Literacy with Deaf/HH Students

Reference

Rottenberg, C. J. (1991). Literacy Learning Is Important Work.- Emergent Literacy of Preschool Hearing-Impaired Children. Unpublished doctoral dissertation. Arizona State University.

Emergent Literacy

This study examined preschool deaf children (with hearing families who had limited access to oral or sign language She observed the children in a preschool environment that was littered in literacy over a nine month period. The children be came literate in a process that did not lag behind their hearing peers. Rottenberg's 283 hours of observation indicated that the children developed an understanding that literacy is functional, that they controlled their literacy decision-making, that lit eracy learning was serious, and that literacy was integral in their lives.

Ruiz, N. T. (1995). A young deaf child learns to write: implications for literacy development. The Reading Teacher, 49 (3), 206-217.

Emergent Writing

The author studied her daughter, Elena's literacy development by analyzing her daughter's written products from age 3 to 7 in the home setting. Elena's home environment was filled with books and writing materials, and she had daily access to stories read to her. Ruiz observed her daughter generatmany hypotheses about writing forms, some which intersected with those of hearing children, and others unique to her as a deaf child. Elena used transpositions or juxtaposed letters such as ti (it), ko (ok), yse (yes), koay (okay), and fo (of), which showed a reliance on visual strategies for wordmaking, rather than sound-linked strategies. Elena also used strategies found with other deaf children, including utilizing the handshapes used to form a sign to indicate the spelling or initial letter of a word, such as using S to begin the word beautiful. Although she did not use sound-based Strategies to write, she managed the forms of print that encompass the broad range of purposes for her writing, and wrote much like hearing children her age. Ruiz noted that the lack of a finely-tuned, internal phonemic system had not stopped Elena's confidence or her developing proficiency as a young writer.

Schleper, D. R. (1995). Reading to deaf children: Learning from deaf adults. Perspectives in Education and Deafness, 13(4),4-8.

Reading to Children

Based on research on deaf parents and deaf teachers and his own analysis of videotaped reading sessions, the author identified 12 strategies used by deaf adults as they read to deaf children. Thew included using American Sign Language, kee ping both the signed ASL and the English print visible while reading, elaborating on the text, moving from a great deal of elaboration to less and less in successive readings of the same book, following the child's lead, adjusting sip placement and style to fit the story, connecting ideas in the stories to the real world, using effective strategies to maintain attention, using role play to extend concepts, using eye gaze to elicit participation, providing a positive environment, and believing that the chi ldren will become literate.

Schleper, D. R- (1993). Using Picture Books Literature-based
to Introduce Literary Devices to Deaf Learning
Adolescents. Washington, D.C.:Gallaudet Research Institute 1991-92 Small Research Grant.

Literature-based Learning

This year long study examined whether adolescent deaf readers can remember and apply literary devices more easily in independent reading if they are introduced to the devices through picture books. Ninety six picture books, representing 32literary elements such as foreshadowing, onomatopoeia, and symbolism, were presented to over 300 deaf teenagers. The students demonstrated improved understanding of literary elements by analyzing the elements in novels and poetry, performing bette r on a post test, and incorporating the elements in their own compositions.