Serving Underserved Populations: Implications from a Model of Successful Services for Deaf Children in Public Libraries

Abstract

There is a current movement in public libraries towards increasingly inclusive programming. This research presents the findings from a study of library programs for deaf and hard of hearing (D/HoH) children. Using the grounded theory approach, it highlights the successful practices of U.S. public libraries working with D/HoH children. Nearly five hundred mediumand large-sized libraries were contacted; fifteen librarians volunteered to be interviewed and eleven were ultimately interviewed. Interviews were analyzed using open and axial coding. Based on the empirical data, the Model of Successful Library Services for D/HoH Children was developed. The model explains the services, early literacy instruction, and programs offered by public librarians to D/HoH children and identifies four stages of service delivery which highlight: (1) staff attitudes; (2) impetus for providing services for D/HoH patrons; (3) accommodations through inclusive programming, American Sign Language (ASL) programming, or visual phonics; and (4) outcomes of this work in terms of educating both hearing and D/HoH individuals and of building a sense of community. This paper focuses on the Model of Successful Library Services for D/HoH Children to determine whether its four stages of service may also be applied to other marginalized populations in order to facilitate successful library programming.