Haleigh Faucette

SPED-3100
Dr. Povenmire-Kirk
Summary: Hearing Impairment
There are three frequently discussed views of deafness:
a) A disability, impairment, disorder, or ailment
b) A logistical problem, especially in terms of contact with the hearing
community
c) A social community/culture in its own right
Hearing loss is the general term used to distinguish among various types of
hearing disorders. Being deaf means hard of hearing, hearing impaired, or having a
hearing disorder. The federal definitions related to hearing loss are not particularly
controversial, but they are somewhat imcomplete.
Hearing Impairment- means impairment in hearing, whether permanent or
fluctuating, that adversely affects a childs educational performance but that is not
included under the definition of deafness in this section.
Deafness- means a hearing impairment that is so severe that the child is impaired
in processing linguistic information through hearing, with or without amplification
adversely affects a childs educational performance.
Hard of Hearing- Having a hearing impairment, whether permanent or fluctuating,
which adversely affects the students educational performance, but which is not
included under the definition of deaf.
The fundamental value of deaf culture is that deafness is not a disability- that is; it is
not a condition that needs to be fixed. Deafness is viewed as an identity with its own
rich history, traditions, and language. Research suggests that approximately 40
percent of all students who are deaf or hard of hearing have one or more additional,
educationally significant disabilities. A hearing loss can occur before or after birth.
Congenital Hearing Loss- a loss that is present at birth
Acquired, or adventitious hearing loss- one that develops after birth
Prelingual- prior to speech and language development
Postlingual- after speech and language have developed
Genetic hearing loss- is one caused by the presence of an abnormal gene within
one or more chromosomes
Prelingual causes of hearing:
Prenatal infection
Illnesses
Conditions occurring at the time of birth or shortly there after
Postlingual causes of hearing (usually happens as the result of a disease or an
injury):
Bacterial meningitis
Otitis media
Measles
Chicken pox
Conductive hearing loss- Occurs when a problem of the outer or middle ear
prevents sound from being conducted to the inner ear.
Sensorineural hearing loss- A sensorineural hearing loss is caused by a problem in
the inner ear or along the nerve pathway to the brain stem