Obstacles For Students Who are Hard of Hearing

The previous posts and module discuss UDL in the classroom. I am now going to move and discuss the different disabilities in the classroom. In addition, I will describing different device that can be used to add UDL into the classroom. As you already know students with disabilities struggle with obstacles each day. If we were faced with being deaf or hard of hearing we would not be able to complete our daily routines and would be faced with many difficulties. Therefore, students that are hard of hearing face different obstacles and changes to help meet their needs.


Students who are hard of hearing usually do not use sign language, instead they use hearing aids and other devices to support their hearing. The can speak clear to be understood, but may have some speech impairments. One obstacle students who have hearing trouble have hard time listening to long lectures, especially depending on the acoustics of the room. A teacher can help this student by speaking loud, slow and as clear as possible. Even though these students have hearing aids, a loud noise or regular classroom noise can cause an acoustic barrier to their listening.



Cochlear Implants are miniature electronic devices that are surgically place into their inner ear. The picture above is an example of this implant. There is also a small microphone implanted that picks up sound and sends them through to the processor, which selects sounds and codes.

Source:

Dell, A., Newton, D., & Petroff, J. (2012). Assistive Technology in the Classroom. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.