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Post by maryland on Dec 4, 2015 23:43:07 GMT
I feel bad for the little boy.
My sil teaches 5th grade. There was a girl in her class a few years ago that was having trouble seeing. I don't know her story, but my sil and brother talked about it, and through the principal, offered to buy the girl a pair of glasses. They did, and she was so happy. My brother decided he wanted to buy her an extra pair to keep at school, because sometimes the girl would forget them at home.
I love when teachers go above and beyond to help out their students!
Also, many mentioned the language barrier. My inlaws speak 4 languages between them and they translate at a hospital near them. They are volunteers. It's a great service, and seeing what these parents are going through with the language barrier makes me realize how valuable these services are! I know if we ever immigrated to another country, unless it was Spanish (my husband speaks Spanish) speaking, we would have alot of difficulty too.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
May 5, 2024 2:38:21 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Dec 5, 2015 0:12:46 GMT
Simple they are from a different country where hearing aids aren't prevalent so they have a negative view of them. You can suggest they leave the hearing aids at school so they don't have to see it. He didn't know they needed to announce to you his child's problems. Nothing to be angry over, it's a cultural difference. She is the childs teacher. If he is not doing well, how is the teacher supposed to help him if she doesnt know there is a problem?
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raindancer
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,095
Jun 26, 2014 20:10:29 GMT
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Post by raindancer on Dec 5, 2015 0:49:24 GMT
The dad can speak English but it is difficult to translate what he is saying some of the time. He has a job with a large IT company. Mom is SAH. I am very sympathetic with what they are going through in terms of the diagnosis they are beginning to receive about B other than developmental delays and hearing loss. They will have a choice to remove B from my class and put B in a special needs preschool. I hope they will do what is best and put B in a specialized classroom. We will see. I didn't realize you only came for validation. Sorry. Had I known I would have bowed out before I started.
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theshyone
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,405
Jun 26, 2014 12:50:12 GMT
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Post by theshyone on Dec 5, 2015 3:02:10 GMT
He had the hearings aids, he has orthotics, he has a SAH Mom but is in an enrichment program, none of that looks to me like an uncaring family. None of it.
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AmeliaBloomer
Drama Llama
Posts: 6,842
Location: USA
Jun 26, 2014 5:01:45 GMT
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Post by AmeliaBloomer on Dec 5, 2015 3:50:47 GMT
Warning: Busman's holiday mega-post. If you're not the OP, you should probably stop reading now.
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If I had a dollar for every student's family who didn't follow through on hearing aid use, I'd have...well...a fistful of money.
Parents who are reluctant/embarrassed/confused/ashamed to use aids often hatch a magical thinking type plan: "Let's wait and see how the child does without them." Communication goes okay at home, mostly because home conversations with little ones are stereotypical and the child relies much more on visual cues and learned routines than the parents ever understand. If it's their first child, it often takes longer to notice the inevitable language and speech delays.
[Yes, resistance to hearing aids often has a cultural component, but believe me, there are plenty of Americans (especially dads) who object to aids. That said, we have no idea how rare aids are in this family's country of origin, so I would ignore the advice from that poster. (And especially: NEVER just keep aids at school without written parent permission and administrative knowledge.)]
Being amplified at six months v. three years can make an almost incalculable difference. I could go on and on, and tell dozens of stories, but this post will be long enough. Language development, literacy, background knowledge, and incidental learning (there's research that indicates that more than 80% of what children learn is incidental, so overheard) are adversely affected. Early amplification/implantation can make a ginormous difference.
Part-time amplification is problematic, although sometimes there's no choice for teachers. Developing physical and auditory tolerance for the aids takes much longer part time - a one step forward/two steps back thing, with frustration and anger for all. A child's emotional acceptance of his aids is almost always affected by parent participation and attitude. But most important, wearing aids all day/every day actually opens up new auditory neural pathways in the brain.
I understand your frustration. Daily. I also understand the parents. The tendency to not tell teachers about a child's disability - and to not follow specialists' recommendations - is born of a complicated grieving process and coping choices. Americans...nonAmericans...moms with fifth grade educations...dads with doctorates: I've seen them all do what your student's parents are doing. I hope you get the support you need to help these parents help their child.
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AmeliaBloomer
Drama Llama
Posts: 6,842
Location: USA
Jun 26, 2014 5:01:45 GMT
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Post by AmeliaBloomer on Dec 5, 2015 3:53:04 GMT
Speaking of support, here are some suggestions:
-Your student needs several things in addition to consistent amplification: Yearly (at least) audiological follow-up (sometimes provided by the school district); new ear molds as he grows; new tubes at least a couple times per year. His batteries need to be changed regularly; his molds need to be cleaned; depending on the weather, he might need to store the aids in a special container at night to dry them out. Through the public school system, he needs referrals to DHH services and a speech and language evaluation.
-His parents need continued audiological counseling and referrals for: financial assistance for hearing aids, agencies, support groups (too rare), and the school district special ed process.
-Staff would benefit from consultative services from a teacher of the deaf/hard of hearing. At the very least, you need to learn how to care for his aids and check functioning, and you'll need help in developing accommodations to optimize auditory access and auditory comprehension.
Feel free to PM me with any questions.
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Jili
Pearl Clutcher
SLPea
Posts: 4,363
Jun 26, 2014 1:26:48 GMT
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Post by Jili on Dec 5, 2015 4:50:59 GMT
Excellent posts, AmeliaBloomer. Thanks from this SLP for sharing your expertise.
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