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Cochlear implantation in children with hearing impairment (HI) have demonstrated significant outcomes in the areas of spoken language development and education. However, it has been reported that children with cochlear implant (CI) have variable performance in regular educational settings. Therefore, the aim of study is to understand the issues related to classroom performance in children with cochlear implant from a teacher's point of view. Children with cochlear implant placed in mainstream education were recruited for the study. The class teacher filled out a questionnaire that was developed which included 14 domains that was identified based on previous literature. The results indicated significant lacunae in the areas of communication, listening, and social interaction, use of appropriate compensatory strategies, test taking skills, reading, and writing. Children with CI exhibited considerable deficits in mainstream education. However, the study highlighted the potential areas that required professional support to cope with mainstream education. The results of the study can also help to enhance teacher education and thereby facilitate better learning opportunities for children with CI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: There are very few measures of language development in spoken Greek that can be used with young deaf children. This study investigated the use of Cyprus Lexical List (CYLEX), a receptive and expressive vocabulary assessment based on parent report that has recently been adapted to Standard Greek, to measure the vocabulary development of deaf Greek-speaking children with cochlear implants. Design: A Standard Greek version of CYLEX was used to collect data on receptive and expressive vocabulary development from parents of thirteen deaf children with cochlear implants aged between 21 and 71 months. These data were compared with data collected previously from typically developing hearing Greek-speaking children. Results: Use of the test by parents of deaf children was found to be reliable. No correlation was found between children's vocabulary scores and chronological age. A positive correlation was however found between children's post-implant age and expressive vocabulary. The vocabulary skills of implanted children with a mean post-implant age of 20 months were not significantly different from those of typically developing hearing children of similar chronological age. Conclusion: CYLEX is a reliable and useful tool for exploring vocabulary development with this clinical group. Findings confirm the results of other studies in indicating that the vocabulary size of implanted pre-school-aged deaf children is related to the amount of time that children have used their implant, rather than chronological age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article profiles the master's degree speech-language pathology program at Nazareth College in Rochester, New York. The program was designed to provide specialty training for speech-language pathologists working with deaf and hard of hearing children. The author briefly describes the history, curriculum and the philosophy of the program. Speech-language pathologists who attend the program are better able to work with culturally diverse children who are deaf or hard of hearing and in particular, those who use cochlear implants and have differing experiences with spoken language.

A sign bilingual approach to the education of deaf children was first introduced in the UK in 1990. This paper reviews the growth of sign bilingual education in the UK and documents significant milestones in the development of sign bilingual policy and practice since the 1980s. This overview demonstrates how key issues in sign bilingual education have evolved and how priorities have changed over time and enables comparisons with contexts beyond the UK to be drawn. Current issues in sign bilingual education are analysed within our twenty-first century educational context in which both the advancing technology and medical understanding are providing new opportunities for deaf pupils and changing their learning and communication needs. Particular themes addressed include research into early literacy and also the role of sign language for deaf children with cochlear implants. From this analysis, new directions for sign bilingual education are suggested in terms of learning and teaching and a future research agenda. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 1981, Swedish Sign Language gained recognition by the Swedish Parliament as the language of deaf people, a decision that made Sweden the first country in the world to give a sign language the status of a language. Swedish was designated as a second language for deaf people, and the need for bilingualism among them was officially asserted. This was reflected in the first bilingual curriculum, introduced in special schools for the deaf and hard of hearing in 1983, which stated that the language of instruction in these schools should be Swedish sign language as well as Swedish, the latter of which, for deaf children, was primarily intended to be in its written form. These provisions were designed to ensure that pupils would be able to develop their bilingualism. In 1994, this curriculum was replaced by a new one that raised the bar even higher. In accordance with this curriculum, schools became responsible for ensuring that all deaf and hard of hearing pupils would be bilingual by the time they completed school. In this paper, I will present details regarding the background of the Swedish Parliament's decision and also compare and discuss the steering documents for the schools in this regard. I will also describe some of the developmental work that was implemented early in schools for the deaf, where teachers collaborated closely with linguistic researchers. This work will be related to contemporary research on sign language linguistics and Swedish as a second language for deaf people. I will then present results from the bilingual approach, as reflected in the leaving certificates of deaf school leavers over the years. Finally, I will briefly discuss the current situation Swedish special schools face today, in which a quickly growing number of deaf children with cochlear implants are applying for admission. Although the need for bilingualism among these children is fully recognised, the attainment of this goal may require schools to adopt different means of