TEACHING ENGLISH TO DEAF AND HARDOFHEARING UNIVERSITY STUDENTS E'Intorcia E'Pepicelli

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TEACHING ENGLISH TO DEAF AND HARD-OF-HEARING
UNIVERSITY STUDENTS(E.Intorcia E.Pepicelli)
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• THE RATIONALE
• SAMPLE ACTIVITIES
• MICRO - TEACHING

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Imagine sitting in a classroom where everyone
else speaks a language you do not know and have
never heard spoken aloud.
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• Now think about how you are going to follow
  what is taught, pass the tests that are given and
  ultimately acquire the skills and knowledge that
  will lead to a career.
• That is the challenge faced by the deaf student.

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There are nopsychological or methodological
obstructions to teaching a foreign language to
the deaf.
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SURDOGLOTTODIDACTICS

• Surdoglottodidactics does not differ from a
  classical foreign language teaching/learning
  methodology.
• Creating a special methodology would mean
  creating a special language ghetto.

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HOW WE ACQUIRE/LEARN MT/FL

• LANGUAGE ACQUISITION / LEARNING
• LEARNING STYLES
• BRAIN DOMINANCE
• MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCIES

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• Learning a foreign language for deaf people is
  sometimes a means of creating ones own attitude
  to learning in general.
• They feel more socially attractive and an FL may
  give them the opportunity to establish new
  relationships.

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ITALIAN DEAF STUDENTS

• They are trilingual
• 1. First language LIS
• 2. Second language Italian
• 3. Foreign language English

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L I S

• LIS is for a deaf student her/his mother tongue.
  
• Indeed it plays the same role as a mother tongue
  for cognitive, socio-affective and psycho-motor
  development.

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Three teaching/learning approaches

• Oral/Aural (audial) - Lip-reading capitalize on
  residual hearing.
• Bilingual - Bicultural Approach emphasis on sign
  language.
• (It is more democratic it is usually passed on
  from child to child.)
• Total communication only spoken language is a
  limiting factor for adequate language
  development. Any visual support, such as signs,
  gestures, etc. help.

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The total communication approach was
unconsciously implemented by us.Our approach
communicative-humanistic - cooperative.Strategie
s/techniques we capitalize on VIEWING, reading,
writing (without ignoring listening).
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Deaf students depend on visual aids since their
eyes are their only window to conceptual and
abstract understanding.
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The deaf student structures and organizes her/his
thought through images rather than through words
so images, symbols, icons play a unique role.
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LIS one example

• La penna è sul tavolo -The pen is on the table.
• LIS Tavolo penna su -Table pen on
• They see the table first natural language
  acquisition.
• Different syntax.

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• Writing (signs/letters) has no meaning for Deaf
  Students.
• It has to be translated into their sign language
  first.
• Writing cannot be read
• They have to realize it is a means of
  communication.

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Production

• Disability Students have not only to learn
  through strategies and techniques but also to
  demonstrate their competence i.e. going to the
  blackboard laughing/smiling, nodding.
• So let them be active!

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ERRORS

• They are necessary steps towards correctness.
• Deaf Students and Normo-students make the same
  kind of errors.

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Teaching the deaf A teacher must know a special
way of communicating with his/her deaf students,
bring special prompts to make the clues for
learning visible, use writing as a way of
communication more often.
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Techniques are different Generally the
techniques used in a classroom should be modified
according to the abilities and disabilities of a
particular deaf student.
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Textbooks and class equipment are similar to
those used in the classes for the hearing
students.
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SPEECH-TO-TEXT REPORTER

• A Speech - To - Text (STT) reporter uses a
  special keyboard (in English, a non-phonic
  language) to type every word that is said
  phonetically, shown on a laptop computer screen
  for everybody to see (we do it on the blackboard,
  using the IPA symbols).

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SOME PRACTICAL TIPS

• Variety of activities visual aids change
  activities every 30.
• Their processing is a bit slower.
• The decision to voice is theirs.
• Students function differently.
• Offer as many sense modalities as possible.

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Try to include visual, (auditory?) tactile and
kinetic assignment and teaching tools. Write
key words on the blackboard. Speak not too
quickly, but without making the speech flow too
slow and unnatural. Avoid exaggerated
gesticulation, even the unconscious one, like
touching glasses, brushing hair, etc.
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Point out who is speaking in group
discussions. Beards and moustaches make
speech-reading harder. Keep them
trimmed. Dont wear jewels or very showy
clothes.
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Stay or sit in a place easily visible by
students. Address the student only if you are
in front of her/him, to favour
lip- reading. Never talk toward the chalkboard.

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There is no eye-contact

• The student looks at the interpreter, while you
  teach, and answers either through the interpreter
  or by her/himself.

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• Deaf and hard-of-hearing students get lost in
  classroom discussions when several students are
  talking at the same time.
• Environmental noises can also prevent
  hard-of-hearing students from understanding.

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• Provide notes and a copy of the material before
  the activity.
• Use as many visual aids as possible.
• Only one person should speak at a time, and
  speakers should face students.

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INTERPRETERS

• Lesson plans, textbooks, and important concepts
  should be shared with interpreters, beforehand.

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Sample activities

• How to teach phonetics and pronunciation.
• Providing models for written production.

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(No Transcript)
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Long vowelsPut the words in the correct
groupstwo - far - door - garden - blue - world
- please - shirt - person - keys floor
/i/
/a/
/?/
/u/
/?/
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Activity
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Physical descriptions a model

• Read the description of Mr Johnson.
• Leggi la descrizione del Signor Johnson.

Mr Johnson is young. Hes tall and a bit
fat. Hes got brown hair and brown eyes. Hes got
a beard and a moustache. Mr Johnson doesnt wear
glasses.
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Sample lecture-room activity
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Sample lecture-room activity
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MICRO-TEACHING
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THE DEAF PRIDE must be an aim to be fostered.
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A TRUE CHALLENGE

• In these two years, while working, we have found
  a lot of support from literature.
• We believe we are on the right path.
• We have a plan, we know where we are and..
• We shall overcome!

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SOME EXPERTS

• Elana Ochse, University of Turin, Italy
• Daniela Janakova, Charles Univ., Prague
• Ewa Domagale, Lublin University, Poland
• Kristina Svatholm, Stockolm Univ,Sweden.

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Contacts

• This presentation will be available as from next
  week on this web-site
• www.sea.unisannio.it/docenti/pepicelli.htm
• intorciaelena_at_libero.it
• pepicelli_at_unisannio.it