Wednesday, March 2, 2016

Weekly Discussion Question

One Monday Micah Davis spoke to our class about First Steps and how they offer early intervention services for deaf and hard of hearing children. What did everyone think about this? Did anyone find it interesting and maybe felt as if that should be you career later on in life? Did anyone know already that there were so many deaf children in our area that had no support or early intervention services to get them ready for school? Just put a few comments to some of the above questions, thank you all.

18 comments:

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  2. When Mica told us that only 38 kids were listed as D/HH in the year 2015 I was stunned. That is a very small number. I found it shocking that some of the First Steps employees knew so little about Deaf culture and Deaf needs. It is vital for kids with who need supports to receive services immediately. Deaf kids need to be exposed to language the moment they are born, and sometimes that is hard when parents are unsure of how to do that Hopefully, in the near future, things will start to improve and all D/HH kids will receive the services and supports they need.

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  3. I agree with Stacey, I think it is so important that First Steps employees to know about Deaf culture and Deaf needs. I understand that Deaf culture might not always be a part of every deaf child's life, but we, as interventionists, educators, and practitioners should at least be aware of the various needs deaf children have. We need to be concious of each child's lifestyle and do everything we can to ensure children are exposed to language at an early age.

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  4. It was very disheartening to hear about the lack of resources. Something has to change in this state to provide more resources to families. As future professionals, we have to be aware of labels and we have to look at what is best for families. I also didn't know that we had people like Micah and it was really cool to hear about her profession.

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  5. I found Micah's presentation to be very informative and also a little sad! I hate to think of all the deaf children out there that are not getting the support and services that they need. I am curious if First Steps is something that is available in other states as well or something like it. It seems like a great program but there is still a lot of room for improvement and I hope that some of us can help bring the program to where it needs to be!

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  6. I thought that Micah's presentation was a very important presentation for me to hear. As a future SLP, It reminded me of the importance of making sure that children who are deaf or hard of hearing get the necessary supports because I may not be able to provide everything that they need. This is due to the fact that they do not develop language the same way as a child who is hearing would. This is an important lesson for me to keep in the future to make sure that every child has access to the most beneficial resources and supports possible.

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  7. Have you ever went through something and you had to be somewhere (either church, lecture, etc) and you felt like that speech was meant for you? I certainly felt that way when Mica came. My husband and I have been dealing with something very hard even though I've been through it myself, our youngest child will need First Steps. We were told this information the week before class. It interest me because she was able to give information that I needed to hear, and then our class discussion was something that I needed. I was terrified of ABR testing for our child, I am not comfortable with putting him to sleep.. I know it seems harmless but to tie in the fact that his older sister was born sleeping at fullterm in 2013.. just scares me for him. I learned of a new option OEA! I've personally emailed Mica over First Steps, and told her our background and she's been beyond helpful with us. Hopefully, our son will benefit from them!
    It did spark an interest as far as a career but yesterday, I got to visit my first KSD school and they knocked my socks off! I am now looking into a Master's program for Education in Deaf and Hard of Hearing schools. :) I would love to help children with disabilities as I deal with mine too.

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  8. Mica's presentation was very interesting to me, and it has really made me consider looking into working for the First Steps program while I am a teacher. I knew this program existed, and I knew what its purpose was, but I didn't understand the impacts First Steps has on children who are deaf or hard of hearing. I was stunned with some of the information Mica gave, and I honestly was thinking to myself, how can I help once I graduate. I am so interested in Deaf Education, and I am finding more an more ways in which I can help these children and families.

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  9. Mrs. Davis was passionate about the topic of early intervention and motivated to find service providers for these children birth to three. I had no idea that these children were so underserved. It is a tragedy given the importance of early intervention and its effects on communication. Personally, I had never considered working with children so young but the critical shortage has me rethinking that.



    Does every region of the state have the same shortage?

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    1. Yes. It is due to the low incidence of the population and the few people who enter this field.

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  10. Listening to the lack of support for many Deaf or hard of hearing children was upsetting. Children need to be exposed to language from day one, and Micha briefly mentioned a six year old who didn't get the language support needed when he was 0 to 3. If I was a Deaf education I think that I would consider this as a field of employment. THe lack of support and Deaf educators in the First Steps program will hinder the organizations ability to effectively reach as many children as possible. I actually had no idea that so many children were going without help, I thought that with the Public Laws every child would be able to get support.

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  12. had no idea that there were so many Deaf or hard of hearing children who weren't exposed to early intervention. Hearing that we only had 9 consultants for all of Kentucky was definitely a shocker to me and makes me really worried for Deaf children and their families who don't have the support that they need. Also hearing that first steps has a range that tells you if you are Deaf enough to be in their program was interesting to me

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  13. Like many others I was very shocked at the low numbers. I expected there to be many more deaf kids in the program and much more awareness or help out there. After listening to Mica I've thought a lot about what I could do to help and the first steps program.

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  14. I did not realize the immediate bead for D/HH teachers in our area, as I did not realize the abundance of students who are D/HH. The fact that many do got get the early exposure they need is mind boggling because I find that to be such an important aspect of growing as a person. Though I do not feel as if I have a future career with First Steps, I definitely do feel that there needs to be more advocacy and more awareness to the greater population about the needs of D/HH individuals and I hope that First Steps continues to grow and get children, and their parents, the language and cultural awareness that they need.

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  15. I didn't realize how limited knowledge of programs such as first steps, and the importance of such programs. It pains me knowing there are parents who want the best for their deaf or hard of hearing child, and not know how to educate them. As a teacher, I hope to stress the importance of programs such as First Steps, and hopefully be able to make connections between parents and education programs.

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  16. When Micah came and spoke to us about First Steps, I was beyond shocked at the low numbers of Deaf or hard of hearing children that were not exposed. It made me think about making First Steps a fututre career along with being an educator.

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  17. I really enjoyed Micah's presentation I feel like I gained some insight into the issues that Deaf children are facing in the lack of resources available to them. As I am going into the Deaf Education field this is definitely something to look at in connection to my future career.

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