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Julia Phillips Dr. Guenzel ENC 1102-0123 April 10 2014 Teaching Methods for Deaf and Autistic Children I sit in the classroom in the back corner. I dont know what Im doing or why I am here. The teacher in the front is writing the alphabet on the board while mouthing the letters out. Even though her lips move I cannot hear a thing. There are kids in my class who are the same age and look like me. When they come up too me to talk or to try and grab me. I get angry. I get confused. I get scared. I dont know what to do. I dont know what they want. I dont know what they are saying. I dont know what they want from me. Behavior and dumbness is why the teacher put me in the back of the classroom. Who can help me? I want to learn. I want a voice. I want to live like everyone else. This is a glimpse of what it would be like to be a child who is both deaf and autistic in a class room with a teacher who doesnt know what methods to use in order to cater to all of his/her students. Some children experience this crisis in school, where they are not getting the help they need to succeed. More and more children that are deaf and autistic are not getting the help they need which prompts me to examine how the communication skills are being taught and what types of methods are being utilized in the education system and to compare the learning strategies used among children who are hearing, deaf, autistic and

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both deaf and autistic. Some people believe that it is a mission impossible to teach a deaf and autistic child. But in reality teaching a child is easy once you acquire the right methods, but how do we teach our children. Are there different methods because of these disabilities and are there methods that can cross between different types of children? Autism is a big word but what does it actually mean? Autism spectrum disorder (ASDs) is a neurological condition that affect the abilities of a person to communicate with others (What is Autism). But how do you know if your child is autistic? A few ways that you can tell as a parent is if your child can not turn itself over when it reaches six months and if the child can t speak at the age of one or two years of age, says Jenny Alessi a mom who has an Autistic child. Jessi Alessi also says if the child is unresponsive to his or her name and seems deaf at some times and if the child does not like to socialize with other children and appears to be very independent. If your child is autistic, finding a way to teach them is the next step to take. Autistic children need a mixture of in order to fit their needs based on their strengths and weaknesses (Cork). Informal instruction is a teaching based on the childs interest and academic strength, which allows the students to be more successful than if they were in a lecture based method. An Autistic program called TEACCH (Treatment and Education of Autistic and Related Communication-Handicapped Children) focuses on the characteristic patterns of their thinking and behavior for teaching (Autismweb). This program has a lot of hands on learning and structured Teaching which is a method created to understand autism and use visuals t o promote meaning and independence (Cork). An example of a hands on learning is Buddy Ball which is a special needs baseball team that works with kids of all ages to teach them how to

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play baseball in a care free environment. One important method is therapy to help the child get used to a world that may not be super excepting. Hands on teaching is a great way for autistic children to learn about the world around them and do thing for themselves. For example, taking a class outside to learn about the plants and ecosystems. Allowing each student to touch the grass, trees and water streams gives them all real world experience to help them understand the concepts. For a child without a disability, the public school system is where they would go. The school teaches children through a couple different methods. Every teacher knows that students learn all different ways but finding the right one to fit the class can be difficult (Hairrs). Direct instruction is an old method that teachers still use in their classrooms. It is lecture based which allows students to learn the most material in the shortest amount of time. Inquiry- based learning allows students to practice problem solving and thinking skills by constructing new ideas from the senses around them. A quote from Joe Exline ,who is a professor at grasps the concept of inquiry based learning "Tell me and I forget, show me and I remember, involve me and I understand." While speaking with an elementary school teacher a new method is formed and its called the Kagan Corporative learning strategy that is designed to engage all students in their learning throughout a lesson. The students take a test and based on their learning ability they are placed at a table with other students who either have a higher or lower score then they do.Mrs. Janis, the elementary school teacher. She says the Kegan strategy is good and it has worked for many students that she has taught over the years of her career. She also uses music as a method of teaching. She says the music keeps the students brains working and

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alert as the students find partners and change learning tables she plays music and when the music stops you have to stand next to your partner or go to your correct table.