instruction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The scholastic achievement of children with cochlear implants is one of the most important determinants of recipients' quality of life after cochlear implantation. The present study aimed to study the scholastic achievement of 27 children with cochlear implants attending mainstream schools and to compare their scholastic performance to their normal- hearing peers. Methods: From 30 children living in Tehran with an average age of 40 months at the time of cochlear implantation at our center, 27 participated in this study. The results of children's examinations and their performance in Persian literature, mathematics, and dictation in comparison to their normal peers and their overall scholastic performance during final examinations were the two measures utilized to assess the children's school performance. Parents reported their children's medical and educational history, characteristics of the family, and their participation in their children's therapy by completing questionnaires. Results: Mean score was 18.84 (SD=2.86) for mathematics, 19.18 (SD=1.59) for Persian literature, 19.35 (SD=1.36) for dictation, and 19.19 (SD=1.54) for overall academic performance. Compared to their normal-hearing classmates, most children with cochlear implants had an aboveaverage performance in mathematics, Persian literature, and dictation (59.3%, 66.7%, and 74.1%, respectively). The overall examination results showed that nearly half of them (48.1%) performed above average. Conclusion: The results of this study well indicate that children with cochlear implants can achieve a satisfactory scholastic performance in mainstream schools with their implant duration as the most important factor determining postimplant outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the present paper was to assess children's long-term use of their cochlear implant systems and to explore factors influencing the extent of daily use. The parents of 138 deaf children who had been implanted for seven years completed an annual questionnaire about the extent of their child's use of their implant system. The results revealed that seven years after implantation 115 children (83%) were wearing their implants full-time, 16 (12%) most of the time, three (2%) some of the time and four (3%) were non-users. The children were categorised into those who were full-time users (group F) and those who were not full-time users (group N). The mean age at implantation in group F was 4.4 years with a median of four whereas in group N the mean age at implantation was 5.8 years with a median of 5.5 years. This difference was highly statistically significant. There were no children who were total non-users implanted below the age of five. The predominant mode of communication was oral in group F and signed communication in group N and the difference was also statistically significant. In group F, 90 (78%) were in mainstream education, either mainstream school or a resource base in a mainstream school, whereas the respective percentage in group N was 57 per cent and this difference was statistically significant. Further investigation of those in group N shows a fluctuating pattern of use over the years prior to becoming complete non-users seven years after implantation. The four children who were complete non-users at seven years after implantation were all implanted at five and had other difficulties with all having complex family issues, three having significant other learning difficulties and one experiencing pain on stimulation. None had experienced device failure. In conclusion, this study of 138 children showed very high levels of full-time use seven years after implantation. Factors linked with full-time use seven years after implantation were early implantation, oral mode of communication and mainstream educational placement. Additional difficulties were not significant. Psycho-social issues such as family and educational support appeared to be important in facilitating continued use of the implant system. Non-use may occur after several years of use and in this group non-use followed a fluctuating pattern of use over time. The regular monitoring of device use may enable cochlear implant teams to be alert to potential non-users and to provide appropriate and timely support to the child, family and educational service. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Action theory and the qualitative action-project method are used in this study to address and illustrate the complexity of parenting children who have received cochlear implants (CIs) as well as the intentionality of parents engaged in that process. "Action" refers to individual and joint goal-directed and intentional behaviors. Action theory has the advantage of using the perspectives provided by manifest behavior, internal processes, and social meaning in the analysis of action. Two cases are used to describe the individual and joint actions and projects, as related to parents' involvement in the habilitation process of children's postcochlear implantation. These joint projects are described at the levels of meanings/goals, functional processes, behaviors, structural support, and resources. From the rich descriptions and analysis of the cases, we draw potentially illuminative implications for the "current thinking" in relation to parenting children with CIs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A large study in the United Kingdom of support options for deaf and hearing-impaired children was conducted between 1998 and 2001. Findings have been reported on prevalence, demography, auditory performance, communication skills, educational achievements, and quality of life, costs including costs of compulsory education and costs incurred by families, and on the overall cost-effectiveness of cochlear implantation. These detailed reports may not be readily accessible to all those interested and this paper therefore aims to draw out and summarise the key findings from these reports. In doing so it highlights those findings which will be of particular interest to teachers of the deaf. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights the workings of an oral school for children who are deaf or hard of hearing. Key features of the school; Percentage of the students who use cochlear implants; Effectiveness of an oral school in helping children who are deaf or hard of hearing achieve success as oral communicators and students in mainstream classrooms.

