ABSTRACT
The teaching of language for deaf children and instructional decisions do not operate in isolation. Rather, they are influenced by language debates, parental decisions, professional advice, and the perspectives of the larger Deaf community. For the last decade, deaf education has
Figure 6.1 Photo of Deaf professor teaching at college
transitioned from students attending specialized schools to inclusive settings, including deaf/ hearing co-enrollment classrooms. In one respect, this constitutes a dismantling of the historic deaf education communities with roots in these specialized schools that for centuries have supported deaf students’ cultural and linguistic development. Today, this responsibility has been somewhat relegated to public schools, which more often than not have limited knowledge sources and reduced resources.
