Preparing Teachers to Work with Adolescent Students who are Hearing Impaired: A Survey of Training Programs

Abstract

A survey of teacher preparation programs in the area of education of hearing-impaired students in the United States and Canada was conducted. The purposes were (a) to identify which type of service delivery roles teachers are being prepared for, (b) to identify state and province requirements for secondary teachers, (c) to identify the type of coursework provided for preparing teachers to work with adolescents, and (d) to assess the overall level of preparation of graduates to teach secondary students. Results indicate that most programs train their students to work in self-contained settings. Almost all programs are located in states or provinces that do not require special certification to be a secondary teacher of hearing-impaired students. The majority of programs do not provide a course on how to educate secondary students. And a high percentage of teacher trainers do not feel that their graduates are well prepared to teach secondary students with hearing impairments. Concerns about preparation of secondary teachers of hearing-impaired students are presented and discussed.

Multiple Perspectives on Inclusive Education: Reflections of a University Faculty

“…Many teachers of deaf or hard of hearing students are not knowledgeable about how to collaborate and consult with other professionals because they have never received training to function as a consultant (Luckner, 1991b). Research (Luckner, 1992) indicates that most teacher preparation programs for deaf educators do not provide training or supervised experience in collaboration and consultation for their preservice teachers of deaf or hard of hearing students. Specifically, of the 80 preparation programs in the United States and Canada that prepare teachers of deaf or hard of hearing students, only 23 (31%) indicated that they require coursework in the area of consultation.…”

“…Educating students who are deaf or hard of hearing demands a knowledge of effective educational practices as well as a knowledge of the consequences of hearing loss on an individual's social, emotional, academic, and psychological abilities (Moores, 1987). Many deaf and hard of hearing students require educational modifications and adaptations to achieve academic skills commensurate with their innate abilities (Luetke-Stahlman & Luckner, 1991;Paul & Quigley, 1990). However, many general educators have had little or no experience in providing or adapting the general education curriculum to meet their educational needs (Stainback, Stainback, & Moravec, 1992) and no previous exposure to or experience in teaching deaf and hard of hearing individuals (Commission on Education of the Deaf, 1988).…”

Professional Preparedness and Perspectives on Transition for Individuals Who Are Deaf or Hard-of-Hearing

“…Even if a professional has some experience working with individuals who are DHH in the past, those experiences may not apply to the individual characteristics and circumstances of the broad range of clients he or she may serve during his or her career (Luckner, 1991(Luckner, , 1992Luckner & Carter, 2001). Professionals in the mental health field who served clients with disabilities, including those who were DHH, overwhelmingly reported professional experience to be a critical factor in successful outcomes (Leigh et al, 2004).…”