Deaf Education - Methods of Provision

Methods of Provision

Schools use different approaches to provide deaf educational services to identified students. These can be broadly grouped into four categories, according to whether and how much contact the deaf student has with non-deaf students (using North American terminology):

• Inclusion: In this approach, students with deaf educational needs spend all, or at least more than half, of the school day with students who do not have deaf educational needs, because inclusion requires substantial modification of the general curriculum. Most schools use it only for selected students with mild to moderate deaf needs, for which is accepted as a best practice. Specialized services may be provided inside or outside the regular classroom, depending on the type of services. Students may occasionally leave the regular classroom to attend smaller, more intensive instructional sessions in a resource room, or to receive other related services that might require specialized equipment or might be disruptive to the rest of the class, such as speech and language therapy.
• Mainstreaming refers to the practice of educating deaf students in classes with non-deaf students during specific time periods based on their skills. Deaf students are segregated in separate classes exclusively for the rest of the school day.
• Segregation in a self-contained classroom or special school: In this model, students with special needs spend no time in ordinary classes or with non-disabled students. Segregated students may attend the same school where regular classes are provided, but spend their time exclusively in a separate classroom for students with special needs. If their special class is located in an ordinary school, they may be provided opportunities for social integration, e.g., eating meals with non-disabled students. Alternatively, these students may attend a special school.
• Exclusion: A student who cannot receive instructions in any schools is excluded from school. Historically, most deaf students have been excluded from school, and such exclusion may still occur in some places as long as there is no legal mandate for special education services, such as in developing countries. It may also occur when a student is in hospital, housebound, or detained by the criminal justice system. These students may receive one-on-one instruction or group instruction. Students who have been suspended or expelled are not considered excluded in this sense.