The audiometer I am requesting is the direct result of experiences I have had when working with deaf and/or hard of hearing students. Specifically with students who have experienced an undiagnosed hearing loss until it was caught by routine hearing screenings in kindergarten.
According to the National Institutes of Health, "2 to 3 in every 1,000 children in the U.S. are born deaf or hard-of-hearing, and more lose their hearing later during childhood." In addition, research suggests that the most critical period for speech and language development is during the first 3 years of life. Without appropriate access to sound, children WILL fall behind their hearing peers in speech and language, cognition, reading, and social-emotional development.
Unfortunately, newborn hearing screenings will not catch all children with hearing loss. Moreover, many families within our school boundaries do not have regular access to quality pediatricians who can also complete hearing screenings. The next line of defense? School hearing screenings. With this audiometer I will be able to, at the minimum, screen preschool, Kindergarten, 2nd, and 5th grade students. I can also screen those referred for special education services and those within our self-contained classrooms. If we can catch even one student with a hearing loss our efforts will be worth it! Thank you for your consideration in making hearing screenings a reality at our school!!
About my class
The audiometer I am requesting is the direct result of experiences I have had when working with deaf and/or hard of hearing students. Specifically with students who have experienced an undiagnosed hearing loss until it was caught by routine hearing screenings in kindergarten.
According to the National Institutes of Health, "2 to 3 in every 1,000 children in the U.S. are born deaf or hard-of-hearing, and more lose their hearing later during childhood." In addition, research suggests that the most critical period for speech and language development is during the first 3 years of life. Without appropriate access to sound, children WILL fall behind their hearing peers in speech and language, cognition, reading, and social-emotional development.
Unfortunately, newborn hearing screenings will not catch all children with hearing loss. Moreover, many families within our school boundaries do not have regular access to quality pediatricians who can also complete hearing screenings. The next line of defense? School hearing screenings. With this audiometer I will be able to, at the minimum, screen preschool, Kindergarten, 2nd, and 5th grade students. I can also screen those referred for special education services and those within our self-contained classrooms. If we can catch even one student with a hearing loss our efforts will be worth it! Thank you for your consideration in making hearing screenings a reality at our school!!
Read more