Language Acquisition in Deaf Children

Part of the debate about language acquisition and literacy development in deaf and hard of hearing children centers around the accessibility of language and communication. Each child is unique and has particular needs and strengths. However, research indicates some general trends in language development among deaf children.

Sandra Briggle reports in Language and Literacy Development in Children Who Are Deaf or Hearing Impaired that:
"Some commonalities exist in language development between students who are deaf and students who are hearing. Language development is contingent on frequent, consistent, and accessible communication. These factors are the same for children of parents who are able to hear, as well as children of parents who are not able to hear. The mode of communication (signed or spoken language) is not a factor (Marschark 2001)."

Briggle then explains some factors that lead to language learning delays among deaf and hard of hearing children. Some children may be language deprived up until their school exposure, which might be their first experience with a competent language model.
Read the full article by Sandra Briggle