There is no denying that hearing loss can have significant psychosocial impacts on those who experience it. The most negatively impacted group, however, is young children, for whom hearing loss can impede early learning and development (Connor et al., 2006). One viable solution to this problem takes the form of cochlear implants. An artificial cochlear unit is surgically implanted in the ear and functions by translating sounds directly into electrical impulses and sending them to the brain (Roland & Tobey, 2013, p. 1175). Despite the high success rates that they have produced, critics contend that cochlear implants should not be carried out on very young children. They cite certain physiological concerns as well as doubts about long-term effectiveness (Hehar et al., 2002, p. 11). Some have even expressed worries that cochlear implants will negatively impact young children’s social development by making them feel different or out of place (Ketelaar, 2012, pp. 518-519). Certainly, not every child with hearing loss is a viable candidate for an implant procedure. However, when a candidate has been positively identified, the procedure should take place as early as possible, in order to guarantee maximum educational and developmental benefits.
Although attempts to stimulate hearing with electricity date back to the 1950s, the modern version of the cochlear implant did not appear until the 1970s (Wilson & Dorman, 2008, p. 3). The earliest versions relied upon a single electrode to translate sound into electrical impulses and relay them to the brain. Engineers were steadily making progress, however, and by the 1990s implants in young children had become fairly routine (Wilson & Dorman, 2008, p. 3). The modern cochlear implant currently ...
... middle of paper ...
...bey, E. (2013). A tribute to a remarkably sound solution. Cell, 154(6), 1175-
1177.
Sorkin, D. L. (2013). Cochlear implantation in the world’s largest medical device market:
Utilization and awareness of cochlear implants in the United States. Cochlear
Implants International, 14(S1), S12-S14. Retrieved from http://bit.ly/1ocV6wF.
Svirsky, M.A. (2001). Language development in children with profound and prelingual hearing loss, without cochlear implants. Annals of Otology, Rhinology, & Laryngology, 36(Supp),
99-100.
Tyler, G.K., Martin, T.P.C., & Baguley, D.M. (2012). Systematic review of outcome of cochlear implantation in superficial siderosis. Otology & Neurology, 33(6), 976-982.
Wilson, B.S. & Dorman, M.F. (2012). Cochlear implants: A remarkable past and a brilliant future. Hearing Research, 242(0), 3-21. Retrieved from http://1.usa.gov/1kURPgA.
Cochlear implants are amazing feats of biomedical engineering, and have helped many people regain the ability to hear. While there are some ethical dilemmas that go along with them, there is no denying just how amazing these implants really are. By understanding how the ear works, what causes it to stop working, and using science and engineering to fix that problem, there is now a way to give someone a sense they might have never been able to experience. It can be costly, but it could drastically change someone’s life. Some people may say for worse, but there will always be someone else to say it was for better. Overall, cochlear implants are an incredible invention and will continue to grow and only get better with technology.
Lane, Harlan (1992). “Cochlear Implants are Wrong for Young Deaf Children.” Viewpoints on Deafness. Ed. Mervin D. Garretson. National Association of the Deaf, Silver Spring, MD. 89-92.
Inspired by his deaf father he began to research the possibilities of an electronic implantable hearing device, a cochlear implant. His idea surfaced after reading an article by Blair Simmons. He was determined to give the deaf hearing as he had witnessed the frustration and isolation of those affected. His colleagues said a cochlear implant would be impossible, it was too complicated. His determination had paid off, and after a decade he had successfully invented the first cochlear implant. In 1978, Rod Saunders became the first recipient of Clark's implant.
Cochlear implants are electronic devices that sends signals directly to the auditory nerve. Cochlear implants consist of external parts which include the microphone, speech processor, and the transmitter. They also consist of internal parts that must be surgically placed under the skin including the receiver and electrical array. In order for the implant to work, the microphone
In support of Gallaudet University's, “Deaf President Now!” protest, Rev. Jesse L. Jackson once said “The problem is not that the deaf do not hear. The problem is that the hearing world does not listen.” (Lee) This concept been seen throughout Deaf history; Today it is especially noticeable now that technology has been developed to restore some hearing to many who are deaf. However these seemingly miraculous devices such as hearing aids and cochlear implants (CI) are a gilding for the real problem. CI’s in particular are thought to be a miracle cure for deafness, this misconception causes a great friction between Deaf and hearing culture. Deaf people should not be expected to get CI’s to “cure” their deafness for three primary reasons: CI’s promise more than they can deliver, they are an affront to Deaf culture, and ASL is a more effective way to insure development.
With around 70,000 special education students with hearing losses in the US it is no wonder that teaching these students the art of music has become an important opportunity within their education (U.S. Department of Education). According to Darrow and Heller (1985) as well as Solomon (1980) the history of education for students with hearing loss extends over a hundred and fifty years. These students have every right to music education classes and music instructors need to understand their unique learning differences and similarities to those of the average typical (mainstreamed) student to ensure these students have a successful and comprehensive learning experience. Despite this, there are still plenty of roadblocks, one of which may be some music instructor’s lack of effective practices and methods to successfully teach to the student’s more unique needs. Alice Ann-Darrow is a Music Education and Music Therapy Professor at Florida State University. Darrow’s article “Students with Hearing Losses” focuses not only on the importance of music education for these students but it is also a summarized guide of teaching suggestions containing integral information for the unique way these students learn.
