SESA - Fall '02 Reference Shelf - Technology
by Krista Galyen, education specialist, SESA
He is a well-behaved student. She sits quietly and doesn’t make trouble.
He looks like he understands the material. Time passes and it seems they are
successful in their learning environments until they are asked a question or
turn in an assignment. Lo and behold, they have missed out on a ton of information,
or their knowledge base is “hit and miss.”
Such is the situation of many deaf and hard of hearing (D/HH) students. It is
the rare student, as many of you know, who will self-advocate. More often than
not, classrooms and D/HH students are being equipped with appropriate technology
to present and access the curriculum. However, teachers as well as students
are not aware of how to use and teach with the technology they currently have
in order to better enable student success in the general classroom. There are
also new technologies being made available that are discussed below.
Technologies for Accessing Sound
Hearing Aids
Most students with a hearing loss will benefit from hearing aids. Yet, hearing
aids do not correct hearing like glasses correct vision; they only amplify the
surrounding sound, including unwanted sounds. However, the more technologically
advanced digital hearing aids are equipped with directional microphones which
enable the user to select the direction in which s/he wants to listen. This
technology is costly and requires careful consideration.
Tips for hearing aids:
It is important that the student or adult take care and clean his/her hearing
aids on a regular basis. A hearing aid care kit is essential to have on site.
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If a child is young (K-3), it is recommended that an adult listen to the
hearing aid periodically to make sure it is working properly by using a sound
test (mm, ah, ee, oo, sh, ss).
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Seat the child appropriately in the classroom (front), and face the classroom
when speaking.
Personal FM Systems
Hearing aids amplify all surrounding sounds. As a result, the student might
be hearing the students sitting next to him/her more than the teacher’s
voice. With an FM system, the teacher is equipped with a microphone and transmitter
and the student is equipped with a receiver and either an FM neck loop (the
child places it around his/her neck) or boots (the student connects them to
his/her hearing aids). Digital FM systems are completely wireless (no wires
from boots or loops), allowing the user to “blend in.” By using
an FM, the student can better tune in to the desired speech signals while blocking
out noise.
Tips for using an FM system in the classroom:
Seat the child appropriately in the classroom (front), and face the classroom
when speaking.
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Make sure the student knows how to use the FM system and has his/her hearing
aids turned to “T” (telecoil) if using the neck loop.
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Make sure the lapel microphone is clipped toward the center of the body,
no further than six inches from the mouth.
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Keep items from rubbing against the microphone.
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When helping other students, the teacher should turn off the system. Otherwise,
the student will hear these conversations while s/he is trying to work.
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During classroom discussions, either have the student set their FM system
to environmental and FM, or repeat student comments. Otherwise, the student
will not hear the other students’ contributions to the discussion.
Sound-field or Classroom Systems
Classroom acoustics have plenty of background noise and reverberation (echoing).
Just as an FM system has a speaker wearing a microphone and transmitter, so
does the sound-field system. The difference is the receiver is connected to
loud speakers placed in the classroom. Sound-field systems typically place the
speaker’s voice 10 to 20 dB above ambient classroom noise (compared to
the typical 0 to 5 dB above in regular classrooms without sound-field systems).
The benefits are ease of use, as well as the fact that these benefit all children,
not just the students with the hearing loss. This may be the only amplification
needed for children who have a mild hearing loss. The tips for using the personal
FM system microphone and transmitter are the same for sound-field systems.
Technologies for Accessing the Curriculum
Interpreters
For those who use sign language as a part of their communication, interpreters
play a vital role in the facilitation of communication and accessing the curriculum.
Often they are also the ones who will significantly contribute to the student’s
language base. Students will vary between relying solely upon their interpreter
for comprehending material, to glancing periodically at his/her interpreter
when speech was missed.
Tips when working with an interpreter:
Speak at a normal, regular pace. Do not say “tell her, tell him.”Look
directly at the student you are speaking to.
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Give the interpreter a copy of your outline/lecture as well as an extra
student textbook. This will help the interpreter better prepare in advance.
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Inform the interpreter of any upcoming technical vocabulary.
