Literacy and Academic Engagement in Learners Who Are Deaf and Hard of Hearing

Abstract

Academic engagement is essential for achievement in literacy. Greater language and literacy gains are achieved when students are actively engaged in activities that intentionally build on the strengths, and strategically address the current limitations, of the individual child. In their early years, students who are deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) often experience delays in literacy development due to limited or delayed access to a comprehensive language. Despite academic struggles, DHH students are as engaged as their typically hearing peers in the classroom setting. However, they are given fewer opportunities to respond academically and spend less time reading at school in comparison to peers with typical hearing. Consequently, DHH students may be more passively engaged in their learning with fewer opportunities for active engagement in literacy instruction. Through a review of the literature on academic engagement in literacy instruction, this chapter emphasizes the importance of creating a learning environment that encourages active engagement and addresses the individual needs of DHH students. The chapter ends with a discussion of strategies and methods designed to support the engagement and literacy achievement of DHH students in terms of instructional arrangements, teacher behaviors, and academic responding.