deaf children

They are also Children

Don Bosco Veedu Society has tried to rehabilitate seven deaf and dumb children in the past one year. All these children had run away from their homes or schools. It is often a tedious task to restore them as it is very difficult to trace their family due to communication issues. We have found that almost all such children also have mental health problems and it is mainly due to the neglect they often feel even if their homes are healthy. In all the seven cases our rehabilitative process of training them in schools for deaf and dumb have failed due to the fact that they often run away and find it difficult to adjust with others. It is natural that they feel neglected in a family as they can get on the nerves of others especially in conversations.

According to the World Federation of the Deaf (WFD), approximately 66 percent of Deaf people live in developing countries, where authorities are rarely familiar with their needs and where very few Deaf children have access to employment and education. Only about 10 percent of the world's Deaf population receive any education at all, and only one percent receives this education in sign language - even though the majority of deaf people worldwide use sign language in their daily lives.  Even if home is healthy it would be much better that they grow up with similar children so that neglect issues will not crop up.

It is often difficult for a Deaf person to break into a conversation. He/she cannot hear and be uncertain as to when they can break in. When this happens, it may appear that they seem to be intruding on what you say without contributing. In this circumstance, you need to be proactive and turn to the Deaf person and make eye contact, as a signal to join the conversation or to give a message or to ask a question. Deaf children are relegated to a low social status as a direct result of the poor or nonexistent education they receive, the stigma they face, and the lack of awareness of their full potential as active members of society.

Waking up in the morning can be the first daily activity that presents a problem. Many deaf people can use their internal clock to wake up in the morning if they spend some time learning techniques for waking up. Smoke detectors, timers on the oven and even the telephone present problems for deaf people every day. Technology is helping alleviate some of these difficulties. Alarm clocks can now turn on lights or vibrate to help the deaf person wake up. Telephones are also available to allow the deaf person to communicate on the phone.

Traditional school environments are difficult for a deaf person to navigate without the aid of interpreters. Special schools for the deaf help young people learn how to communicate with others and the skills necessary to get through the world as a deaf person. The use of interpreters in college helps many deaf people earn degrees and advance in the workplace.

 

Deaf children face the lack of positive Deaf role models who can communicate successfully and mentor the children to reach their full potential. As a result, most of the young people are doing poorly or failing their classes. They cannot imagine attending college, let alone becoming a successful professional. Society tells them that they are "dumb."

Without proper education, deaf role models, mentors and tools to gain acceptance in society, deaf children will continue to face issues of neglect.