Objectives: To study the effect of cochlear implantation on the use of educational resources by profoundly hearing-impaired children and to determine trends in educational cost vs benefit. Design: Retrospective study and cost-benefit analysis. Setting: Outpatient pediatric cochlear implant program in an academic institution (The Listening Center at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Md), in collaboration with public schools in Maryland and surrounding states. Patients or Other Participants: School-aged children with profound prelingual hearing impairment without other clearly defined disabilities. Thirty-five children with multiple-channel cochlear prostheses and a comparison group of 10 children without implants from "total communication" programs in the Maryland public school system. Interventions: Multiple-channel cochlear implantation and at least 1 year of a systematic auditory skill development program at the Listening Center, compared with standard educational management of children with conventional amplification. Main Outcome Measures: Classroom placement and number of hours of special educational support used. Results: A correlation was observed between the length of cochlear implant experience and the rate of full-time placement in mainstream classrooms (r=0.10; P=.04). There was also a negative correlation between the length of implant experience and the number of hours of special educational support used by fully mainstreamed children (Pearson product moment correlation=-0.10; P=.03). Children with greater than 2 years of implant experience were mainstreamed at twice the rate or more of age-matched children with profound hearing loss who did not have implants. They were also placed less frequently in self-contained classrooms and used fewer hours of special education support. A cost-benefit analysis based on conservative estimates of educational expenses from kindergarten to 12th grade show... [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The education of the deaf and hard of hearing has been the aim and inspiration of many technological discoveries and developments. Since the early work of Alexander Graham Bell, a visionary in special education for the deaf, many relevant innovations have considerably improved the quality of life and the professional opportunities for deaf people of all ages, especially recent advances in cochlear implants. In this article, based on our experience at the Instituto Oral Modelo (IOM) in Buenos Aires, we explain how the digital technology of today has radically changed the education of the deaf and the expectations we may have in the digital era for the next generation of children with auditory deficiencies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Early auditory/language experience plays an important role in language development. In this study, we examined the effects of severe‐to‐profound hearing loss and subsequent cochlear implantation on the development of attention to speech in children with cochlear implants (CIs). In addition, we investigated the extent to which attention to speech may predict spoken language development in children with CIs. We tested children with CIs and compared them to chronologically age‐matched peers with normal hearing (NH) on their attention to speech at four time points post implantation; specifically, less than 1 month, 3 to 6 months, 12 months, and 18 months post implantation. We also collected a variety of well‐established speech perception and spoken language measures from the children with CIs in a 10‐year longitudinal study. Children with CIs showed reduced attention to speech as compared to their peers with NH at less than 1 month post implantation, but a similar degree of attention to speech as their NH peers during later time points. In addition, attention to speech at 3 to 6 months post implantation predicts speech perception in children with CIs. These results inform language acquisition theories and bring insights into our understanding of early severe‐to‐profound hearing loss on infants' attention to speech skills. In addition, the findings have significant clinical implications for early intervention on hearing loss, which emphasizes the importance of developing strong listening skills. A video abstract of this article can be viewed at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f7xiYo3Ua08&feature=youtu.be This study examined the effects of severe‐to‐profound hearing loss and subsequent cochlear implantation on the development of attention to speech skill in children with cochlear implants (CIs). Findings show that early auditory experience affects attention to speech in children with CIs. In addition, attention to speech predicts spoken language development in children with CIs over a period of ten years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the insights of the attendees of the AudiologyNOW! 2010 held in San Diego, California on April 14-17, 2010 regarding their best days in audiology. One says that the best day was the first day she worked as a licensed audiologist. One tells about the day he became part of a cochlear implants team. An audiologist who had a seven-month-old baby patient with bilateral atresia says that the baby attended to his voice after fitting the baby with bone conduction aid. An audiologist from Canada serving in Saudi Arabia shares her humanitarian trip to Vietnam, where she met the children of the School for the Deaf in Lai Thieu. One shares his mission trip to Peru, where he fitted a hearing aid on a three-year-old boy, who started to dance after hearing voices for the first time.

An introduction is presented in which the editors discuss articles in the issue on topics including the aspects of early development and intervention for deaf children, the use of a parent report tool to measure vocabulary development in deaf children with cochlear implants, and the role of clinicians in identifying communicative strategies that mothers of deaf children were using following early intervention.

Word-learning skills were tested in normal-hearing 12- to 40-month-olds and in deaf 22- to 40-month-olds 12 to 18 months after cochlear implantation. Using the Intermodal Preferential Looking Paradigm (IPLP), children were tested for their ability to learn two novel-word/novel-object pairings. Normal-hearing children demonstrated learning on this task at approximately 18 months of age and older. For deaf children, performance on this task was significantly correlated with early auditory experience: Children whose cochlear implants were switched on by 14 months of age or who had relatively more hearing before implantation demonstrated learning in this task, but later implanted profoundly deaf children did not. Performance on this task also correlated with later measures of vocabulary size. Taken together, these findings suggest that early auditory experience facilitates word learning and that the IPLP may be useful for identifying children who may be at high risk for poor vocabulary development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]