Children with Cochlear Implants: Where Does Sign Language Fit In?

Cochlear Implant Education Center
Laurent Clerc National Deaf Education Center,
Gallaudet University
Washington, D.C.

Cochlear implant technology provides deaf children with "access" to sound. Observation and research indicates there is no "single profile" of deaf children with cochlear implants and that spoken language outcomes are extremely varied. Children obtaining cochlear implants have a range of pre-implant characteristics and post-implant expectations.

While some cochlear implant users/students become proficient spoken language communicators, there are others for whom this is not the case. While cochlear implants may provide significant quantitative and qualitative benefits, it may not necessarily provide full access to spoken language for all children.

As more people receive cochlear implants with various medical and audiologic origins of their hearing loss, as well as tremendously variable socio-economic backgrounds, educational programs and support services need to be designed to respect, understand and fulfill the needs of the increasingly varied post-implant population. In other words, as people with cochlear implants vary more and more, the support services provided need to be flexible and efficient, to better meet the needs of this new and diverse population of cochlear implant users.

During the initial era of cochlear implantation in children during the late 1980s and early 1990s, the number of students with cochlear implants was relatively small, and children with implants comprised a fairly homogenous group. Planning for that population was perhaps easier and more well defined. It was assumed that a decision to obtain a cochlear implant involved participation of an educational setting that exclusively utilized an auditory means of communication. The expectation was that all students with cochlear implants would have full access to spoken language.

As we have had the opportunity to take a closer look at the characteristics of students with cochlear implants for almost two decades now, it is become increasingly apparent that there must be more than one definition of an effective program for children with cochlear implants. As we plan and implement educational strategies for the new generation for students with cochlear implants entering our educational systems, we face new realities and new opportunities.

In the fall of 2000, the Laurent Clerc National Deaf Education Center at Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C., established a Cochlear Implant Education Center (CIEC) to gather, evaluate, and share information related to designing educational and habilitation services for children with cochlear implants from birth through high school. The programs focused on looking at the role of sign language for students with implants. The CIEC provides on-site supports to students with cochlear implants in two demonstration schools, Kendall Demonstration Elementary School (KDES) and the Model Secondary School for the Deaf (MSSD), as well as a range of national activities including workshops, resource development, and research.