(Posted 8-3-00)
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
News Service Contact: Steve Gilliam, 336-334-5371
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Funded by $1.3 Million Federal Grant
UNCG PROGRAM TO HELP EASE SHORTAGE OF TEACHERS
FOR YOUNG CHILDREN WITH HEARING-IMPAIRMENTS
GREENSBORO—The shortage of licensed teachers with expertise in working with young children who have hearing problems is reaching a critical point nationally, and a new program at The University of North Carolina at Greensboro will help relieve the problem in the state.
The new program will begin training teachers this fall. Funded by a five-year federal grant of more than $1.3 million, the program will provide between 35-40 teachers with dual licensure to help young children with hearing impairments learn to listen and to speak.
Co-directors of the program are Dr. Judith A. Niemeyer and Dr. Mary V. Compton, faculty members in the Department of Specialized Education Services of the UNCG School of Education. The program has received $278,954 in first-year funding from the U.S. Department of Education through its Office of Special Education Programs. The program is among the first of its kind for undergraduates in the United States.
Hearing loss among newborns and infants is estimated to range from 1 to 6 cases per 1,000 live births in the United States, said Compton. The passage of newborn screening legislation in North Carolina and 29 other states will increase the number of infants and toddlers who need early intervention services.
It is estimated that in North Carolina alone, 600 young children who have hearing impairments will be identified each year and will need services to help them learn to listen and talk, she said. Programs such as UNCG’s are needed because the effects of hearing impairment pervade every aspect of an infant’s development.
Niemeyer added that children with hearing impairments are at great risk for learning problems and social problems as they grow up. They also exhibit delays in English language acquisition and display greater irregularities in emotional and social development than their counterparts who can hear, she said. As a result, many are at high risk for poor academic achievement and school dropout.
Statistically, the acquisition of language skills is seriously imperiled for 95 percent of infants who have hearing impairments unless they and their families receive specialized training and guidance from skilled teachers. Early diagnosis in the critical period from birth to age three is possible today through advances in technology.
“Currently there is no training for undergraduates that combines both hearing-impaired with a spoken language focus and birth-through-kindergarten,” said Niemeyer. “This new program is unique because the curriculum includes the competencies of these two areas.”
The program is a new track in the existing education of deaf children program at UNCG. Students will earn the Bachelor of Science degree with state licensure in hearing impairment and birth-kindergarten. Students will complete 121 hours of coursework, including field experiences and student teaching. Graduates will acquire core professional competencies recognized by the Council on Education of Deaf, AG Bell Association for the Deaf, Council on Exceptional Children and the National Association for the Education of Young Children.
In the early fall, a program coordinator will be hired. Five new courses will be designed to develop students’ skills in auditory-oral facilitation and spoken language development. The courses are foundations of audition and speech, audition development, spoken language facilitation, parent communication and guidance, and amplification and cochlear implant technology. Persons interested in applying for the program should contact Compton at 336-334-3771 at UNCG, or by email at mvcompto@uncg.edu.
Niemeyer has been active in preservice early childhood education for over 15 years. She is a past president of the N.C. Division for Early Childhood Education and she served as co-chair of the N.C. Interagency Coordinating Council for three years. Compton has over 20 years experience in higher education teacher preparation in hearing impairment. An ASHA-certified speech-language pathologist, she is a past president of the Association of College Educators-Deaf and Hard of Hearing.
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