Have you considered deaf pupils who learn modern languages at school? This “Modern Languages” video from the UK guides teachers and students in listening/conversing when in groups, in the classroom or working alone.
NDCS – BCC MFL from NDCS on Vimeo.
Children in Ireland can seek exemption from learning the Irish language, to free resource time for subjects like English and maths, or speech therapy.
Websites like TalkIrish.com and SpanishDict.com make language-learning visual – however students who’re deaf/hoh can access college without Irish by applying a language-waiver, or substituting another EU language.
Modern Languages And Students With Hearing Issues
Teaching modern languages to students who’re deaf is still a relatively new area, as this research paper shows.
Poland’s oral approach in teaching students who’re deaf, extends to English language teaching – with strong emphasis on reading, writing, listening and speaking with use of digital tools.
Just like in Ireland, Poland’s teacher-training processes need updating for teachers at mainstream schools to work effectively with students who’re deaf/hoh.
Researcher Ewa Domagała-Zyśk gives some excellent tips:
- Have visual learning tools (mind-maps, images, graphs, SMS text!)
- Use exact meaning of new words (match to pupil’s native words)
- Consider extra classes for language students with hearing issues (new words need to be heard four times more, for retention).
- Student motives for learning language must be revisited regularly.
- Decision to pronounce words should be the student’s personal choice (written language only can be learned, as relevant).
Digital Tools For Language Learning – Some Ideas:
- The internet is an ideal learning-window for language students who’re deaf/hoh. Examples: news sites (research), ezines, social media.
- Get students to write and email a short article about one of their passions, as an initial contribution to a website, blog or ezine.
- Exchange texts and emails with students in the language being learned.
- Watch captioned videos in the new language the students are learning.
- Run Twitter and Facebook pages for the students, in the new language.
These ideas are suggestions: teachers need to nominate, observe and ask the students what language-learning tools work for them, and by trial and error, devise classroom-learning strategies to use – like with any subject.
More Reading
- Hearing Through Irish, At Mainstream School
- Leaving Certificate Languages And Deaf Students
- Lipreading And Hearing Spanish Words Online
- Learning European Languages, With Live Captions
- National strategy for the Irish language (2010 to 2030)
- Deaf University Students As EFL Learners In Mainstream Classrooms
