Do Deaf and Hearing Babies Learn Alike?
Do Deaf and Hearing Babies Learn Alike?
This is my analogy about how Deaf and Hearing adults or children or babies are created differently just like a Mac or PC. They, hearing and deaf people are the same in very way just like a Mac or PC. But the only difference is the software program. The software disc that you put in the Mac or PC computer got data information that the Mac or PC understands what it written(embedded) in it and functions according how you communicate with the keyboard. The software disc could be Word processor program, accounting program, video game program, drawing program like Photoshop, etc.
Hearing and Deaf people are human bionic-computers. Before I go any further explaining more about what I will write on this post, you might ask this question, what is a bionic-computer?
Bionic-computer is a human being that its brain can compute to do things such as like calculating the coordination while walking or picking things up, etc. Your brain is always computing like a calculator doing the adding, subtracting, etc while controlling your balance, reaching for something, jumping or hopping over something, etc.
No one was born as a full functioning bionic-computer human being. Keep in mind that we all had to learn to crawl, walk, talk, sign, run, respond, think, etc since the day we were born. Our parents were the main educators, motivators, etc in the beginning of our lives. Then teachers, your peers, people, media, TV, etc became additional educators, motivators, etc. This process is the education of our bionic-computer body(mind) that goes on until the day we die.
One more thing that I want to say about the terminology of the two words;
Software and Hardware.
The computer that you are using right now while reading this post is call hardware.
The disc that you put in the computer contains data so you can watch movies or video game or Microsoft Word is call software.
The Human Bionic-Computer is the hardware of the human anatomy. This would include the brain, internal organs, and other human organ systems such as Cardiovascular, Endocrine, Immune, Muscular, nervous, Reproductive, Respiratory, Skeletal and Urinary systems.
Your bionic-computer has stored program properties and self- metaprogramming properties, with limits determinable and to be determined.
You might ask, what is metaprogramming?
Metaprogram is defined as a set of instructions, descriptions and means of control of sets of program.
How did we get the metaprogramming properties?
You got them since the day you were born, from your parents, teachers, etc. It is the software education that you have and it is stored in your brain.
Now, let’s go back a little about what I wrote above;
The bionic-computer has stored program properties and self- metaprogramming properties, with limits determinable and to be determined.
You might ask, what you mean by with limits determinable and to be determined. It means that it depends on how you have been educated, how much data flow you have gotten or able to receive from your parents or teachers in early childhood, etc.
It could also means that it depends on if you are deaf or hearing. In this society now days, a deaf person will have a good chance to get into the phrase of with limits determinable and to be determined.
This is very, very important to keep this in mind as you read on in this post.
The title of this post is
Deaf and Hearing Babies Learn Alike?
This is the same as if I had said,
Mac and PC function Alike?
What is really the different between a Mac and PC computer?
They both look alike, same hardware, functions the same. They both have low level, average level and high level performance.
Just like in the society, we have low level, average level and high level minded human beings. You might ask, why do we have three levels. With the computers (Mac/PC), it depends on the speed of calculating, the amount of ram memory and the software program. With human being (bionic-computer), it depends on the early childhood of language foundation, how much you’ve learned the software program.
You might ask, what was our human software program?
Well, for a hearing baby, it was the data flow of informations that enter through the ears.
And for the deaf baby, it was the data flow of informations that enter through the eyes.
This means that the hearing baby and the deaf baby, both have different type of software input for eyes or ears.
The software makes our bionic-computer to function and the more data flow of informations that each receives through its eyes or ears, will categorize each of us accordingly as low level, average level or high level minded person.
Macintosh are the Deaf baby.
PC are the Hearing baby.
Hearing and Deaf babies, both require different software to be able function for its highest potential capability to learn… the earlier, the better.
This is why Deaf babies and children must have bilingual education- ASL/English(reading and writing) to be able learn to achieve the level at its highest potential capability. ASL is American Sign Language.
These Eye software input bilingual education program are for babies that don’t have the natural Ear software input capability.
Over the years, we, the deaf people, or should I say, the Mac computers have been using the PC “ear” software indoctrinated by the so-call-experts ( i.e. AGBell ) thinking that we deaf (Mac) people could hear and speak 100% like hearing (PC) people.
The Deaf babies have been deprived of having the use of appropriated software program to be able to function fully like hearing babies since 1880.
Parents of Deaf children need to grasp this simple concept that once the child learns a language(ASL) to learn how to learn. Teaching speech and English language is so much easier.
