Life in the Mainstream

Wendy Brehm
and Nancy Holdren

What do we know about learning

through an interpreter?
Dr. Brenda Seal (2004) estimates that 24,000 K-12
students use an interpreter.
85% of children between the ages of 6 and 21 years
old attend mainstream schools, partially and/or full
time (Schick, Skalicky, Edwards, & Kushalnagar,
2013)

True or False?
Indicate your choice by showing:
Thumbs up for True
Thumbs sideways for Im not sure
Thumbs down for False

Once communication barriers have been removed in the

classroom, kids who are deaf or hard of hearing will learn
just like hearing kids do.

False. A variety of studies over the past decade have demonstrated that D/HH
students often evidence knowledge, conceptual organization and
cognitive/perceptual strategies different from their hearing peers, differences that
may put them at an academic disadvantage in mainstream classrooms, compared to
settings designed to accommodate that variability.

Marschark, M. & Hauser, P.. "Cognitive underpinnings of learning by deaf and hard-of-hearing students: Differences,
diversity, and directions.", 01/01/2008-12/31/2008, , M. Marschark & P. C. Hauser"Deaf cognition: Foundations and
outcomes", 2008, "(pp. 3-23). New York: Oxford University Press.".

True or False?
Indicate your choice by showing:
Thumbs up for True
Thumbs sideways for Im not sure
Thumbs down for False

A D/HH student can learn English and sign language through an

interpreter, because the interpreter is a language model.
False. Language, either spoken or signed, may only be acquired through
natural, spontaneous interaction with a variety of native language users.
Communication through an interpreter is not natural, not spontaneous, not
interaction, and the interpreter is usually not a native user of any natural
signed language. Additionally, the interpreter is only one person. A
variety of speakers may be represented by her, but she is the only person
signing.
Language myths in interpreted education: First language, second language, what language
C Monikowski - Educational interpreting: How it can succeed, 2004

Learning content through 2 languages, neither of

which have been acquired

... deaf students often do not fundamentally

know any language; they simply know bits and
pieces, but they have no strong foundation on
which to build. For example, trying to learn
about the Civil War when one does not know the
language used to convey the facts is not only
difficult but unrealistic, and expecting children
to learn in this type of scenario borders on
cruelty. Monikowski

Language Acquisition
Since DofH are commonly delayed in
exposure to their first language, all
educational processes that are
mediated by language will be
negatively impacted.

True or False?
Indicate your choice by showing:
Thumbs up for True
Thumbs sideways for Im not sure
Thumbs down for False

An interpretation is never the same as the original

text.

True. An effective interpretation strives to make

the interpretation similar in meaning to the original,
but no matter how expert, how effective and
dynamic, it will still be mediated and different.
(Winston, 2004)

US Department of Education
Institute of Education Sciences National Center
for Special Education Research
http://ies.ed.gov/ncser/pubs/20113003/pdf/20113003.pdf

...there has been very little information nationally on the

classroom experiences and academic performance of this
population of students. For example, little is known nationally
about the types of courses students with hearing impairments
take, the instructional settings of those courses, the
instructional practices they experience, or the
accommodations and supports they are provided.
NLTS2 February, 2011

Constraints of Interpreting
the educational system ignores this basic feature of interpreting that it
is always mediated by a third person (the interpreter) with all the language
seen or heard by the participants as being, at least in part, the interpreters
language influenced by his or her own filters, knowledge and experience.
(Winston, 2004)

Constraints of interpreting

These are aspects of interpreting that cannot be changed.

True even when the interpreter is highly qualified.

The consequences will always be borne by the student.

Secondhand quality of interpreted information

Not direct and not word for word. Similar to the education

received by hearing students but never the same.

Every sign the student sees and every word the teacher and class
hears is the interpreters.
Interpreting has an effect on every piece of knowledge and
language that goes through the interpreter.

Constraints of interpreting

These are aspects of interpreting that cannot be changed.

