Two hundred and fifty years ago, L'Epée and Heinicke were engaged in a disagreement over the role of signs in the education of deaf students, with L'Epée supporting both natural and methodical signs and Heinicke advocating for an oral method without a manual component. This was the beginning of the oral/manual controversy. This controversy set a…

Since its beginning, the education of deaf and hard of hearing individuals has been steeped in a debate around language, as professionals have clashed in a debate on whether signed or spoken language should be used as the primary language of instruction and communication with deaf and hard of hearing individuals. This has created a condition in…

All children have the right to education that meets their needs and aims to enable them full integration in their society. Education should guarantee all children an equal chance to actively participate in society regardless of race, gender, ethnicity or disability (Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1989). Yet sophisticated mechanisms within…

This article is about the deaf education methods debate in the public schools of Toronto, Canada. The author demonstrates how pure oralism (lip-reading and speech instruction to the complete exclusion of sign language) and day school classes for deaf schoolchildren were introduced as a progressive school reform in 1922. Plans for further oralist…

Profiles Francis Green, father of a child with deafness, who became, in the late 18th century, the first American to publish an account of deaf education and to insist on the education of all children with deafness. Green's relationship with his son, perspectives on sign language and speech, and advocacy for schools for the deaf are recounted. (CR)

Reprints an historical study that investigated the value of the oral method in teaching speech to 40 children with deafness. Results indicated the oral method did not permit participants to enter into relations with strangers and did not allow them to have a consecutive conversation with their relatives. Additional research is recommended. (CR)

This reprint of a 1970 article examines some emergent concepts of psycholinguistics and relates them to the development of a language-training program for children with deafness. It discusses the stages and process of language development, and the advantages and disadvantages of the total-communication approach, oral communication, and the…

The nineteenth-century debate over use of the manual versus the oral approach to deaf education is discussed and related to the prevailing social and educational thought. Both approaches are seen as oppressive and antideaf. Current efforts to reconceptualize deafness have produced calls for bilingual-bicultural programs. (IAH)

This reprint of an article from 1909 responds to a study that found the oral method was not effective in teaching speech to students with deafness. It charges that the investigation was unscientific and driven by economic influences. (CR)

This 1951 study of 46 public residential schools and 23 public day schools found that the "best" teachers were more likely to hold a college degree and to have received training in a preservice training center. Day-school teachers were more likely to be college graduates and have preservice training. (CR)

The history of education of the deaf in Canada since 1831 is examined in some detail. Specific areas of concern include: alternatives to residential schools, oral schools for the deaf, preschool services to parents; continuing education for the deaf, and teacher training, and a Canadian organization of teachers of the deaf. Three distinctive types…

This paper documents development of the field of auditory-verbal intervention to aid individuals with hearing impairments and outlines its advantages. The paper emphasizes the author's contributions to the field through development of detection and treatment services, early detection and early intervention services, research studies, and teacher…

A pioneer in the development of auditory-verbal intervention services for children with hearing impairments recounts the technological and pedagogic influences that shaped her philosophy of teaching children. The importance of fitting young children with hearing aids and teaching them to listen is emphasized. (JDD)