Exploring the Personal Cultures of Rural Deaf/Hard of Hearing Students

Abstract For teachers of deaf or hard-of-hearing students, knowledge of their students' cultures can serve as an aid in their approach to teaching. A student, particularly one who is deaf or hard of hearing, attending school in a rural community of the United States belongs to or is influenced by at least four cultural groups: (a) family, (b) neighborhood/vicinity, (c) community, and (d) school. To understand the world of each student requires that educators explore the child's uniqueness or "personal culture." A framework for exploring the personal cultures of rural, deaf or hard of hearing students, strategies for gathering cultural information, and a means for applying the cultural information in curricular adaptations are presented in this article. There is a growing appreciation among scholars and school personnel that awareness of the characteristics which distinguish cultural groups can increase effectiveness in working with children and adolescents served by special education (Baca & Cervantes, 1989; Bailey, 1988; Chamberlain & Medinos-Landurand, 1991; Correa, 1989; Turnbull & Turnbull, 1990). It has been suggested that without such awareness, misperceptions, and miscommunications between the teacher and the student may occur resulting in poorer classroom performance and impaired parent-school relationships (Chamberlain & Medinos-Landurand, 1991). This is particularly true for deaf students who may be members of more than one cultural group (e.g., Hispanic and Deaf; Native-American and Deaf) (Christensen, 1993). Indeed, students who are Black and Deaf, Asian Pacific and Deaf, Native American and Deaf, or Hispanic and Deaf seldom encounter teachers who are deaf, let alone deaf and representative of their ethnic/racial group. It is significant to note that while culturally diverse groups make-up 32% (i.e., Black-16%, Hispanic12%, Other-4%) of America's special education school population, only 14% of the special education teaching professionals represent those cultural diverse groups (Cook & Boe, 1995). For students in programs for deaf or hard of hearing children, the statistics are similar. Nationally, 40% of deaf and hard of hearing students are from diverse ethnic cultures (i.e. ,17% Black, 16% Hispanic, 1% Native American, 4% Asian Pacific and 2 % Other) (Center for Assessment and Demographic Studies, 1994). Within a rural, southwestern state, the percentage of diverse, deaf and hard of hearing populations has been reported to be as high as 69%. Added to this dilemma of unbalanced teacher-student cultural ratio is the reality for deaf students that more than 90% percent of their parents are hearing CSDS. Thus, the primary responsibility falls upon the teachers (most of whom are Euro-American and hearing) to expose deaf, culturally diverse children to their ethnic roots and their Deaf culture, while being a member of neither group. Teachers' Roles in the Identification and Use of Cultural Diversity So how do teachers of deaf students identify and attend to the variations in beliefs, traditions, and values across cultures and within society that may impact their students' world views or personal cultures? First, educators need a common definition/base for the term "multicultural." According to Parla (1994, p.2), multicultural education "refers to an idea or concept, an educational reform movement and a process." As a concept, a reform movement, and a process, multicultural education accepts: (a) the idea that all students regardless of their sex, social class, ethnicity, race, or disability have the right to equal opportunities to learn in school; (b) the need to change teaching strategies so that these equal opportunities exist; and (e) the need for an on-going process with goals "that will never be fully realized, but an ideal for which all must constantly strive." Second, educators need to explore the personal cultures of their assigned students so that as teachers they can adapt their curriculum to insure that they (a) increase personal (and their students' families) awareness and knowledge of the history, culture, and perspectives of all ethnic, racial, and cultural groups within their class, school, community, nation, and eventually, the world; (b) enhance students' identity within the curriculum; (c) promote the valuing of cultural differences so that they are viewed in an egalitarian mode by educators and learners; (d) identify and build on the commonalities and differences among groups; and (e) enhance the academic performance of all students. …