Communication and language are both words people use in the world of education. Each are substantial for human interaction and skill building. Being able to have clear and accessible communication is the key to educating deaf learners. Sign language is the universal language of the deaf community. It is taught at an early age for cognitive development and enhanced language. There are as many different types of sign language as there are languages in the world but in America there are at least two different types. One type is American Sign Language which is an entirely different language from English with its own grammar and syntax, But does fingerspell English words that do not have signs. Signed Exact English or SEE English is another type that uses one sign for every English word and even has special "endings" that you put on the signs to show -ing and ed ect. says DeafChickie. If your child is deaf, and they can partially hear(hard of hearing) or cant hear anything at all, the teaching methods include visual learning, hands on learning and learning the relationships among concepts. Social constructivism is a method where a student constructs understanding from the world around them. For instance, if a child is learning the color green and the child remembers that his or her mom went to the grocery store and bought lettuce that was green so the child can relate green to lettuce. AuditoryVerbal therapy is a method for teaching deaf children to listen and speak using their residual hearing as it emphasizes speech and listening. A Deaf child can also receive amplification devices such as hearing aids, FM devices, and cochlear implants to help them

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function in a hearing environment. Having skilled sign language interpreters in class rooms allows students to learn at a public setting where a teacher doesnt know sign language. The education of deaf children in the United States has been seen as a remarkable success story around the world. says Mark Marschark. He wrote a book that focuses on the needs and strengths of deaf children and on the methods that have been used- successfully. For a student who is Deaf its not the mind but just a characteristic that makes the person who they are. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disabilities by Christian Szymanski states One out of fifty-nine children are deaf and autistic which is two times more frequent then a child with autism as the statistic is one out of a hundred and ten children will have autism. But what does that mean? If your child is deaf and autistic finding a way to teach them could be a very hard journey but not impossible. Many of the methods that were previously mentioned for autistic and deaf students relate to this type of child. The educational approach is to tend to every child individually based on their personal needs (Lemire). For communication sign language is a must as it allows the student to communicate freely when their voice cannot create sound. Having skilled interpreters in classrooms and working in small groups where every teacher has two or three kids assigned to them to give the student more one on one time. Using group work and hands on activities allows the student to be engaged in the lesson. The principle, Janet Dicknson, from the Vermont Center for the deaf and hard of hearing (VCDHH), says that in their Deaf-Autistic program family environment and very close relationships help impro ve the childs education. This is the one of the only very successful programs for these children who are deaf and autistic.

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In comparing all of the different children the basic overall method is to focus on what the child needs in order for them to be successful in the future. Cater to the childs likes and dislikes to keep the child engaged in the lesson and focused. Group work and hands on activities are important to develop social skills and to get the students involved with the lesson. From the information presented and the research I gathered, I learned some methods can be used for more than one student and can actually help another student learn and better there education. For example, a deaf and autistic child uses sign language to communicate so if hearing autistic children were taught how to use sign language then they could communicate freely without having their voice be hindered by their vocals. A child that I baby sit for is mute and autistic and his mother was taking him to classes in order to learn sign language so he could communicate to the family and to people. So I learned some signs in order to help him learn and to keep the consistency with the family. Another example is music, if a hearing child with no disabilitys uses music an autistic child can use it to. For example, if autistic students need to breathe and relax play a relaxing song like a piano or giving them an instrument to play themselves can help soothe them and claim their focus. There are many autistic musicians that are famous like Adam Young from the band Owl City and the American film director, producer, and writer Tim Burton. I would have to agree that in order to gain something your have to give something up in return. That if one method has worked for one over the years that someone else might benefit from it as well. As for an autistic and deaf child there are studys still occurring today but dont have all the answers as to exactly how their education is being taught and what methods work the best. I plan to conduct a research study of my own to look at the different technologies being used in schools and the types of devices children are using to see if

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having a technology based learning will help to improve their education. No child should have to live in a world of silence and feel cheated in their education, so if teachers and parents alike step up and help their child learn in a way that is comfortable to them, their education will thrive.

Works Cited: Cork Education Support Centre. "Teaching Approaches Appropriate for Students with ASDs." Home Page. Special Education Support Service, n.d. Web. 19 Feb. 2014. Harris, Bronwyn."What Are Some Different Teaching Methods?" WiseGEEK. 2003 2014 Conjecture Corporation, n.d. Web. 19 Feb. 2014. Lemire, Kris. "VCDHH." Deaf-Autism Program. 2013 Vermont Center for the Deaf & Hard of Hearing, n.d. Web. 19 Feb. 2014. Marschark, Marc, Harry G. Lang, and John A. Albertini. "Educating Deaf Students: From Research to Practice." By Marc Marschark, Harry G. Lang, John A. Albertini, 2002. Oxfoed University Press, n.d. Print. 19 Feb. 2014. Mesibov, Gary B., Dr., Victoria Shea, and Eric Schopler, Ph.D. " Autism Teaching Methods:TEACCH." Autism Education: TEACCH. AutismWeb, n.d. Web. 01 Apr. 2014. "What Is Autism?" Autism Speaks. Autism Speaks Inc., n.d. Web. 14 Apr. 2014.