Hey everybody! School started
(hence the delay in August blog posting!)
Time to clean up the workspace for homework, dig out that backpack, make
new friends, meet new teachers, and learn new things. I know, everyone
thinks I am crazy for loving school. I
am more enthusiastic about this new school year than most. Maybe a little
too enthusiastic...
This year I am taking three AP
classes and an Honors class in addition to Latin III, Pre-Calculus and
Orchestra. (I know, “What was I thinking?!!”)
I am optimistically hopeful that this year will go well. Of course, even though I love school, it is so very, very
hard, because I catch only about 60% of what teachers say and 40% of what
students say every day. With the FM microphone, I can catch infinitely
more than I could with hearing aids alone, but it is not always enough. It’s also not something I use with my friends
during social situations, although maybe I should experiment with having them
use it during down times. Hmm…. Maybe I
should try it in the cafeteria some time.
Now that I have thought of it, I think I will!
In order to catch and understand everything
that most everyone else hears naturally, I use a variety of techniques that I
have learned over the years, which include not only the FM microphone, but
classroom positions, schedules, notes, etc. My techniques are listed in
Table 1, along with pros and cons. Everything is included in my IEP, and
we talk to new teachers at the beginning of each school year about these
techniques, some of which can be used to help others even if they don't have a
hearing loss. I’ve started to email
these techniques, along with an audiogram showing my hearing loss that exists
even with the hearing aids, the “Instructional Accommodations or Modifications”
page of my IEP, and a short summary explaining my audiogram and accommodations to
my future teachers in advance of the school year so they can think about how to
provide the best access to the material and communications for me. Last year a teacher rearranged the classroom
for group discussions so I could read everyone’s lips.
With all of these techniques and
accommodations, I am able to understand more.
However, there are still some additional things that I could use to
access communication, but for a variety of reasons I choose not to use them at
this time, and they are listed in Table 2. On the other hand these methods
could work for you. Keep in mind, that
these techniques may or may not work depending on the circumstances and your
preferences. I hope that you or someone
else you know can use some of these techniques to help not only in school, but
with life in general. I would love to
hear what other accommodations you have found work for you, so I might try them
and I can add them to the list for others to share.
Table 1: Techniques I use:
Table 1: Techniques I use:
Technique
|
Pros
|
Cons
|
Other factors
|
FM Microphone
|
Small, direct feed to my
hearing aids by wearer, either teacher or other students
|
Need to remember to charge, has
to be turned on and off appropriately, overrides hearing aid microphones,
sometimes static-y
|
My current microphone is not a
true FM system anymore, but a streaming Bluetooth microphone
|
Preferential Seating
|
Enables me to lip-read, keeps
me away from excess background noise
|
Can get tricky with group
discussions
|
Need to consider if teacher is
right handed or left handed when selecting seat
|
Note-taking help
|
Since you can’t lip read and
write at the same time, teacher’s check my notes or provide a copy of notes to make sure I catch
everything
|
I have to remember to check in
with the teacher, which can be time-consuming
|
I could ask for a “Note-taker”
but so far I'm managing on my own with teachers' help
|
Close Captioning for films
|
I have access to what the movie
is communicating, helps other students too!
|
It can be tricky with old
equipment or old videos, especially VHS tapes
|
With movies that are too old to
have CC, my teachers have looked for a film synopsis or transcript to give
me. Be sure classroom has a newer TV
|
Minimize Group Projects or
Number in a Group
|
Very difficult for me to
communicate with more than one person at a time, so this makes it easier for
me to participate
|
Sometimes it just isn’t
possible due to lab equipment availability
|
I need to advocate for myself
with group partners more
|
Extended time for Testing
|
Provides extra time to match
grammatical endings
|
No cons come to mind about this
one
|
I have a high-frequency hearing
loss and don’t hear the “s” “ed” and other sounds that define speech, even
with my hearing aids
|
Extended time for Homework
(*I only use this once or twice
a year)
|
Listening to people speak all
day is exhausting, so sometimes I’m wiped out at the end of the day. It gives me a chance to recover
|
If I don’t turn in my homework
on time, it only delays the inevitable and creates a backlog of work
|
I work very hard to keep up
with my peers
|
Table 2:
Techniques I do not use at this time:
Technique
|
Pros
|
Reason I’m not using
|
ASL Interpreters
|
Have real time visual
communication
|
I’m not fluent in ASL
|
CART Interpretation
|
Have visual communication, with
slight time delay
|
Technology is newer, and I’m
managing on my own right now with the microphone alone
|
Cued Speech Interpreters
|
Helps with the grammatical
endings I don’t hear
|
Not common in NM, would be
difficult to find Interpreter and I’m not fluent in Cued Speech
|
