Search results for ""Gallaudet University Press,U.S.""

Ethiopian Sign Language (EthSL) emerged relatively recently; its development is closely tied to the establishment of the first school for deaf students in Addis Ababa by American missionaries in 1963. Today, EthSL is used by more than a million members of the Ethiopian Deaf community, but it remains an under-researched language of Ethiopia. In this work, Eyasu Hailu Tamene presents a groundbreaking study of EthSL that touches on multiple aspects of Deaf people's lives in Ethiopia. Tamene collects data from three principal groups of people: deaf participants, teachers of deaf students, and parents of deaf children. He examines EthSL use within families, in formal and informal settings, and in various community spaces. He documents the awareness among different groups of the services available for deaf people, such as sign language interpreters and Deaf associations. He finds that members of the Deaf community show positive attitudes toward the use of EthSL and investigates the factors that impact those attitudes. His work indicates that there are still critical gaps in recognition and support for the use of EthSL, which can pose a threat to the vitality of the language. The Sociolinguistics of Ethiopian Sign Language will help to advance public understanding of EthSL and contribute to improved educational and social outcomes for the Deaf community in Ethiopia.

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Originally published in 1931, this memoir is an unflinching look at the life experience of a woman struggling with identity and isolation. In harrowing yet lyrical prose, Pauline Leader assails her poverty and Jewish heritage and longs to fit in with her "American" peers. Born in 1908, she describes her home life as the daughter of Polish immigrants who run a butcher's market and boarding houses in a small New England town. Frequent beatings and sinister remarks issued by her parents puncture her childhood. At the age of 12, following a long illness, Leader becomes deaf yet another stigma to bear. As a young adult she journeys to New York City where she struggles to find work in factories and sweatshops and seeks social acceptance among the artists and prostitutes of Greenwich Village. For a time she is held in a reformatory for "wayward" girls. Her strong will and fierce independence are often thwarted by severe self-doubt, but through it all, she finds solace through her writing. A new scholarly introduction provides a modern framework for understanding Leader and her times. She persevered and became a published poet and novelist, often drawing on the experiences offered up here. Compelling and evocative, And No Birds Sing deftly reveals a complex, intelligent spirit toiling in a brutal world. From the book: I insisted to myself that I could still hear. I heard in my mind the sounds of streams as I passed them. I knew the sound the river made, that river that I had known always, the river by the marble house. In my mind the river washed with a low intimate sound. I had no need to hear as the people heard. True intimacy needs no ears. I knew the sound of birds; I heard them as they hopped about. I knew the sound of words also. It was words that I most intensely heard. I had not always the river and the birds they appeared far away at times. I did not always want river and birds, but I always wanted words, and I always had them. I would have been terribly lonely without them. With them always in my mind, I could not be truly lonely. I played with them; I set them to music; I achieved endless variations with them. They were never weary, as other things could sometimes be weary.

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For over 30 years, The Silent Garden has offered parents of deaf children the support and unbiased information needed to fully realize their children's potential. This completely revised third edition is a must-have resource that will help parents navigate the complex and unique challenges they face. Accessible, practical, and, above all, open-minded, The Silent Garden educates parents quickly and thoroughly about the many conflicting points of view on what is best for their deaf children. Authors Paul W. Ogden and David H. Smith, who are both deaf, present examples and research that guide parents through often unfamiliar territory. From coping mechanisms for parents to advice on creating healthy home environments, the authors cover a range of topics that impact day-to-day actions and decision-making. The topic of communication is discussed extensively as communication access and language development are crucial not only for intellectual growth, but also for positive family and social relationships. The authors look at American Sign Language, English, and various other modes of communication available to deaf children. Different educational options are presented, and technology including the debate about cochlear implants is reviewed. Deaf children with special needs are considered here as well. Each topic is accompanied by real-life stories that offer further insight. Always encouraging, The Silent Garden empowers parents to be the best advocates for their deaf children. Throughout, the authors emphasize that each choice is highly personal, and they stress that all deaf children have the potential to lead rich, productive, and exciting lives.

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Within the past few decades, there has been great progress in deaf education in Latin America and growth in the empowerment of their Deaf communities. However, there is little awareness outside that region of these successes. For the first time, this book provides access, in English, to scholarly research in these areas. Written by Latin American Deaf and hearing contributors, Change and Promise provides a counter argument to external, deficit views of the Latin American Deaf community by sharing research and accounts of success in establishing and expanding bilingual deaf education, Deaf activism, Deaf culture, and wider access for deaf children and adults. Change and Promise describes the historical, cultural, and political contexts for providing bilingual deaf education in Latin America. Bilingual deaf education uses students' sign language, while simultaneously giving them access to and teaching them the majority spoken/written language. This book describes current bilingual deaf education programs in the region that have increased society's understandings of Deaf culture and sign languages. This cause, as well as others, have been championed by successful social movements including the push for official recognition of Libras, the sign language of Brazil. Change and Promise covers this expanding empowerment of Deaf communities as they fight for bilingual deaf education, sign language rights, and deaf civil rights. Despite the vast political and cultural differences throughout Latin America, an epistemological shift has occurred regarding how Deaf people are treated and their stories narrated, from labeling "deaf as handicapped" to being recognized as a linguistic minority. This panoramic study of these challenges and triumphs will provide an invaluable resource for improving outcomes in deaf education and help to secure the rights of Deaf children and adults in all societies.

