Deaf-Blind Children Research Articles

Parents’ management of the development of their children with disabilities: Incongruence between psychological development and culture

Being the parent of a disabled child is not easy, it is experienced as a situation marked by stress,crises and grief. As Vygotsky described eighty years ago, the development of children withdisabilities and the culture do not fit as they do for non-disabled children. The development of achild with disabilities is not determined by the child’s physical defect alone, but constituted by theincongruence between the physical defect and the culture. In this study, the lives of four familieswith deafblind children were followed for two years. Interviews and observations were conductedin different settings. This study finds that because of the incongruence between the physical defectand the culture, it is difficult to reach and maintain the zone of proximal development for a childwith disabilities. This study illustrates how the network of professionals and parents around thechild can make a local congruence that creates a platform for the child’s development.

Programs for Deaf-Blind Children and Adults

Programs for Deaf-Blind Children and Adults

Teller II and Cardiff Acuity Testing in a School-Age Deafblind Population

To compare Teller Acuity Cards II (TAC II) and Cardiff Acuity Test (CAT) acuities, test-retest reliability and testability in children with visual, auditory, motor and cognitive impairments. Twenty-one children designated as "Deafblind" were tested under binocular conditions. Visual acuity was measured with both the TAC II and CAT in two sessions, with test order randomized and counterbalanced between sessions. Visual acuity, examiner confidence in the acuity result (3 point scale), testing time, and level of motor impairment (3 point scale) were recorded. Information about visual and auditory function and ocular and medical diagnoses were obtained by record review. The success rate was high (95%) and test time similar (p = 0.267) for both tests (TAC II, 204 +/- 111 s; CAT, 222 +/- 111 s). Mean LogMAR acuities were not significantly different (TAC II, 0.82 +/- 0.47; CAT, 0.72 +/- 0.47; p = 0.068). The 95% limits of agreement for LogMAR test-retest differences were +/-0.60 for TAC II and +/-0.70 for the CAT and there was a trend for increased variability with poorer acuity for the CAT test only. The TAC II and CAT give similar estimates of acuity, test-retest reliability, and testing time in this small population of "Deafblind" children. Future studies should be designed to explore whether these results are consistent in subpopulations, such as Deafblind children with very poor vision and/or significant motor impairment. Moreover, additional study is necessary to evaluate the effect of patient characteristics on the examiner's ability to make threshold acuity judgements.

Programs for Deaf-Blind Children and Adults

Programs for Deaf-Blind Children and Adults

Neurophysiologic and neuro-image methods in the candidacy for cochlear implantation in deaf and deaf blind children

Neurophysiologic and neuro-image methods in the candidacy for cochlear implantation in deaf and deaf blind children

Skin to skin: language in the Soviet education of deaf–blind children, the 1920s and 1930s

The article deals with surdotiflopedagogika, a doctrine of special education for deaf–blind–mute children as it was developed in the USSR in the 1920s and 1930s. In the spirit of social constructivism of the early Stalinist society, surdotiflopedagogika presents itself as a technology for the manufacture of socially useful human beings out of handicapped children with sight and hearing impairments, “half-animals, half-plants”. Surdotiflopedagogika’s institutionalization and rationale as these were evolving under the special patronage of Maxim Gorkij are analysed. Its experimental aspect is also discussed. Exploring and implementing the most advanced ideas in the technology of communication, surdotiflopedagogika sought to compensate for the loss of speech, hearing, and sight by supplying the child with mechanical and human prostheses, including other people (assistants), technical devices, techniques of the body, and multiple communication codes to be translated from one into another. In the case of Soviet deaf-blind education, the Soviet subject appears as a technologically enhanced, collectively shared, and extended body in a permanent process of translation, internal as well as external. Technologies of language and acculturation that are of particular interest. Surdotiflopedagogika’s method as it appears in the theoretical writing of Ivan Afanasjevic Sokoljanskij (1889–1960), the teacher of the legendary deaf-blind author and educator Ol’ga Ivanovna Skorokhodova (1914?–1982) are given particular attention.

Congenitally Deafblind Children and Cochlear Implants: Effects on Communication

There has been much research conducted demonstrating the positive benefits of cochlear implantation (CI) in children who are deaf. Research on CI in children who are both deaf and blind, however, is lacking. The purpose of this article is to present a study of five congenitally deafblind children who received cochlear implants between 2.2 and 4.2 years of age. Ratings of video observations were used to measure the children's early communication development with and without the use of their cochlear implants. In addition, parental interviews were used to assess the benefits parents perceived regarding their children's cochlear implants. Two examples are included in this article to illustrate the parents' perspectives about CI in their deafblind children. Benefits of CI in this cohort of children included improved attention and emotional response as well as greater use of objects in interaction with adults. The best overall outcome of CI is not spoken language but better communication.

