Deaf Community Research Project

Your mission is to think from a
friend’s point of view. If you were a friend of a hearing parent (or parents) who
just gave a birth to a Deaf child, what resources could you direct them toward?
Pick at least 4 of the prompts below to build your project around. You can choose
more than 4 if you like. No matter how many you choose, you will need to
elaborate I great detail about each prompt.
No matter how you decide to present your material, you will need an MLA or APA
works cited for your sources. You will be required to provide at least a minimum
of 3 credible sources. Sources can include books, internet articles, journals,
Odyssey Magazine, the RID Views, personal interviews, Harris Communications
website, DARS DHHS website, etc. You may use a wiki, but it will not count
toward the 2 sources minimum.

• Advice – If you knew a hearing parent/parents who just bore a Deaf baby,
those parents would most likely be going through a grieving process
knowing that their child was different from themselves. Often parents also
think that this means their child has no future as a Deaf person. What
consolation or advice could you provide to parents going through this
grieving process? Make sure that this advice is founded in research and that
it is not just your opinion.
• Cochlear Implants – Once parents find out that their child is Deaf, they are
often pushed towards getting a cochlear implant by their doctor. This may
or may not be a good decision for some people. Although it is not
necessarily our job to decide for them, what are pros and cons for the
cochlear implant that would give the parents a fair understanding of what to
expect? Make sure you are being fair to both sides.
• Education – You have learned about various types of educational
environments where Deaf children can be taught. If you had hearing friends
with a new Deaf baby, what are some educational options that you could
describe to them to help them make an educated decision of where to send
their child to school? Make sure to describe more than one setting and
discuss the pros and cons to each.
• Assistive Devices & Equipment – If you knew hearing parents with a new
Deaf child, what are some assistive devices and equipment that you could
direct them toward to make their home more accessible? Make sure to
discuss many pieces of equipment that the family should look into. How
does the item work? How much does it cost? Etc.
• ASL Classes – If you knew hearing parents with a Deaf child, where could
they go in the Houston area to learn ASL? Also, even if their child uses
hearing aids or has a cochlear implant, what are some benefits to still
learning sign language (themselves and their child)? Make sure to add in as
many specific local possibilities as you can find with contact information.
• Laws – If you knew hearing parents with a new Deaf child, what are some
laws that you could direct them toward to let them know the current and
future rights of their Deaf child? What do those laws say? List multiple
laws and be specific in the rights presented.
• Other Deafness Related Resources – If you knew of parents with a new
Deaf child, what are various Deafness related resources you could advise
them of. This could include schools, agencies, counseling, vocational rehab,
Deaf groups, VRS companies, etc.

List multiple resources and be specific in
what the resources provide.
The presentation style and requirements are concerned, this is your time to shine!
Be creative. You can do a standard PowerPoint; however, you are highly
encouraged to be more creative and then you can gain more points in your grade!
A PowerPoint would be the most basic thing you can do…you should try to step it
up. You can make a blog, a webpage, a video presentation, a prezi, a multimedia
show, a multi-page brochure (many, many pages), etc. You can make a
PowerPoint presentation but enhance it with other multimedia dynamics. One key
point of your presentation is accessibility. In many of our classes, we have both
Deaf and hearing students. Henceforth, if you have anything with audio, you must
do one of these things: provide captions, provide an interpreted version, or provide
a typed transcript. If fail to make your presentation accessible, your grade will be
affected, you possibly will lose up to the half of your grade. You cannot have
something, which only has audio unless you make it accessible. This is even true
if you have links to something with audio. Also, please assure that the colors on
videos or PPT are friendly and easy to read by having two colors such as black and
white opposed to each other rather than green and purple. If fail to do so, your
grade will be affected due to lack of accessibly.

Last Completed Projects