national center for deaf health research rochester prevention research center reaching out to deaf...

National Center for Deaf Health Research Rochester Prevention Research Center

Reaching Out to Deaf & Hard-of-Hearing People:Developing a “Deaf-friendly” Website

Matthew J. Starr, MPH

National Center for Deaf Health Research

Department of Community & Preventive Medicine

University of Rochester Medical Center

Rochester, NY

This presentation was supported by Cooperative Agreement Number 5-U48-DP-000031-03 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the presenter and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.


Objectives

Gain basic understanding of Deaf culture & perspectives;

Increase awareness of what makes a “Deaf-Friendly” website;

Identify resources for community-based collaboration.


Working with Sign Language Interpreters Maintain Proper Eye Contact

A deaf person will usually watch the interpreter to follow what is being said. However, when the interpreter is voicing for a deaf person, attention can and should be focused on the deaf person, not the interpreter.

When proper eye contact is not maintained (the hearing person is not directly looking at the deaf person), the deaf person can feel ignored or left out.

With one exception !


What should you call me?

1. Alternatively Hearing 12. Hearing Disabled2. Auditorially Inconvenienced 13. Hearing Handicapped3. Communicatively Challenged 14. Hearing Impaired 4. Deaf-and-Dumb 15. Just Different5. Deaf as a Post 16. Partially Deaf6. Deaf-Mute 17. Sensorially Ungifted7. Deaf 18. Thick O’ Hearing8. deaf 19. Tin Ear9. Deef 20. Tone Deaf 10. Differently Abled 21. Totally Deaf11. Hard of Hearing 22. “deaf as a door nail”


Deaf People

Deaf people rely primarily on vision to

communicate.


Culturally Deaf People

American Sign Language (ASL) is the primary language of the Deaf community.

The uppercase "D" refers to a specific sociocultural group whereas the lowercase "d" is used when a more general reference to hearing loss is intended.


Hard-of-Hearing People

People who are hard of hearing rely primarily on hearing with the help of amplification.

Not part of Deaf culture.

Baby Boomers.


The Deaf and hard-of-hearing communities are not homogenous.

People who are culturally Deaf People who are oral deaf People who are hard-of-hearing People who are late-deafened People with cochlear implants People who are D/deaf-blind People who are D/deaf with additional disabilities

Each of these groups has very different communicationneeds and cultural distinctives.


Perspectives: Cultural Model

Acceptance of ASL as a language and uses it everyday

Indicated as capitalized “D” Embraces the values, mores and ways of

the Deaf Is viewed as a language minority (such as

those who speak Spanish)

Jessica Cuculick, MSW, Deaf Strong Hospital, University of Rochester Medical Center, September 2006


Perspectives: Medical Model

Broken/fix it principle Rejection of ASL as a language Indicated as a lowercase “d” Deafness is viewed as a disability “Hearing Impaired” is a term often used

Jessica Cuculick, MSW, Deaf Strong Hospital, University of Rochester Medical Center, September 2006


Deaf-Friendly Website Design

Cultural Sensitive Terminology Captioning American Sign Language Backgrounds and Contrasts


Culturally Sensitive Terminology

Disrespectful Respectful

Hearing Impaired

Deaf-Mute

Deaf and Dumb

Deaf

Hard-of-Hearing


Culturally Sensitive TerminologySample Website:

http://www.ahiha.org/

http://www.ahiha.org/


Captioning

Pros: Accessible to oral deaf and

hard-of-hearing viewers.

Cons: Not accessible to ASL users.


CaptioningSample Website:

http://www.precisiontransfer.com/justaskme/streamingenglish.html#Flash





Captioning Resources

http://www.webaim.org/techniques/captions/




American Sign Language

ASL is a visual language created by Deaf people.

ASL is neither written nor spoken language. ASL is a fully developed, natural language

which has no grammatical relationship with English.

ASL is not an universal sign language. http://www.wfdeaf.org/

http://www.wfdeaf.org/


The ASL Community: Issues of Readability

English is their second language. Oxford English Dictionary: 60,000 words ASL: Approx. 10,000 words Classifiers: Handshapes used in American Sign

Language to show movement, location and appearance.

http://www.jal.cc.il.us/ipp/Classifiers/1CL.swf

http://www.jal.cc.il.us/ipp/Classifiers/1CL.swf



National Association of the Deaf

www.nad.org

http://www.nad.org/


Issues of Readability:NAD Website

Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level Score: General population: Aim for 7 to 8. NAD: 16

Flesch Reading Ease Score: The higher the score, the easier it is to understand the document. General population: Aim for 60 – 70. NAD: 25



What matters deafness of the ear, when the mind hears? The one true deafness, the incurable deafness, is that of the mind.

Victor Hugo


Sample of ASL/Captioning website:Kentucky Commission on the Deaf and Hard of Hearing

http://kcdhh.ky.gov/

http://kcdhh.ky.gov/


Sample of ASL/Captioning website:Ontario Ministry of Health and Long Term Care

http://www.health.gov.on.ca/english/public/program/pubhealth/flu/flu_05/factsheets/flu_mythsfacts_asl.html





Sample of ASL/Captioning website:Sorenson Communications

http://www.sorensonvrs.com/vids/index.php




Backgrounds and Contrasts

http://www.hknc.org/

http://www.hknc.org/


Sample of Backgrounds/Contrasts website:AT&T

http://www.relaycall.com/national/relay.html

http://www.relaycall.com/national/relay.html


Who benefits?People who are/with: ASL Caption Contrasts

culturally Deaf oral deaf hard-of-hearing Late-deafened cochlear implants D/deaf-blind D/deaf with additional disabilities


Developing “Deaf-Friendly” Websites:Collaborate with the Deaf Community!

Identify Deaf community leaders Interpreting Services Pitfalls of working with some deaf web

designers


Collaborative Resources

World Federation of the Deaf

National Association of the Deaf (USA)

Canadian Association of the Deaf

http://www.deafwebsites.com/

http://www.deafwebsites.com/


Recommended Readings

Dolnick, E (1993) Deafness as Culture The Atlantic Monthly

Baker-Shenk, C & Kyle, J.G. Research with Deaf People: issues and conflicts, Disability, Handicap & Society, Vol. 5, No.1, 1990


Afterthoughts

[email protected]

national center for deaf health research rochester prevention research center reaching out to deaf...

Documents

deaf person

deaf community

tone deaf

oral deaf people

hearing people people

mph national center

deaffriendly website

hard of hearing