growth curve analyses showed that the influence of LanguageLinks: Syntax Assessment and Intervention (LL) resulted in statistically significant gains in participants' comprehension of morphosyntax structures.

Grapheme-phoneme acquisition of deaf preschoolers.

We examined acquisition of grapheme-phoneme correspondences by 4 deaf and hard-of-hearing preschoolers using instruction from a curriculum designed specifically for this population supplemented by Visual Phonics. Learning was documented through a multiple baseline across content design as well as descriptive analyses. Preschoolers who used sign language and had average to low-average receptive vocabulary skills and varied speech perception skills acquired all correspondences after instruction.

Pragmatic language in deaf and hard of hearing students: correlation with success in general education.

Deaf and hard of hearing children have shown delays and difficulties in pragmatic behaviors due to insufficient exposure to common daily discourse and underlying impoverishment in all components of language development. In a study in a school district in a southeastern U.S.

Contributions of the emergent literacy environment to literacy outcomes for young children who are deaf.

Specific characteristics of early literacy environments support hearing children's emergent literacy. The researchers investigated these characteristics' role in emergent literacy in young deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) children, using the Early Language and Literacy Classroom Observation (ELLCO; M. W.

Veteran teachers' use of recommended practices in deaf education.

Deaf education teacher preparation programs face the likelihood that their graduates may not implement evidenced-based practices they were taught once they have graduated. The literature suggests that new teachers follow the school culture where they work rather than methods and strategies taught in their preparation programs. To investigate whether teachers of students who are deaf or hard of hearing (DHH) implement recommended practices, 23 teachers from three schools for the deaf were interviewed about their implementation and use of two recommended practices: independent reading and problem solving.

The signed reading fluency of students who are deaf/hard of hearing.

Reading fluency in deaf children whose primary mode of communication is visual, whether English-like or American Sign Language, is difficult to measure since most measures of fluency require a child to read aloud. This article opens the discussion of a new construct, namely, signed reading fluency (i.e.

Master teachers' responses to twenty literacy and science/mathematics practices in deaf education.

Under a grant to improve outcomes for students who are deaf or hard of hearing awarded to the Association of College Educators--Deaf/Hard of Hearing, a team identified content that all teachers of students who are deaf and hard of hearing must understand and be able to teach. Also identified were 20 practices associated with content standards (10 each, literacy and science/mathematics). Thirty-seven master teachers identified by grant agents rated the practices on a Likert-type scale indicating the maximum benefit of each practice and maximum likelihood that they would use the practice, yielding a likelihood-impact analysis.

An examination of twenty literacy, science, and mathematics practices used to educate students who are deaf or hard of hearing.

The results of a multistep process to begin identifying best practices in deaf education are presented. To identify current practices, a survey was conducted of the literature, the Web sites of professional organizations, and states' education Web sites, which yielded a number of commonly discussed practices. Ten of the more highly cited practices in literacy instruction and 10 of the more highly cited practices in science and mathematics instruction were identified for additional scrutiny.

Behavior change in a student with a dual diagnosis of deafness and pervasive developmental disorder: a case study.

The broad term pervasive developmental disorder (PPD) describes a set of symptoms that occur along a continuum of severity; these symptoms are often referred to as autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). Little is known about the incidence and prevalence of ASDs among students who are deaf or hard of hearing (DHH). Teachers of DHH students, who must work with individuals with dual diagnoses, are at a loss for guidance from the literature.

Applying critical thinking skills to character education and values clarification with students who are deaf or hard of hearing.

Students who are deaf or hard of hearing must learn to think critically. Character education (CE) refers to the effort to teach basic values and moral reasoning (Doyle & Ponder, 1977). Values clarification (VC) is the process of examining one's basic values and moral reasoning (Rokeach, 1973).

Ignoring free, appropriate, public education, a costly mistake: the case of F.M. & L.G. versus Barbour County.

In 2000, the 11th Circuit Court provided the largest single award in special education history to date, approximately $2.5 million, to two teenaged students who were deaf. The students were judged to have been denied a free, appropriate public education (FAPE), having spent their academic careers in generic special education classes for students with multiple disabilities without the benefit of access to a communication system; the services of a certified, qualified teacher of the deaf; or related services.

Metacognitive ability from a theory-of-mind perspective: a cross-cultural study of students with and without hearing loss.

Theory of Mind (see, e.g., Bartsch & Estes, 1996) is a concept that can help educators understand how students think about their state of mind and that of others involved in various life situations.