Aspectos biopsicossociais na surdocegueira

O presente artigo tem por objetivo discutir aspectos biopssicossociais referentes a pessoas com surdocegueira e suas famílias com o objetivo trazer a tona estas questões que se tem mostrado importantes para o desenvolvimento dos atendimentos aos surdocegos. Está baseado em dados bibliográficos de pesquisas com pais e outras divulgações abordando as causas que são, principalmente, Rubéola Congênita, prematuridade, infecções, acidentes, síndromes genéticas ou não. Coloca as conseqüências das mesmas, o desenvolvimento educacional alcançado e as necessidades das famílias em aspectos ligadas às áreas da saúde, educação, lazer, segurança e inclusão social. Também trata da adaptação das famílias ao impacto produzido pela surdocegueira tendo em conta aspectos orgânicos, afetivo-relacional, sócio-culturais e de produtividade. Reflete sobre a necessidade da divulgação dos conhecimentos e da ação conjunta de todas as partes envolvidas nos mais diversos aspectos da vida dos surdocegos para conseguir o desenvolvimento dos atendimentos para os surdocegos.

Programs for Deaf-Blind Children and Adults

Programs for Deaf-Blind Children and Adults

Children With Cochlear Implants and Complex Needs: A Review of Outcome Research and Psychological Practice

In recent years, the number of children receiving cochlear implants who have significant disabilities in addition to their deafness has increased substantially. However, in comparison with the extensive literature on speech, language, and communication outcomes following pediatric implantation in children without complex needs, the available literature for this special group of children is relatively sparse. This article reviews the available research on outcomes, grouping studies according to the nature of the additional disabilities and specific etiologies of deafness. The methodological problems relating to outcome research in this field are outlined, followed by some tentative conclusions drawn from the literature base while bearing these problems in mind. The remainder of the article focuses on the challenges for clinical practice, from a psychological perspective, of implanting deaf children with complex needs. Two groups of children are considered, those whose additional disabilities have been identified prior to implantation and those whose difficulties become apparent at some point afterward, sometimes many years later. A case example describing the psychological assessment of a deaf-blind child being considered for implantation is presented.

Programs for Deaf-Blind Children and Adults

Programs for Deaf-Blind Children and Adults

Interaction Between the Teacher and the Congenitally Deafblind Child

Empirical data on the development of interaction, communication, and language in deafblind children is very rare. To fill this gap, a case study was conducted in which the interaction between a teacher and a deafblind boy age 3 years 4 months was analyzed. Sequential analysis of their interaction confirmed some general clinical impressions about interaction with deafblind children, and provided the basis for suggestions on how the interaction pattern might be changed.

Applying the Diagnostic Intervention Model for Fostering Harmonious Interactions between Deaf-Blind Children and their Educators: A Case Study

This article demonstrates the use of the Diagnostic Intervention Model in everyday practice and the effects of its application in a case study of Kris and his educator using individual coaching. The implications of the case for everyday practice are discussed.

Programs for Deaf-Blind Children and Adults

Programs for Deaf-Blind Children and Adults

Favorite activities for deaf-blind children

It is known to be very difficult for congenital deaf-blind children to acquire suitable communication methods and concepts of things and events, thus to construct human relationships. We conducted a survey to find clues to assist early deaf-blind children and here we report interesting findings. Activities that attract the children surveyed included plays in the water, such as water bathing, hot-bath taking and swimming, and plays in which one can feel wind blowing or acceleration, such as swings, trampolines, jet coasters and fans. Across age, sex, cause and impairment levels, popular activities among early deaf-blind children share the same quality, which stimulates relatively large area of skin, and some has additional sensation to vestibular organs.

Development of Communication in Deafblind Children

The aim of this study was to describe the development of communication between deafblind children and their parents in real-life settings using video registrations. Longitudinal case studies of six children suffering from severe visual impairment in combination with profound hearing impairment are presented. Four of the six children also have additional functional disabilities affecting their motor and cognitive development. At the time of the first video-recording the children were between 6 months and 3 years 9 months of age. They were observed for a period of 2 years. Detailed analyses of the video-recordings showed that all of the children could communicate with their parents and the parents with their child. Even if the expressions varied and were sometimes difficult to interpret, the early development of communication followed the same patterns as that for non-disabled children, from interest in social games with the carer to interest in the physical environment and thereafter an intent to share their experiences with another person.

Programs for Deaf-Blind Children and Adults

Programs for Deaf-Blind Children and Adults

Grandparent Involvement in the Communication Development of Children Who are Deafblind

The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of grandparents in the communication development of children who are deafblind. The two-tiered study was conducted through State Projects for Deafblind Children in Arkansas, Mississippi, and Tennessee with 143 parents and 80 grandparents. The grandparents identified as “most involved” provided information about factors that influence their levels of involvement. The results suggest that maternal grandparents are the most involved. A needs analysis in areas of communication, nurturing, and school indicated the need for grandparents to be included as participants in developing communication plans.

Shazia Fatima—the sky's the limit …

Dipti Karnad has worked as a special-needs teacher at the Clarke School for the Deaf in Chennai, India, since 1975. The school was the first in India to enrol children with congenital rubella syndrome and in 1995 opened its Sadhana Unit specifically for deafblind children.

Enhancing the Interactive Competence of Deafblind Children: Do Intervention Effects Endure?

In the present intervention study, 16 professional educators were trained to respond more adequately to a target set of interactive behaviors and independent child behaviors on the part of four 7- to 11-year-old deafblind children. The mean percentage adequate educator responses to the target behaviors of the children was found to increase by 20.2% across educators and remain above baseline during follow-up despite changes in staff following intervention. Comparable intervention effects were observed for the four children. Both the percentage appropriate interactive child behaviors and the percentage independent child behaviors increased by 29.3 and 38.1%, respectively, across the children and remained well above the baseline level during follow-up.