Connecting Hearing Parents with the Deaf World

Bibliographic Data

ID15044167
AuthorsRachel Mckee (0000-0002-5691-8051, corresponding author)
Year2006
Volume3
Issue1
Pages143-167
Publication date2006-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueSites a journal of social anthropology and cultural studies (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0112-5990 • E-ISSN: 1179-0237
PublisherUniversity of Otago Library (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.11157/sites-vol3iss1id45
OpenAlexW1995001447
LanguageEN
Citations received5
References cited2

The parental experience of raising a child who is potentially a Deaf community member can be framed in terms of 'migration theory' (Laing, this volume), in contrast to the grief-centred models commonly presented to parents. This migration model is grounded in an understanding that deafness is a culturallinguistic status. Usually responses and advice to parents of Deaf children are framed within a medicalised, deficit paradigm of deafness as an impairment of hearing and speech. This article examines the experiences of parents of Deaf children who are in mainstream schools, investigating the extent to which knowledge about the Deaf community is absent from the images they construct of their Deaf children's identity. I consider whether current opportunities for parents to connect with Deaf world resources afford conditions for a 'migration journey'. The article concludes that mechanisms in the New Zealand education system for connecting hearing parents with the Deaf world need strengthening. In particular, professionals who have Deaf-hearing intercultural skills are crucial in realigning the power imbalance between Deaf and hearing people and shaping positive images and aspirations for Deaf children's futures

Audiology · Deaf education · Linguistics · Sign language · Hearing Impairment and Communication · Language, Discourse, Communication Strategies · Medicine · Multilingual Education and Policy · Philosophy · Psychology

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