The participation of mothers who are deaf in the school life of their hearing children

Abstract

The challenge of understanding the social and academic needs of deaf children in the educational context has been the subject of deep analysis in the literature, but the same does not happen in relation to deaf mothers and the performance of their role as responsible for the education of their children. Often, mothers who are deaf face communicational and attitudinal barriers, requiring adjustments in the family-school relationship, in order to guarantee them the fundamental right to participate in school decisions and in the school life of their students. This study aimed to explore the perspective of mothers who are deaf on their involvement in the school life of their hearing children, in order to identify areas of political action and practices for mobilizing facilitators of family-school relationships. For this, a focus group was held with 10 mothers who are deaf, whose children attended basic education – 1st and 2nd cycles – in Portuguese public schools. The results suggest that, despite the mothers’ willingness and commitment to get involved in their children’s school life, this participation is restricted by the way in which communication and the family-school relationship is traditionally structured. The perceived barriers are associated with the avoidance of situations of interaction with the school, in addition to the concern for the lack of knowledge of their children’s school life. The widespread existence of interpreters in schools or the training of the school community for the use of sign language are some of the changes discussed by mothers who are deaf in achieving their right to participate in the school life of their children.