The Pierced Eardrum

Less is More (re: Simultaneous Communication)
The Pierced Eardrum Dr. DonG had a recent post opposing the use of SimCom and he referred to a study in the Spring 2009 edition of Sign Language Studies to support his opinion (thanks to Don for posting the article). This study proves the obvious: that using a half language conveys half the information. In the study, participants were shown a presentation given in SimCom and then asked ...
Sat, Jul 11 2009

Using Sign Language to Improve Learning (But Not How You...
The Pierced Eardrum Scientific American has a short article on how gesturing while talking may actually help with thinking: "With a wave of the hand". From the article: But might gesture also serve another purpose? Many scientists now think that gestures can help the person making them -- that moving your hands can help you think. Researchers have become increasingly intereste...
Thu, May 21 2009

Identity Theft
The Pierced Eardrum Alan Watts has said: Trying to define yourself is like trying to bite your own teeth. So. I've been trying to calm my inner conflict and unrest over getting my son a cochlear implant and having a tough time.I'm sure a least a couple of you are thinking, "You should feel conflict and unrest. Cochlear implants are oppressive to deaf people. You are...
Sun, May 10 2009

The Best ASL Dictionary
The Pierced Eardrum I have a question: What is the best ASL dictionary? Which ASL dictionary do Deaf people use?I feel like I'm most certainly missing something, because I really haven't found what I would think of as a "good" ASL dictionary. Here are the things that a good English dictionary has:Ordered list of wordsPronunciation guide (including variations) Etymology ...
Thu, Apr 30 2009

Bilingual Project for International Deaf Education
The Pierced Eardrum If you have an interest in the bilingual education of deaf children, check out this web site: Bilingual Project for International Deaf Education  This was produced, I think, by a class at Gallaudet, and they gathered a lot of solid resources into one place.
Fri, Apr 17 2009

Could ASL for deaf kids prevent speech?
The Pierced Eardrum Ran across this thread on AllDeaf: [link] The thread is about this article: [link] Faire Jour didn't get a healthy discussion, really, because of all the knee-jerk responses. But also the way she posed the question is a bit of a straw man. The article concludes: In summary, higher speech intelligibility scores acquired in 8- to 9-year-old congenitally deafened ...
Fri, Apr 17 2009

Signing Time
The Pierced Eardrum Our son loves the Signing Time videos. He is especially enchanted by the "Zoo Train" episode.My enthusiasm is a bit less. But only because when I watch it with the sound off I see just how much information is missing for a deaf child watching the videos. Seems like it shouldn't be too much to ask for an ASL video program that was geared towards deaf kids...
Fri, Apr 17 2009

Audism Free America
The Pierced Eardrum The latest controversy being discussed by deaf and hard of hearing is the actions of Audism Free America (AFA)regarding AG Bell. So here are my thoughts (expanded from comments I left at [link] It's too bad that AFA chooses to fight this battle this way. That AG Bell organization dignified this by meeting with AFA representatives is surprising. I really do find so...
Fri, Apr 17 2009