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Make sure the student can see both the interpreter and the speaker without
too much turning of the head. As the student gets older, this should become
more of his/her responsibility.
Closed and Open Captioning
When possible, use closed captioning on all videos shown in classes with D/HH
students. Open captioned videos (videos where the captions are printed on the
screen, as in foreign movies) are available free of charge from the Captioned
Media Program (CMP). More information is available on their website at http://www.cfv.org.
The CMP provides a free-loan media program of over 4,000 open-captioned titles
(videos, CD-ROM, and DVD). Deaf and hard of hearing persons, teachers, parents,
and others may borrow materials. There are no rental, registration, or postage
fees. This is a wonderful resource, but plan early and order ahead of time.
Tips for using captioned videos:
If the student is wearing an FM system, place the microphone transmitter
near the television.
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If the student is a signer, uses an interpreter, and has low reading skills,
have the interpreter sign the video. Be sure to inform the interpreter so
s/he can preview it.
Use of Visuals
The use of Microsoft Power Point, overhead projectors, videos, graphs, drawings,
and demonstrations are all beneficial to students, especially those with a hearing
loss. The key is to not combine more than one message at a time; speak, then
show or show, then speak. Showing a graph and speaking at the same time forces
the student to choose between looking at the visual aid and hearing what is
being said.
Mimio
Mimio is a tool that can be used on classroom whiteboards or flip charts. It
is an excellent tool that allows a student to record notes, drawings, or any
written material on whiteboards or flip charts. With Mimio, everything you write
and erase is captured onto a personal computer in color and realtime. A student
is able to play back and review the notes at a later time. He/she can drag and
drop notes, diagrams, or drawings into Microsoft Office or other software applications.
Notes can be exported to HTML, PICT, JPEG or even QuickTime and iMovie formats.
More information is available on their website at http://www.mimio.com.
Automatic Speech Recognition Software
The technology for these systems are developing at a rapid rate. For voice input,
the teacher will wear a headset microphone that is connected to a computer.
As the teacher speaks, the computer will “recognize” the voice and
translate the speech into written text. The drawback is a significant amount
of time to train the speaker’s voice so the program can accurately read
it. The two main programs are Dragon Naturally Speaking (http://www.scansoft.com/naturallyspeaking),
which is a Macintosh based program, or the PC version Via Voice (http://www-3.ibm.com/software/speech/).
Recently available is iCommunicator, developed by Interactive Solutions, Inc.
The iCommunicator states it can efficiently and simultaneously convert speech
into three distinct formats:
1. Speech to Text
2. Speech to Computer-Generated Voice and
3. Speech to American Sign Language (ASL) Video Clips
iCommunicator is available from a variety of sources online. More information
is available on their website at http://www.isi-icommunicator.com
Writing Software
Since many D/HH students may have trouble with spelling, writing becomes a chore
and software spellcheckers are often not helpful since the word is often not
phonetically close. Although not a complete solution, a helpful tool could be
Co-Writer, a word-prediction software program which decreases the number of
key strokes needed to complete an intended word. More information is available
on their website at http://www.wata.org/resource/learning/writing.htm.
If spell check and grammar check are used, one needs to train the student how
to use, understand, and pick the most appropriate word or phrase.
Reading and Notetaking Software
Inspiration is a notetaking program often used to organize thoughts and take
notes. Although commonly used separate from reading, it can be used to help
a student glean information from the text. Many D/HH students have problems
with reading from typical classroom textbooks, especially science and social
studies texts. When provided with instruction on expository text structure and
organization, the student, with questions as guidelines, can create an outline
from the reading which summarizes main points and ideas. This will help the
student by providing a focus, guiding them in a search for specific information
and displaying it visually. More information is available on their website at
http://www.inspiration.com.
Summary
With all of the advances in technology currently available, nothing
can take the place of sitting down with the student and asking what is needed.
What would make life easier? Is there anything that would benefit the student?
Make sure that the student feels that he/she is part of the class and ask for
his/her contributions. With appropriate accommodations, you will find that D/HH
students will be an invaluable component in your classroom.
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