Thursday, May 7, 2020

Essay on Communication for the Deaf Oralism and Manaulism

Imagine trying to learn a new language, making the correct tongue movements, controlling the airflow through your mouth, and voicing the correct sound and tone. Now imagine doing this while not knowing what the word you are saying sounds like. This is what many deaf and hard of hearing people must do to learn how to speak. The technique of teaching deaf people how to speak and read lips is referred to as oralism. It is a hard and laborious method and in the past often had extreme measures, that were border line abusive, put in place to try and ensure success. Manaulism is when a deaf person uses sign language as their primary from of communication. Learning to communicate using sign language is much more easier on a deaf or hard†¦show more content†¦North Carolina State University’s Disability Services Office has an excellent description for hearing disabilities: Deafness generally refers to a physical condition manifested by a lack of sensitivity to sound. Legally, deafness is defined by levels of hearing loss whose severity is measured by the degree of loudness (or decibels) a sound must attain before it is heard by an individual. Mild deafness ranges from 10 dB to 30 dB, moderate deafness ranges from 30 dB to 60 dB, severe deafness ranges from 60 dB to 90 dB, and profound (or total) deafness ranges from 90 dB to 120 dB or more. Both severe and moderate deafness are commonly referred to as partial deafness, while mild deafness is usually referred to as hard of hearing. (1) To put this in to context, the sound of breathing registers at about 10 decibels, a whisper is 20 decibels, typical conversation is around 40-50 decibels, your kitchen sink’s garbage disposal is 80 decibels, a motorcycle registers at about 100 decibels, and a live rock concert is about 120 decibels. For a person with profound hearing loss a rock concert to them is as loud as a whisper is for a normal hearing person. To hear at this level and attempt to learn speech is not an easy task. It is time consuming, stressful, and exhausting. A deaf person can not hear what they say, what they sound like, or even how loud they are

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