Learning To Communicate With Deaf People
Life seems to pass us by without much thought for how fortunate we really are. Imagine what it would be like to wake up 1 morning and be confronted by complete silence. No ticking time clock. No people talking. simply no dishes clanging. Nothing. that is the reality that some people live. right now think about how you react to a person once you find out they’re hard of hearing.
People with hearing impairments do not want to be treated as though they are somehow less valuable in the community. Is it normal to be a small nervous communicating with a hard of hearing person for the first time? Sure. what is important though is realizing that while these people can’t listen to, they definitely can communicate efficiently with you if you give them a chance.
Any form of communication among people is a two method street. It is very important then to determine how a deaf person prefers to communicate. There are a number of options available to them such as sign vocabulary, lip reading or making use of text. There will be a way of making a connection. It may sometimes become difficult or awkward but the effort is well worth it.
If you need to communicate regularly with a hard of hearing person there is no doubt that significant work is required on your part to make the connection. It is almost like needing to learn a second language. Unfortunately for the majority of people it is not something that these people encounter on a regular basis, so beginners to sign language plus lip reading can make unintended errors.
Mostly these mistakes are the result of speed. with regard to lip reading it may be a case of talking too fast so that the deaf person doesn’t have the capacity to catch all of the discussion. Alternatively it is not unusual for people to talk too slowly, as though the deaf person has a comprehension disorder rather than listening to.
In terms of sign language it can be just as frustrating for the hard of hearing person who is fluent within signing to try to decipher a good untrained persons attempts in sign language. Novices that learn the signs but just use them occasionally never really learn how to “speak” in sign vocabulary the way someone closely tied to deaf people can.
the particular dilemma can be compared to going to a foreign country in which the residents speak a different language. You may have spent years studying that will language but when you find yourself drive into a different culture you realize that you have learned the rules plus vocabulary of the language but you have not learned how to talk it.
Dealing with deaf individuals does not necessarily have to considerably alter the way that you get your own message across. Even with listening to people verbal communication just makes up a small component of the way a message is delivered. You may need to think a little more about the best way of making a connection but it can be done.
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