True even when the interpreter is highly qualified.

The consequences will always be borne by the student.

Visual accessibility and multitasking

Simultaneous presentation of information by talking and showing is a common

teaching strategy which works well for hearing students.

Interpreting provides access to half of the information and impedes access to
the other half.
Do I watch the interpreter or write notes? See the demonstration? Watch the video? Grade my
neighbors paper? Look at the powerpoint? Get out my book?

Only the teacher has the power to manage the flow of information, to
make a simultaneous presentation into a sequential one.

Constraints of interpreting

These are aspects of interpreting that cannot be changed.

True even when the interpreter is highly qualified.

The consequences will always be borne by the student.

Multiple channels of input. An interpreter can produce only one message at a

time.
Teacher/student, adult/child power structures dictate who may speak and when. The

interpreter may remind the teacher one speaker at a time, but only a teacher has the power
to manage the class.
More than one speaker at a time means the interpreter must decide what is interpreted and
what is not. Rarely is guidance given.
Unlike the hearing members of the class, the student is only privy to what the interpreter has
chosen to sign and not the entire discussion which could lead to an entirely different
understanding of the days lesson.
Incomplete representation of classmates remarks may lead to consequences for a childs
developing social cognition.

Constraints of interpreting

These are aspects of interpreting that cannot be changed.

True even when the interpreter is highly qualified.

The consequences will always be borne by the student.

Interpreters processing time

The amount of time the interpreter lags behind the source speaker to analyze

and produce a meaningful message in the target language.

Greater processing time equals fewer mistakes and a better product value
added.
Processing time results in decreased ability for a D/HH student to participate in
class discussions, ask relevant questions, or have a normal interaction.
Only the teacher has the power and authority to change interactions to
accommodate interpreting.

Social Isolation
http://www.texastribune.org/2015/02/11/proposal-downsize-texas-school-deaf-stirs-ange

...That isolation came from living in a hearing world, one that she didn't know
how to communicate with. (at TSD) she could constantly communicate with
people.
"Oh, I can tease with other kids," Hummel says. "I can flirt. I can pick on my
teachers. I can talk back to teachers. I can become friends with my staff and
teachers here. I got out of my rabbit hole so to speak."
"I want to play football. I want to be in a drama performance like the students
in my public school. But I don't have that same opportunity," Bugen says.

Ramsey, 1997

In this context, deaf students must struggle to find

their own identities as genuine peers of the hearing
students who have direct and immediate access to
the teacher. For some, this identity remains out of
reach, discouraging participation in class and
making integrated settings uncomfortable.
(Ramsey, 1997)

Sometimes technology fails...

Parenting a Deaf and Gifted Child https:
//parentingdeafandgifted.wordpress.com/2015/09/21/my-implants-werelike-a-bridge-but-then-poof/#more-315

And some of the kids would just be like, Its OK, just
forget it, when I asked them to write things down.
It just showed me they didnt want to be my friend,
or the kind of friend who would work as hard as I
would.

Resources and links

From Odyssey Magazine:
Interpreting for Children, How Its Different
By Brenda Schick
https://www.gallaudet.edu/Documents/Clerc/Odyssey-2001-v2i2-full.PDF

visual inaccessibility,the elephant (blocking the view)

in interpreted education, By Elizabeth A. Winston
https://www.gallaudet.edu/Documents/Clerc/Odyssey-2001-v2i2-full.PDF

an issue of learning the effect of visual split attention in classes for deaf and Hard of
Hearing students, By Susan M. Mather and M. Diane Clark
http://www.gallaudet.edu/Images/Clerc/articles/Odyssey_SPR_2012_MatherClark.pdf

beneath the surface THEORETICAL FRAMEWORKS SHED LIGHT ON

EDUCATIONAL INTERPRETING,
By Claire Ramsey
https://www.gallaudet.edu/Documents/Clerc/Odyssey-2001-v2i2-full.PDF

