Category
Theoretical Proposal
Description
There is a growing number of Deaf students diagnosed with additional disabilities (DWD) who have a diverse range of needs. Yet there is also a prevalence of misdiagnosis that leads to educational and developmental challenges. Due to this fact, there is a shortage of evidence-based research regarding beneficial support for DWD students. Parents and educators often report a lack of sufficient information about services and resources that could be implemented to further communication support for DWD individuals. This research will investigate how schools in Illinois assess and meet both the educational and developmental needs of DWD students. This will be evaluated through a mixed-method survey, sent out to Deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) and special education departments across public schools in Illinois, regarding student needs, individual education plans (IEP), communication forms, roles of interpreters or language mentors, and current school curriculum, as well as teacher narratives from 5-10 schools in Illinois over a 6-month period. This will enable a clearer understanding of current support systems for DWD students in Illinois and their perceived effectiveness, or it may reveal a lack of information regarding current support or models. It is expected that findings from these schools will vary with some having an abundance of resources, while others may be lacking support. If a range in support services and models is found, further research could expound upon ways to implement the most effective assessments and interventions for diverse needs of students across the school systems of Illinois. Keywords: Communication, DWD, Disability, education, assessments, support services, research models, collaboration.
Assessing Communication within Education for Students Who are Deaf with Additional Disabilities (DWD)
Theoretical Proposal
There is a growing number of Deaf students diagnosed with additional disabilities (DWD) who have a diverse range of needs. Yet there is also a prevalence of misdiagnosis that leads to educational and developmental challenges. Due to this fact, there is a shortage of evidence-based research regarding beneficial support for DWD students. Parents and educators often report a lack of sufficient information about services and resources that could be implemented to further communication support for DWD individuals. This research will investigate how schools in Illinois assess and meet both the educational and developmental needs of DWD students. This will be evaluated through a mixed-method survey, sent out to Deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) and special education departments across public schools in Illinois, regarding student needs, individual education plans (IEP), communication forms, roles of interpreters or language mentors, and current school curriculum, as well as teacher narratives from 5-10 schools in Illinois over a 6-month period. This will enable a clearer understanding of current support systems for DWD students in Illinois and their perceived effectiveness, or it may reveal a lack of information regarding current support or models. It is expected that findings from these schools will vary with some having an abundance of resources, while others may be lacking support. If a range in support services and models is found, further research could expound upon ways to implement the most effective assessments and interventions for diverse needs of students across the school systems of Illinois. Keywords: Communication, DWD, Disability, education, assessments, support services, research models, collaboration.
