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In 1993, the first study of outcomes of auditory-verbal graduates was published in the Journal of the American Academy of Audiology (JAAA). The stated purpose of the research at that time "was to document the status of graduates of one aural habilitation option; auditory-verbal" (p. 190, Goldberg & Flexer). A follow-up study was published in 2001, also in JAAA, and findings of both studies revealed that the majority of the participants were integrated into regular/typical learning and living environments. The latter study suggested that the early fitting of sensory aids and cochlear implant technology, coupled with family-focused early intervention emphasizing auditory learning, helped to provide for even greater independence and community participation of these later graduates. Now, over 25 years after the initial auditory-verbal graduate study, this current research project replicates and provides an update of graduates of auditory-verbal teaching from around the world. (Participants in the earlier studies were solely from the United States and Canada.) Results from over 200 graduates continue to reinforce the positive outcomes reported in the earlier studies.

A survey of parents of 54 school-age children with prelingual hearing loss being taught through the auditory-verbal approach revealed that 85% of children were estimated to read better than or as well as average normal hearing children. Of 37 children for whom standardized test scores were supplied, 30 scored at the 50th percentile or higher. (JDD)

Comparison of the receptive vocabulary of 24 undergraduate college students with hearing loss to that of 24 peers with normal hearing found that approximately three-fourths of those with hearing loss performed poorly. Vocabulary skills were not found to be associated with degree of hearing loss. (DB)

Studies 54 children with hearing loss using the hypothesis that children with hearing loss who learn standard language through using their hearing will learn to read in the same predictable ways as children with normal hearing. Finds that hearing losses do not make the normal acquisition of reading impossible. (MG)

The article discusses the relationship among visual stigma, attitudes, and types of hearing aid fittings. Literature review and parental reports suggest ear-level hearing aids could minimize the perception of deviance without sacrificing acoustic benefits. (Author/CL)

An information-support group developed to meet the needs of moderately hearing-impaired college students featured role playing, simulation, group discussions, and social activities. (Author/CL)

The article describes a program which provides parents and hearing-impaired children with information concerning postsecondary options and upcoming developmental stages. The community outreach program involves hearing-impaired college students at the University of Akron (Ohio) in meetings with hearing-impaired high school students and with parents of toddlers and preschoolers. (Author/DB)

This article provides information from three areas critical to classroom success for mainstreamed hearing-impaired children: understanding hearing and the impact of hearing loss on classroom learning; promoting the use of signal-to-noise ratio enhancing equipment (typically Frequency Modulation units); and using educational management strategies which emphasize, rather than minimize, hearing. (Author/JDD)

Results of a previously published study, which involved 157 individuals with hearing impairments who were graduates of auditory-verbal programs, are summarized. Results indicate that the auditory-verbal approach provided subjects with the opportunity to grow up in regular learning and living environments that enabled them to become independent persons in mainstream society. (JDD)