The movie that I watched is named Sound and Fury. The movie follows the Artinian family, which is distinguished by two brothers. One brother, Peter, is Deaf and has a Deaf wife and three Deaf children, one of which is Heather, the focus of the documentary. The other brother is Chris, who is hearing, along with his hearing wife, Mari, and their twin sons. One son is hearing and other one, named Peter, is deaf. The family is at odds over the debate of cochlear implants. A cochlear implant is a surgically-implanted device for profoundly deaf or severely hard-of-hearing individuals. It provides the individual with a sense of sound by stimulating the cochlear nerve. A situation arises when Heather wants to have a cochlear implant and her parents do not really understand why.
The story of the hearing aid depicts one of the most ridiculous timelines of technological advancements in all of history. Although we modernly think of a “hearing aid” as a small device which is inserted into the ear canal, the reality is that a hearing aid is “an apparatus that amplifies sound and compensates for impaired hearing.” Thus, I invite you to expand your mind, and draw your attention to the intriguing, and absolutely absurd, timeline of the hearing aid.
The medical field is notorious for providing cures to deafness, such as cochlear implants, which then leads people to believe that it is something that must be fixed and therefore labels deafness as a disability. While Tina Gianoulis was comparing the similarities between Queer and Deaf experiences in her article mentioned earlier she declares that, “most painfully, both groups have traditionally been forced to try to become “normal”. Well-meaning parents, determined that their children not be labeled “different”, have sent thousands of deaf children to speech pathologists and mainstream schools where they spend their youth feeling lonely, bewildered, and deficient.” which is the negative effect that the deafness should be cured thought has on those that actually experience hearing
A cochlear implant is a small, complex electronic device that can help to provide a sense of sound to a person who is profoundly Deaf or severely hard-of-hearing. The implant consists of an external portion that sits behind the ear and a second portion that is surgically placed under the skin. Usually, Deaf people are against the implant, because it would destroy the unique characteristic of themselves. Another point is that, the implant does not restore normal hearing. Instead, it can give a Deaf person only a representation of sounds in the environment and help him or her to understand the speech. Of course, the implant can change lives, but it is an individual choice. If a Deaf person does not want it, the decision must be respected. Audists feel that they have to force cochlear implants on Deaf people regardless of whenever they want it or not. Why would someone prefer to stay deaf? Simple: Members of the Deaf culture do not see themselves as disabled, and resent any discrimination or inference that they are disadvantaged. Their culture is wonderful and they are very proud to be part of
From a deafness-as-defect mindset, many well-meaning hearing doctors, audiologists, and teachers work passionately to make deaf children speak; to make these children "un-deaf." They try hearing aids, lip-reading, speech coaches, and surgical implants. In the meantime, many deaf children grow out of the crucial language acquisition phase. They become disabled by people who are anxious to make them "normal." Their lack of language, not of hearing, becomes their most severe handicap. While I support any method that works to give a child a richer life, I think a system which focuses on abilities rather than deficiencies is far more valuable. Deaf people have taught me that a lack of hearing need not be disabling. In fact, it shouldn?t be considered a lack at all. As a h...
Birth control implants are becoming an increasingly popular method of birth control. They are preferred by some women over other contraceptive methods due to their extreme effectiveness, discreetness, fast reversibility, ability to be used while breastfeeding, and lack of medication to keep up with everyday. The implants first appeared in the 1960s and have since been improved upon to become smaller with less rods and longer lasting effectiveness. The newest and most popular models of the implant consist of an ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer plastic
In my life, I've had a major setback that has changed how I live life day to day. When I was five, I was diagnosed with permanent hearing loss. I have hearing loss in both ears, mostly in higher frequencies, but I still have some hearing loss in the lower ones too. Since I was 5, it has only gotten worse, just in the past year there has been drastic changes in the frequencies that I can't hear. Hearing loss affects me day to day, for example if anyone whispers something to me, nine of ten times I can't hear what they are saying. My academics also get affected because sometimes I can't hear what we have for homework over all of the background noise of people packing up, so sometimes I just don't do homework because I never heard it in the first place. Not doing homework because I can't hear it affects my grades as I will get zeros for not doing it.
Throughout the film, we see that Heather is thrown into the middle of a battle between her parents and her grandparents. Heathers parents do not want her to receive the cochlear implant, whereas her grandparents think it would be a great idea. With little information at the time being known about these implants, and with Heather being so young, she did not have much of a say when it came to her perspective of receiving it. One thing Heather made clear though, is that she wanted to hear. However, Heather was not aware of the benefits and disadvantages of this implant, and was making her decision solely on the fact that she wanted to be able to hear the sounds we take for granted each and every day. What we see as the video goes on, is that Heather
Then, when I was three years old, I had surgery to get a cochlear implant at the University of Minnesota. A cochlear implant is a small device which bypasses the damaged parts of the ear and directly stimulates the auditory nerve. Signals generated by the implant are sent by the auditory nerve to the brain, which recognizes t...