1. Hearing Impairment
LEGAL DEFINITION
o Federal Disability Definitions -Title 34: Education o Hearing
Impairment means an impairment in hearing, whether permanent
or fluctuating, that adversely affects a child's educational
performance but that is not included under the definition of
deafness in this section.
COMMON CHARACTERISTICS
o Lack of attention
o Turns or cocks head
o Uses gestures
o Monotone quality in voice
o Lack of speech development
o Works best in small groups
o May act out
o Difficult in following direction
o Preoccupied with things, not people
o Imitates others
o Impends to noises instead of words
o Reluctant to participate orally
"MOTOR CHARACTERISTICS"
* May have balance problems that cause developmental
delays or motor ability
* May have difficulty of motor speed
LEARNING STRATEGIES & TEACHING TIPS
o Make sure the student can you see you when you are speaking so
the student can see your lips. o Use visual aids whenever possible.
It is easier for a student to pick
up words and follow the conversation when they know what the
subject matter is going to be.
o Speak clearly and normally. Don't slowdown your words or shout. o
Writing important announcements or instructions on the board is a
good way to clarify.
o Provide transcripts with audio information o When showing videos,
make sure they are captioned. o Learn some basic signs to use during
instruction, o Talk to the individual and the not interpreter when
communicating.
Brett Brinkerhoff
Cat Serpe

2. RESOURCES
http://www.northwestern.edu/disability/faculty/strategies/hearing-loss.html
• Provides a brief description of the nature of hearing impairment,
instructional strategies, common accommodations, assisted listening devices,
transcriptions, and closed captioning information.
http://www.ctc.ca.gov/credentials/creds/federal-disability-definitions.pdf
• Provides the Federal Disability Definition of hearing impairment under Title
34: Education, Sec. 300.8 Child with a disability. Also provides many other
important disability definitions.
http://www.tahperd.org/LINKS/links pdfs/APE%20factsheets/Hearing Impairme
ntpdf
• Provides the definitions of deaf, hard of hearing, the different degrees of
hearing loss, and difficulty understanding speech. Also provides the
behavioral characteristics of hearing impaired individuals and teaching tips.
http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/Pages/default.aspx
• The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders
website. Provides health information, health resources, research, news, and
events.