Challenges of teaching the deaf-blind learner in an education setting in Johannesburg: Experiences of educators and assistant educators.
Tejal Manga, Khetsiwe P Masuku
PMID 32633989WHAT IT FOUND
Ten educators and assistants at a deaf-blind boarding school reported no training in tactile communication.
They described guessing what learners needed, leading to mutual frustration. They requested ongoing workshops, counselling, and support from speech therapists and audiologists to improve communication.
Key findings
01Educators and assistants reported a lack of training in deaf-blindness, specifically struggling with tactile communication and interpreting learner needs.
02Communication barriers led to frustration for both parties, with learners displaying challenging behaviours like tantrums when their needs were misinterpreted.
03Participants requested support structures including ongoing workshops, counselling, and the inclusion of speech-language pathologists and audiologists in schools.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study included only ten participants from a single school in Johannesburg, limiting the transferability of findings to other contexts. The reliance on self-reported experiences may introduce recall bias regarding the effectiveness of past communication attempts. The study did not include the perspectives of the learners themselves or their families.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that this study proves that specific communication interventions improve outcomes. It describes the experiences and perceived needs of educators, not the efficacy of any treatment or training programme.