If teachers want to educate deaf learners effectively, they have to apply evidence-informed methods and didactics with the needs of individual deaf students in mind. Education in general -- and education for deaf learners in particular -- is situated in broader societal contexts, where what works within the Western world may be quite different from what works beyond the Western world. By exploring practice-based and research-based evidence about deaf education in countries that largely have been left out of the international discussion thus far, this volume encourages more researchers in more countries to continue investigating the learning environment of deaf learners, based on the premise of leaving no one behind. Featuring chapters centering on 19 countries, from Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Central and Eastern Europe, the volume offers a picture of deaf education from the perspectives of local scholars and teachers who demonstrate best practices and challenges within their respective regional contexts. This volume addresses the notion of learning through the exchange of knowledge; outlines the commonalities and differences between practices and policies in educating deaf and hard-of-hearing learners; and looks ahead to the prospects for the future development of deaf education research in the context of recently adopted international legal frameworks. Stimulating academic exchange regionally and globally among scholars and teachers who are fascinated by and invested in deaf education, this volume strengthens the foundation for further improvement of education for deaf children all around the world.

Education in general, and education for deaf learners in particular, has gone through significant changes over the past three decades. And change certainly will be the buzzword in the foreseeable future. The rapid growth of information and communication technology as well as progress in educational, psychological, and allied research fields have many scholars questioning aspects of traditional school concepts. For example, should the classroom be "flipped" so that students receive instruction online at home and do "homework" in school? At the same time, inclusive education has changed the traditional landscape of special education and thus of deaf education in many if not all countries, and yet deaf children continued to lag significantly behind hearing peers in academic achievement. As a consequence of technological innovations (e.g., digital hearing aids and early bilateral cochlear implants), the needs of many deaf learners have changed considerably. Parents and professionals, however, are just now coming to recognize that there are cognitive, experiential, and social-emotional differences between deaf and hearing students likely to affect academic outcomes. Understanding such differences and determining ways in which to accommodate them through global cooperation must become a top priority in educating deaf learners. Through the participation of an international, interdisciplinary set of scholars, Educating Deaf Learners takes a broader view of learning and academic achievement than any previous work, considering the whole child. In adopting this broad perspective, the authors capture the complexities and commonalities in the social, emotional, cognitive, and linguistic mosaic of which the deaf child is a part. It is only through such a holistic consideration that we can understand their academic potential.

Leading researchers in 30 nations describe the shared developmental, social, and educational issues facing deaf people filtered through the prism of unique national, regional, ethnic, and racial realities.

Co-enrollment programming in deaf education refers to classrooms in which a critical mass of deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) students is included in a classroom containing mainly hearing students and which is taught by both a mainstream teacher and a teacher of the deaf. It thus offers full access to both DHH and hearing students in the classroom through "co-teaching" and avoids academic segregation of DHH students, as well as their integration into classes with hearing students without appropriate support services or modification of instructional methods and materials. Co-enrollment thus seeks to give DHH learners the best of both (mainstream and separate) educational worlds. Described as a "bright light on the educational horizon," co-enrollment programming provides unique educational opportunities and educational access for DHH learners comparable to that of their hearing peers. Co-enrollment programming shows great promise. However, research concerning co-enrollment programming for DHH learners is still in its infancy. This volume sheds light on this potentially groundbreaking method of education, providing descriptions of 14 co-enrollment programs from around the world, explaining their origins, functioning, and available outcomes. Set in the larger context of what we know and what we don't know about educating DHH learners, the volume offers readers a vision of a brighter future in deaf education for DHH children, their parents, and their communities.

Teaching Deaf Learners asserts that the education of deaf learners profits from an ecological approach to learning and teaching.

What is the impact of an infant's diminished hearing on the infant and its parents? How does communication develop in cases of diminished hearing? How does diminished hearing affect social and cognitive development? What types of early interventions can improve communication and development in infants with diminished hearing? The World of Deaf Infants presents the results of a 15-year research study that addresses these questions. Through their research, perhaps the largest, long-term comparison of deaf and hearing infants, Meadow-Orlans's team provides a comprehensive and intimate look into the world of deaf infants. For a core group of 80 families that includs all four combinations of parent-infant hearing status, data was collected longitudinally at 9, 12, 15, and 18 months, and mother-infant interactions were recorded and observed in both structured and unstructured settings. Mothers' facial, vocal, and tactile behaviors during interactions were related to infants' temperament and stress; mothers' linguistic and communication behaviors, as well as their overall responsiveness, were related to children's language; and the effects of support provided to mothers were evaluated and explored. The results were dramatic, particularly those on infant attachment behaviors and the importance of visual attention to the overall development of deaf infants. This comprehensive work provides a foundation on which researchers, teachers, students, and parents can build to improve communication, cognitive and social development, and to enhance the world of deaf infants.