DEAF BILINGUAL COALITION believes that all babies should learn sign language regardless if the baby is hearing or deaf because it has proven that all babies can learn signs as early as 4 months and every baby will not have their vocal chords fully developed enough to learn speech until they are 18 to 24 months. (Babbling is not speech).
http://deafbilingualcoalition.com/
But the ironic concept by Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Auditory Verbal Therapy do not allow deaf babies learn any visual language (sign language)
http://www.agbellacademy.org/whatISAuditoryVerbalTherapy.htm
Bilingually yours,
John Egbert
Posted on April 25th, 2008 by egbertpress
Filed under: Uncategorized
Thanks John for doing your own post on this.
I fully agree that all kids can benefit from learning both ASL and English (both written and verbal).
An interesting thing to know is that at birth, deaf babies have the same capacity to learn verbally as hearing babies do. One of the first things the brain does after birth, is to start creating the neural pathways for language. It takes very little time for a deaf baby to start understanding visual language. If you give them a cochlear implant, it also does not take very long for them to also form the neural pathways needed for verbal language.
Deaf babies implanted early can be just as successful as hearing babies at becoming truly bilingual if they are properly exposed to both ASL and verbal English. And hearing babies can be just as successful as deaf babies at learning ASL if given the opportunity.
Very well said. And good example to explain the difference between those two.
I copied from ASL Teacher’ comment in the title blogs- eat42f.com- Jeff Daniel and Marlee Matlin and then I put pasted this information. I like ASL Teacher.
“But to insist that CIs are necessary to develop successful language (i.e. - English) skills is a fallacy pure and simple. Yes, I grew up orally, but I credit my English skills to one thing and one thing only - a read a LOT. In my lifetime I have read THOUSANDS of books. I give these books full credit for the development of my English skills. I am currently an ASL teacher and I have classrooms full of hearing students (absolutely nothing wrong with their ears) who, quite frankly, suck when it comes to the English language. I have children of my own in elementary and middle school who’s English skills are way better than many of my high school students. Why? Because my children READ. So, toss the “CI = better language skills” argument out the window. The truth is that it doesn’t matter if you are deaf or hearing, if you want better language skills you MUST read.”
“I actually know a number of parents who are incapable of communicating with their child because they won’t learn sign language. I know one girl in particular who has a CI and her speech is completely unintelligible and she still uses an interpreter because she is unable to get sufficient information from her CI to understand her teachers. Yet her parents still insist that she continue to use the CI and they will not learn to sign. But, back to deaf children without CIs - they do so poorly because most parents simply aren’t involved as much as they should be.”
Champ! Kudo, kudo to your comment, above!, your metaphoric comparsion of digital computers and bionic (human) computers had given me a great, good battery jump to start this morning. And for a Deaf Yup’ik Eskimo child, I am working with in developing IEP plans… whilse I am surfin’ deep in Deaf v-blogs for some valid informations concerning IEP setting up for the Deaf child in small village out deep in Yukon Delta, Alaska near Russia. Being here working in small village near Bering Sea in total of one month is quite a lonely journey for me, not just because of the quanity of people, but only Deaf kass’aq myself, (kass’aq is Yup’ik word for white people), in your word, you may call me Kass’aq Mac, lol. Yet so collectively in a good Deaf sense of creating constructive plans for a Deaf kid’s education here, while to preserve his great Yup’ik culture is also quite one of my greatest challenges. So, off I go back to work, thanks again for good battery jump, John!
By the way, tell your wife, Shirley a big hello from her long “lost” cousin…
Cheerio,
td (on-the-chin)
to Chris H - your ASL teacher brings up two good points. I’ll address them in turn
1. Of course reading is vital to language skills. I am in complete agreement with her because spoken english isn’t perfect english. In fact, we speak very differently than we write. *However* before we read, we must have the capacity to understand language and words. We must be able to identify an object with a word. Of course, it doesn’t really matter so much what language one does this in - ASL or English. I will point out that it is a bit more natural to use English words to refer to objects than using ASL to identify objects. Really, from my experience as a tot, teaching wee children how to read using ASL consists mostly of fingerspelling and SEE signs. This is not a bad approach at all, but you shouldn’t necessarily use *pure* ASL
2. Again, I am in complete agreement with the ASL teacher in your quote. Parental involvement is KEY in either scenario - you need involved parents to teach their children ASL OR you need involved parents to really make AVT training effective. The rub is this - it is easier (language wise, at least) for parents to be *effectively* involved in AVT and oral techniques. Why? These two approaches uses languages that parents are already familiar with (hopefully) - spoken english. ASL on the other hand is a foreign language for most parents of deaf children.