A sampling of Literature Links

d/Deaf authors and/or characters
VL2 Storybook APPs http://vl2storybookapps.com/
Deaf Studies Digital Journal dsdj.gallaudet.edu Love the Literature and Visual Arts sections for
examples of poetry, stories, artwork, etc. from a Deaf-centric world view.
A collection of adolescent books with Deaf Characters, websites, author interviews and book reviews.
http://pajka.blogspot.com
Great Pinterest page with loads of book suggestions from different perspectives at different reading
levels https://www.pinterest.com/saieeda/deaf-literature/
El Deafo, by Cece Bell https://cecebell.wordpress.com/
http://www.npr.org/2014/12/14/369599042/el-deafo-how-a-girl-turned-her-disability-into-a-superpower
KnowThat?! Humans Smell! (ASL) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uNkuR-IoAQA
Caterpillar, by Ian Sanborne https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTgGQnxX5Uw
Nice blog post for librarians on serving DHH patrons I love how she explains how to use technology
on hand (like an iPad) to communicate! http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/2013/04/15/serving-deaf-or-hard-ofhearing-teen-patrons/

suggested reading

Language planning for the 21st century: Revisiting bilingual language policy for deaf children. H
Knoors, M Marschark Journal of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education

Marschark, Marc; Sapere, Patricia; and Convertino, Carol, "Educational interpreting: access and
outcomes" (2005). Oxford University Press, Perspectives on Deafness; http://scholarworks.rit.
edu/article/632

Educational Interpreting: How it Can Succeed, Elizabeth Winston, Editor http://gupress.

gallaudet.edu/bookpage/EIbookpage.html
For a discussion of language and language acquisition

Language Myths in Interpreted Education: First Language, Second Language, What

Language? Christine Monikowski
Language Accessibility in a Transliterated Education: English Signing Systems Kelly
Stack
Learning through an interpreter:

How Might Learning through an Interpreter Influence Cognitive Development? Brenda

Schick
Interpretability and Accessibility of Mainstream Classrooms Elizabeth A. Winston
My favorite article Theoretical Tools for Educational Interpreters or The True Confessions of an
Ex-Educational Interpreter Claire Ramsey

Academic ASL Modules from Gallaudet http://www.gallaudet.edu/center-for-bilingualteaching-and-learning/academic-asl/academic-asl-modules.html

Redefining D-E-A-F (Great video! Its not really for children; however, Commersons
narration is an excellent example of Academic ASL in action. Notice how easy it is to
follow his thoughts and understand his explanations. A good place to start for that is at 4:
50) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JH0n342f9lA
Dr. Sue Mather on Split Visual Attention https://www.gallaudet.edu/gallaudet-technologyservices/workshops-and-webinars/past-workshops/how-to-reduce-split-attentionusing-technology-in-classroom-.html
Effects of Linguisticism and Audism on the Developing Deaf Person | Peter Hauser |
TEDxGallaudet https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=73zUW76OOxg
Fallacy: Deaf as Economic Burden | Wanda Riddle | TEDxGallaudet https://www.youtube.
com/watch?v=z1NEPdLZbfs
On Becoming Hearing: Lessons in Limitations, Loss, and Respect | Dirksen Bauman |
TEDxGallaudet https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yCuNYGk3oj8

A few more...

The Audacity to Exist audacitytoexist.com

John Walker: 10 things deaf children learn at
mainstream school, The Limping Chicken http://limpingchicken.
com/2014/04/14/john-walker-10-things-deaf-children-learn-at-mainstream-school/

Schools for All, or Separate but Equal?; An Interpreter Isn't

Enough, By Leah Hager Cohen; February 22, 1994
htp://www.nytimes.

com/1994/02/22/opinion/schools-for-all-or-separate-but-equal-an-interpreter-isn-t-enough.html

Parenting a Deaf and Gifted Child, a blog https://parentingdeafandgifted.wordpress.com/2015/09/21/my-implantswere-like-a-bridge-but-then-poof/#more-315