Deaf children without barriers
A mother speaks out strongly for CIs and technology and AVT, as opposed to deaf culture, as the optimal means of communication for her deaf kids.
Hers is a common argument - that the deaf must integrate with the large world, and the best way is to use their hearing and speech, with the aid of technology and therapy.
My stand, as always, is that technology is not sufficiently advanced to ensure that CIs and AVT will work for all deaf kids, and that there must be other options for those who cannot benefit from these. If the day comes when deafness can be ‘cured’ totally, then and only then will I give my full support to such views.
In short, an open mind and flexibility is crucial for now.
I am a mother of twin girls with profound deafness who hear nothing without their cochlear implants. Having said that, I have to describe my girls. They are sixteen-year-old teenagers who speak on the cellular phone, study in a regular high school, are counselors in a youth movement, and spend endless hours socializing with their hearing friends. All of this was made possible thanks to the rehabilitation approach we used to teach them language - the auditory-verbal method.
