Approaches to studying in people with hearing loss

Deaf and hard-of-hearing students' experiences in mainstream and separate postsecondary education

In order to better understand academic achievement among deaf and hard-of-hearing students in different educational placements, an exploratory study examined the experiences of postsecondary students enrolled in mainstream programs (with hearing students) versus separate programs (without hearing students) at the same institution. The Course Experience Questionnaire, the Revised Approaches to Studying Inventory, and the Classroom Participation Questionnaire were utilized to obtain information concerning their perceptions, participation, and access to information in the classroom. Both groups were concerned with good teaching and the acquisition of generic skills. Both were motivated by the demands of their assessments and by a fear of failure while being alert to both positive and negative affect in their classroom interactions. Overall, students in separate classes were more positive about workload expectations, instructor feedback, and the choices they had in coursework. Students in mainstream classes were more positive about their acquisition of analytic skills (rather than rote memorization) and about their instructors' interest in them, including flexibility in methods of assessment.

The role of hope in adjustment to acquired hearing loss

This study investigated the relationship between individual and disability characteristics and adjustment to acquired hearing loss, and the role hope has in that relationship. A sample of 114 adults with sensorineural hearing loss who had accessed hearing therapy services participated in the study. The mean age of the participants was 67 years. A survey of individual and disability characteristics, hope and adjustment was conducted. Multiple regression analyses were applied to examine possible moderating and mediating models. The results indicate that the degree of loss was the only statistically significant individual and disability characteristic related to adjustment. The trait of hope was found to serve as a mechanism by which the degree of loss affects adjustment. Hearing loss affects hope which in turn affects adjustment. Hope was found to account for 45% of the relationship between the degree of loss and adjustment. Additionally, the study found that self-efficacy and personal meaning may influence hope and despair dimensions in different ways. Discussion centres on the implication of these findings for intervention strategies used in rehabilitation programmes for those with a significant hearing loss.