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Familiar sounds and shared songs are an integral part of how we build our identities and a sense of place. But for deaf individuals, this missing piece can create a feeling of distance, fueling a desire to seek out community in different ways. In this revolutionary new book, Jan-Kare Breivik profiles ten deaf Norwegians and their search for identity, providing an international perspective on the connectivity of deaf people worldwide.

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Many Ways to Be Deaf circles the globe - from Asia and Russia to Europe and the United Kingdom, from Africa to South America to the United States - profiling the immense diversity of the world's Deaf communities. Special attention is paid not only to the historical and linguistic origins of each community's signed language, but to the ways each language has been influenced by the hearing population and foreign influences. Twenty-four international contributors of different cultural and scholastic backgrounds make this appraisal truly diverse and expansive in scope.

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When Richard Medugno and his wife Brenda learned in 1993 that their17-month-old daughter Miranda was deaf, they grieved, as many hearing parents do. Soon, however, Medugno seized hold of the need to take positive action for Miranda. Deaf Daughter, Hearing Father recounts the remarkable story of their journey during the past fourteen years. Medugno first researched the best communication mode for Miranda. Quickly dismissing the speech pathology model, he and his wife chose ASL alone as the best, natural language for Miranda. He surrounded his daughter with opportunities to learn ASL, by arranging to meet deaf individuals and families, and also by hiring deaf babysitters. He also determined to learn ASL himself, to ensure communication with his daughter. As Miranda neared school age, Medugno spearheaded a transcontinental search for exactly the right school for her education. So that Miranda could attend the California School for the Deaf (CSD), the Medugno family moved from Toronto, Canada to Fremont, CA. In "Deaf Daughter, Hearing Father", Medugno shares practical information on many of the common challenges faced by hearing parents. He provides a list of games that hearing and deaf children can play together, an important consideration for many families. His enthusiasm for all possibilities, from exploring the potential of video phones to helping stage CSD musicals, reveals his abiding devotion to Miranda. Such a foundation has enabled her to feel proud, confident, and happy in her pursuits. At the same time, Medugno recognizes that the rewards of having a deaf daughter are far greater than he could have hoped for or imagined.

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Mark Rigney succinctly depicts the progress of one college-s production of the 1957 classic American musical West Side Story, from the clashes between the deaf high school cast members and their hearing counterparts to the final production.

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Twenty-four international scholars contribute articles on linguistic and cultural diversity in deaf communities worldwide, including Japan, Viet Nam, Nigeria, Ireland, Brazil, and the United States. The wide- ranging topics include the evolution of British fingerspelling beginning in the 17th centur

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The Deaf Way II Anthology brings together stellar contributions by 16 international writers who are deaf or hard of hearing. This remarkable collection features poetry, essays, short stories, and one play, all of which offer thought-provoking perspectives on elements from the personal universes of these gifted authors. Many are United States writers well-known for their past publications, such as Douglas Bullard, Willy Conley, Christopher Heuer, and Raymond Luczak, while the outstanding work of John Lee Clark, volume editor Tonya Stremlau, Melissa Whalen, and several others have been collected for the first time in this volume. The international contributions further distinguish this anthology, ranging from poetry by Romanian Carmen Cristiu, verse by Sibylle Gurtner May from Switzerland, to a play by Nigerian Sotonwa Opeoluwa. All of the writers showcased in The Deaf Way II Anthology portray the Deaf experience with unmatched authenticity, presenting a perfect introduction to the Deaf world. Simultaneously, their work demonstrates that deaf and hard of hearing people can write at the highest aesthetic level and offer invaluable insights on the complete human spectrum.

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As the practice of mainstreaming deaf and hard-of-hearing children into general classrooms continues to proliferate, the performance of these students becomes critical. This volume assesses the progress of three second-grade deaf students to demonstrate the importance of placement, context and language in their development. The book points out that these deaf children were placed in two different environments: with the general population of hearing students, and separately with other deaf and hard-of-hearing children. The study reveals that although both settings were ostensibly educational, inclusion in the general population was done to comply with the law, not to establish specific goals for the deaf children. In contrast, self-contained classes for deaf and hard-of-hearing children were designed especially to concentrate upon their particular learning needs. The book also demonstrates that the key educational element of language development cannot be achieved in a social vacuum, which deaf children face in the real isolation of the mainstream classroom.

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This is an instructional guide for hearing parents of deaf and hard-of-hearing children. It provides information on: parental feelings about hearing loss and how to cope with these feelings; family communication methods; family unity; child development; behaviour management techniques; problem-solving strategies; assistive devices; education choices; and an introduction to the deaf community.

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"Chris was having trouble with his ears. He just couldn't hear right ... every time anyone said anything, Chris would shout 'WHAT?'" Chris Gets Ear Tubes explains what happens before, during, and after the surgery in language a child understands. It takes away the child's natural fear of the unknown. The charming full-color illustrations familiarize the child with the hospital procedures.

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