I do believe bilingualism is possible for deaf children (and should be encouraged) but I also do believe that there are very few parents who are truly capable of carrying out this dream, which stinks.
this is john webb i was been speech therphy clinic at Riverside, Califorina
my dad and mom was want to put me to learn speech and i cannot control my voice and not much word of speechment very hard time then my parent take me went at Children’s Hospital in Kansas city ,Kansas my parent was afriad to me would not put to impact my hearing, doctor told them cannot fix my hearing to then alone can put to some deaf school then my parent were got accpet put me to Kansas School for the Deaf on 1959 to 1962 moved to England same my parent to looked to somewhere for deaf school then found in place put to East Anglian School for the Deaf in Gloraltion-on-Sea near Great Yarmounth, England in 1962 to 1966 then moved to at Indiana my parent called to goverment somewhere is deaf school then it found my parent take me at Indiana School for the Deaf on this 1966 to gradated 1975 and sometime used my hearing aid cause my ear mold was air sounded for hearing aid somepeople hearing asked to me get sound my hearing aid and cannot help for hearing aid then better get off turn hearing aid since
long time i m doing good
i would not get not bother ag bell doing alone it
(compatible with the “pc’s” and “mac’s” hah)
Psalm 23 for Programmers
The Lord is my programmer, I shall not crash.
He installed His software on the hard disk of my heart,
All of His commands are user friendly,
His directory moves me to the right choices for His name’s sake.
Even though I scroll through the problems of file,
I will fear no bugs, for You are my backup;
Your password protects me;
You prepare a menu before me in the presence of my enemies;
Your help is only a key away.
Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life,
And my file will be merged with His and saved forever.
John,
You put this in so well to make this concept very simple to be understood. Well written and wonderful detail explanation! Can I share this with my co~worker?
K.L.
Thank you, but you need to know that DBC focus only to babies at start to the age of 18-24 months to learn sign language. These babies in most cases will not be able to learn speech due to the fact that their vocal chord is not fully developed and so we focus on language advocacy, not auditory.
Deafreckles, Thank you for your nice comment
ChrisH, I agree about reading, both of my grandkids love to read.
HEY TERRY!
Long time no hear. WOW, I envy you being an adventure type. Shirley and I wish you the best of luck!
Anonymous,
I agree that parents are the key to their child’s success but as we know that not many parents do that and would it be nice if the child have ASL to fall back on? It is not a bad idea to be bilingual to play safe.
John H Webb,
I understand what you are going through and there are many, many that have the same experience as you and we hear them everyday in the Deaf Community.
Student pro-ASL, nice poem
ASL is everybody’s backup to succeed in life.
Bilingually yours,
John
DB,
You may share this to the whole world!
And thank you for your nice comment
John
To anonymous:
Is it that very few parents are capable, or that very few parents are willing to put forth the effort required? I personally believe, based on my experience, that it is unwillingness. Much easier to ask the child to adapt to their circumstances than for them to adapt to the child’s circumstances. The issue is not what is most convenient for the hearing parent, but what is best for the deaf child. BTW, I am a hearing parent who learned ASL over 20 years ago, and am proud to say I’m fluent. My son gave me a second langauge.
Jill, you know - i agree with you that it is an important distniction (capacity vs. willigness).
However, I do think it is a combination of both. ASL is a beautiful langauge, but just like many other languages, it’s hard to learn. Not everyone can adapt well to the spatial context of ASL. For example, my father, bless his heart, tried to master ASL, but language was never his forte. I’m happy that I have the capacity to use the spoken language to communicate with him (and he’s not so great at that either, ha!). Also there is a question of why parents would want to use a language that they are not fluent in. Isn’t it better to expose a child to the language that the parents are fluent in (the same case for children of immigrants) - doesn’t the child get more meaningful language out of that scenario?
I applaud you and your success with your son. We do need more parents like you. Of course, fully bilingual learning is ideal, but is it practical? Maybe not. Honestly, AVT therapy takes a lot of time, and so does learning ASL. It’s a lot to ask parents to do both at the same time, especially if both parents work.
Just curious…., is this author deaf? Your answer will either confirm or disprove your thesis about hardware. Thanks.
…excuse me, upon further reading I see the author is deaf. My first impression was that he was hearing because of the left brained, technical/analytical nature of the writing style. It was just a hunch and I was wrong. Please forgive any offense, I am a writer and a counselor and am curious.
So then I deduce a new question: how much of one’s learning “hardware” has to do with personality traits and not so much on being hearing or deaf?
melody,
Yes, I am deaf, around 100-110 db.
I grew up in the hearing world and can speak very well. Then learned ASL at Gallaudet University and lived in the Deaf Culture reality with Deaf wife, two Deaf children and two Deaf grandchildren.
Of my two Deaf grandchildren, I can see the big difference between of my cognitive development and their cognitive development at our age of 5, despite that I could verbally speak superb at that age. My grandchildren was way ahead of me.
Even with hearing babies, one learned sign language at start while the other one never expose to sign language, you can see the big difference of their cognitive development at the age of 3.
Hope that answers your question.
Bilingually yours,
John