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Faculty Awareness and Training in the Post-Secondary Community: An Annotated Bibliography

Canadian Hard of Hearing Association (CHHA)

To Be Heard: Guidebook for Instructors of Students who are Hard of Hearing

Guidebook

This 8-page guide begins with an introductory discussion of hearing loss, outlining degrees of hearing loss, as well as some of the challenges faced by those with hearing loss.

A section on communication strategies lists nine tips for instructors of students with hearing loss, which the guide says have "been found by instructors to enhance communication for all students." Some of these tips include reduction of background noises, and speaking directly to students with an unobstructed view of the face.

The "roles" section outlines instructors' roles when working with students with hearing loss, including keeping in contact with disability service centres and being approachable for the student to discuss problems.

The classroom strategies section lists five instructional strategies to keep in mind, as well as assignment and exam accommodation methods. The reasonable accommodations section that follows expands on classroom accommodations, by discussing guidelines for balancing adherence to the institution's academic policies and the intent of the course, with the need to consider the unique needs and challenges faced by students with hearing loss. This section includes a criteria checklist to use as a guide in considering accommodations.

The next section lists support services that might be available from disability resource centres to help faculty in accommodating students with hearing loss. A brief explanation is provided for each support listed. An additional section discusses Assistive Listening Devices (ALD's), explaining what they are and detailing the different types used. Tips for proper instructor use of ALDs are offered. In addition, the use of captioned instructional videos is stressed.

Overall, this brief guide contains a great deal of important and useful information for faculty dealing with students with hearing loss.

The guide was prepared by Ruth Warick and the CHHA in 1997, with assistance from the University of British Columbia's Disability Resource Centre, and Human Resources Development Canada.

Contact:
Canadian Hard of Hearing Association
2435 Holly Lane
Suite 205
Ottawa, Ontario
K1V 7P2
Phone: 1-800-263-8068
Fax: 613-526-4718
TTY: 613-526-2692
Email: chhanational@cyberus.ca
Web site: http://www.chha.ca