CI & Education Difficulties - middle or junior high school - advice? HELP

[Guest guest]

From what I see at the local schools and state school for the deaf,

this is a problem sometimes with CI students entering middle/junior

high school. The problem may get worse if you do not get

professional help.

This is a common problems with some students with CI in middle or

junior schools. If you go to your state school for the deaf

(Wisconsin School for the Deaf), you will discover that there is a

number of those students wear CI OR have CI and no longer wear their

CI. Many of these CI students did well in mainstreamed elementary

school programs because there is a lot of 1 on 1 staff and parent

attention and support. When the CI students entered middle or junior

high school, some students do not want the 1 on 1 staff or parent

type attention and want special attention like all other teenagers.

Wearing a FM system is like a 1 on 1 attention so the CI student is

left out of most peer support and education and social.

Many CI students transferred to the state schools for the deaf in

their middle or junior school years as grades dropped rapidly. Some

of these CI students will choose not to wear their CI when they get

into high schools as they hear some word recognition and mostly

environmental sounds. Parents are very frustrated as their child with

a CI is not doing well like the other hearing students or even other

CI students.

The mainstreamed school staff probably do not have any hard of

hearing or deaf staff members who know what the CI, hard of hearing

or deaf student is going through. Most local school IEP team are

hearing people who may or may not understand what deaf or hard of

hearing or CI students goes through in middle/junior high school.

In reality, you mentioned your daugther understands 40% but tested at

100% on FM system. It could be 40% or 100% word recognition but not

complete speech understanding. The subject matters and wordings in

middle school are more complex and difficult to understand and get

worse each year. With more challenging subject matters, she may not

understand the majority of the communication with or without the FM

device. She may not want to use the FM system anymore. She is a

hard of hearing teenager.

The key advice for the FIRST step is to get professional deaf or hard

of hearing educational help ASAP. It is not likely you will get it

from the local school counselor, or special education counselor or

anyone from the local IEP team. Contact and meet someone or a

counselor at the state school for the deaf or Wisconsin School for

the Deaf who works with hard of hearing or CI students. It would be

great if the counselor is hard of hearing or deaf or have a CI. Ask

them about the CI students education program in the middle schools at

other mainstreamed programs and even the state school for the deaf.

Ask them about what the local school can do for your child?

Another advice is that you can contact the State Commission for the

Deaf and Hard of Hearing to see if they can refer you to a qualified

counselor (educational or vocational).

In every state there are some good resources and people you can

contact to learn more.

There is one option which many hard of hearing and CI students choose

when they get to middle/junior or high school school. From what I

read and seen, some mainstreamed programs in middle and high schools

start providing sign language to fill in the communication gap. Many

hard of hearing students do well with hearing aids, speechreading,

and sign language in mainstreamed programs. They continued to have

good speech, which many parents fear that their child will not speak

well.

The SECOND STEP is to ask the IEP team to meet ASAP and get this

person from the state school for the deaf or any other qualified

counselor to meet with the IEP and discuss how to address the ongoing

situation.

>

> Sigh. I will warn you all that I am extremely upset at the

> moment ......so keep that in mind when reading this. Double sigh.

>

> My daughter is 12 years old. She received the implant at age 5.

She

> has done very well with it. Not the " TOP " stories you hear

> about........but definitely better than " average " .

> Anyhow.........she is in middle school now......6th

grade......fully

> mainstreamed (and has been since 1st grade). We are having such

> problems with her wearing the FM. They tested her without the

FM

> and she " heard " 40% of the information presented.............WITH

the

> FM she jumped to 100%. YET......she has been lying and sneaking

and

> well the latest straw is tonight......I went to throw the clothes

> from the washer to the dryer and out falls the part of the FM that

> she wears. I WASHED IT! I know its partly my own fault for

> not checking her pants pockets better but still! Why is it home?

> Why was it in her pocket? Why did she throw the pants down to be

> washed?!?!? GGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGRRRRRRRRRr. Sorry.

>

> Her grades have suffered this year. She was almost an all A

> student......and for the first grading period this year she got one

> A........all B's or B- and one C. She has had missing assignments

> and we kept hearing " but she never said that was

homework! " ........

> YEAH RIGHT! BUT....then the night of conferences.......we went to

> check out her locker.......and there was the microphone. We

> said " Why is this in your locker? " She said " We had a bomb

threat

> and they wouldn't let us go back to our lockers " (which was

> true....sad but true....small town) BUT...then it dawned on

> us.......where was HER part? We asked her and then figured out

that

> she has been just handing the teachers the microphone and NOT ever

> booting her part in. Clever I suppose.....but devious! We called

> her out..........she cried........said it wouldn't happen

> again..........but it did.......so I had the audiologist and TOD

talk

> to her....got better for a week or so.......then again it

> happened........so I had the school counselor speak with her.

(that

> was 2 weeks ago) and now this.........her FM piece in her pocket.

> She just brought me up an apology letter she wrote to the

audiologist

> (which I asked her to do) and in it it says she was NOT wearing her

> part in last hour and forgot about it then being in her pocket.

> She had done it again....just gave the teacher the microphone.

> Sigh. And now her part is ruined and I am worried sick they will

ask

> us to pay for it...........We don't have the money for that and she

> can;t make it without it.

>

> Anyhow....THANKS for listening and PLEASE help me know what to do.

> Thank you! And if you know of another forum or listserver this

> should be sent to.........please let me know that too.

> TAKE CARE,

> Happy Holidays!

> (WI)

>

[Guest guest]

Wow. This was very insightful and helpful. I had no idea! I will do my best

to find a counselor who has hearing aids or a cochlear implant. I do not know

what WI has to offer. We moved here from Michigan 2 years ago.

Thanks so much!

Sincerely

In a message dated 12/20/08 08:42:35 Central Standard Time, swimdeaf@...

writes:

From what I see at the local schools and state school for the deaf,

this is a problem sometimes with CI students entering middle/junior

high school. The problem may get worse if you do not get

professional help.

This is a common problems with some students with CI in middle or

junior schools. If you go to your state school for the deaf

(Wisconsin School for the Deaf), you will discover that there is a

number of those students wear CI OR have CI and no longer wear their

CI. Many of these CI students did well in mainstreamed elementary

school programs because there is a lot of 1 on 1 staff and parent

attention and support. When the CI students entered middle or junior

high school, some students do not want the 1 on 1 staff or parent

type attention and want special attention like all other teenagers.

Wearing a FM system is like a 1 on 1 attention so the CI student is

left out of most peer support and education and social.

Many CI students transferred to the state schools for the deaf in

their middle or junior school years as grades dropped rapidly. Some

of these CI students will choose not to wear their CI when they get

into high schools as they hear some word recognition and mostly

environmental sounds. Parents are very frustrated as their child with

a CI is not doing well like the other hearing students or even other

CI students.

The mainstreamed school staff probably do not have any hard of

hearing or deaf staff members who know what the CI, hard of hearing

or deaf student is going through. Most local school IEP team are

hearing people who may or may not understand what deaf or hard of

hearing or CI students goes through in middle/junior high school.

In reality, you mentioned your daugther understands 40% but tested at

100% on FM system. It could be 40% or 100% word recognition but not

complete speech understanding. The subject matters and wordings in

middle school are more complex and difficult to understand and get

worse each year. With more challenging subject matters, she may not

understand the majority of the communication with or without the FM

device. She may not want to use the FM system anymore. She is a

hard of hearing teenager.

The key advice for the FIRST step is to get professional deaf or hard

of hearing educational help ASAP. It is not likely you will get it

from the local school counselor, or special education counselor or

anyone from the local IEP team. Contact and meet someone or a

counselor at the state school for the deaf or Wisconsin School for

the Deaf who works with hard of hearing or CI students. It would be

great if the counselor is hard of hearing or deaf or have a CI. Ask

them about the CI students education program in the middle schools at

other mainstreamed programs and even the state school for the deaf.

Ask them about what the local school can do for your child?

Another advice is that you can contact the State Commission for the

Deaf and Hard of Hearing to see if they can refer you to a qualified

counselor (educational or vocational).

In every state there are some good resources and people you can

contact to learn more.

There is one option which many hard of hearing and CI students choose

when they get to middle/junior or high school school. From what I

read and seen, some mainstreamed programs in middle and high schools

start providing sign language to fill in the communication gap. Many

hard of hearing students do well with hearing aids, speechreading,

and sign language in mainstreamed programs. They continued to have

good speech, which many parents fear that their child will not speak

well.

The SECOND STEP is to ask the IEP team to meet ASAP and get this

person from the state school for the deaf or any other qualified

counselor to meet with the IEP and discuss how to address the ongoing

situation.

>

> Sigh. I will warn you all that I am extremely upset at the

> moment ......so keep that in mind when reading this. Double sigh.

>

> My daughter is 12 years old. She received the implant at age 5.

She

> has done very well with it. Not the " TOP " stories you hear

> about........but definitely better than " average " .

> Anyhow.........she is in middle school now......6th

grade......fully

> mainstreamed (and has been since 1st grade). We are having such

> problems with her wearing the FM. They tested her without the

FM

> and she " heard " 40% of the information presented.............WITH

the

> FM she jumped to 100%. YET......she has been lying and sneaking

and

> well the latest straw is tonight......I went to throw the clothes

> from the washer to the dryer and out falls the part of the FM that

> she wears. I WASHED IT! I know its partly my own fault for

> not checking her pants pockets better but still! Why is it home?

> Why was it in her pocket? Why did she throw the pants down to be

> washed?!?!? GGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGRRRRRRRRRr. Sorry.

>

> Her grades have suffered this year. She was almost an all A

> student......and for the first grading period this year she got one

> A........all B's or B- and one C. She has had missing assignments

> and we kept hearing " but she never said that was

homework! " ........

> YEAH RIGHT! BUT....then the night of conferences.......we went to

> check out her locker.......and there was the microphone. We

> said " Why is this in your locker? " She said " We had a bomb

threat

> and they wouldn't let us go back to our lockers " (which was

> true....sad but true....small town) BUT...then it dawned on

> us.......where was HER part? We asked her and then figured out

that

> she has been just handing the teachers the microphone and NOT ever

> booting her part in. Clever I suppose.....but devious! We called

> her out..........she cried........said it wouldn't happen

> again..........but it did.......so I had the audiologist and TOD

talk

> to her....got better for a week or so.......then again it

> happened........so I had the school counselor speak with her.

(that

> was 2 weeks ago) and now this.........her FM piece in her pocket.

> She just brought me up an apology letter she wrote to the

audiologist

> (which I asked her to do) and in it it says she was NOT wearing her

> part in last hour and forgot about it then being in her pocket.

> She had done it again....just gave the teacher the microphone.

> Sigh. And now her part is ruined and I am worried sick they will

ask

> us to pay for it...........We don't have the money for that and she

> can;t make it without it.

>

> Anyhow....THANKS for listening and PLEASE help me know what to do.

> Thank you! And if you know of another forum or listserver this

> should be sent to.........please let me know that too.

> TAKE CARE,

> Happy Holidays!

> (WI)

>