How Mainstream shaped my life.

G'day Everyone.

Today's post is more of a summary about my life as I'm working on a diary like story book about my mainstream life. What's the cause for this post today? Hop on over to Dianrez's site and read about her topic for today: "How Oralism Divided the Deaf Community". Link: http://dianrez.xanga.com/701373534/how-oralism-divided-the-deaf-community/

When I read her post today, it reminded me of my younger childhood days. When I was a young deaf/hard of hearing child in the late 1960s and through the 1970s, oralism did divide the deaf community.

Even in the deaf schools like the Scranton State School for the Deaf (SSSD) and the Rochester School for the Deaf (RSD), in which my parents tried to enroll me to have a deaf education, the administrator took one look at me, of which by that time I was already fitted with ONE HEARING AID, that I could hear quite well, and that could talk and speech read, I was declared an oralist child! Such an issue I could barely understand. My parents wanted me to have a deaf education. But deaf schools were NOT willing to take me.

When they tried to enroll me in a hearing public schools, the administrator took one look at me, despite I'm a speech reading and talking child (that would make any oralist happy), and saw my hearing aid in my ear, he formally declared to my parents "This child needs to be in a DEAF SCHOOL!".

So what happens when two different school worlds can't agree of what to do with an oralist deaf/hard of hearing child? We get shipped off to a school that deals with handicapped and mentally retarded students. This one such school was the Lester B. Forman Center in Fairport, NY aka known as the Board of Cooperation and Educational Services. In short: B.O.C.E.S.

I was one of the 5 DEAF (Hard of Hearing) students that fell though the New York State education cracks and landed in what was termed "the last hell hole of education for the unwanted deaf/hard of hearing students". For 5 years, my deaf /hard of hearing classmates and I banded together and made the best of it. We eagerly outstripped our teacher of her teaching materials and were the top of our class. We had to beg her for more material lessons.

When our teacher went to the Board of Education, she did propose that we, the 5 deaf/ hard of hearing students in her classroom, would become "the basic test students" for the mainstream program in public schools, she did not know how much it would impact in our lives.

My classmates and I spent our last day together, praying and hope that we would do our best in our lives in a hearing environment. When we were moved to a hearing public school in our home district area, we were given the following support: Teacher for the deaf (which includes teaching us sign language), tutor, note takers, and a phonic ear system. But the kind of support we were NOT given was how to relate to our the hearing kids out there. Some of us were accepted and supported. Some of us were not. For me, life was rough in that environment.

Within the months of entering the hearing public school system, someone had gone to court for me and successfully declared that I was a legally deaf student and not just a hard of hearing student. Which meant that I could go to a deaf school if I wanted to. But these were the days filled with so much class work, that I was confused. Nobody ever bothered to tell my parents about the court victory.

4 years later, I was declared a "successful test person" for the main stream program when I graduated from High School. But did they ever think to use me as a consultant or advisor for the future deaf/ hard of hearing mainstream students to come after my time? Nope. After 25 years later, that same school district still boasts of how well they done in helping mainstream students. Wait till they see my book one day.

Being a mainstreamed student shaped my life, but it did not make me comfortable around hearing people much. When I approached college, some wanted me to be their poster student for their own future mainstream programs. I turned them down flat when I choose to go to NTID at RIT.

Being in a deaf community then changed my world and my life. Not for the better, but being able to have dual world: hearing and deaf. I was more happier to have deaf friends than hearing friends.

Dianrez's post is quite accurate. AGBell has been active for many years in encouragement of parents to place their deaf child into hearing schools and preventing them from learning sign language and force them to be hard of hearing oralists. To me, it is wrong choice of an idea that AGBell should force on the deaf child.

I say very importantly, a deaf baby should have the same benefit of the hearing baby: SIGN LANGUAGE!

Today, the children of the CI face the same challenges that the children with hearing aids face. Though, I have a huge sympathy for them. It is easy for me to remove my hearing aid and be deaf for all I want to be. At times, I enjoy being deaf. But for the CI person, they can only remove the external devices, but never the internal parts that make up their CI.

On a final note, my mom asked me if I had any regrets about my childhood education. I told her I had plenty of regrets. I wished more to be in a deaf environment than hearing. She said she was sorry about that. When I told her of why she and my dad didn't consider to send me to the Model Secondary School for the Deaf (MSSD) on the campus of GU (which I found out that they would have accepted me there), she said "my family loved me too much to travel that far".

But there are countless deaf children across the nation that have attended MSSD and grown up to be productive citizens. How is that compared to the children in the mainstream schools? (anyone done research on that?)

So I want to say this: To students who are in the deaf schools today: ENJOY the SUPPORT for what you have! You have an environment that teaches you in Sign Language. You have friends and family that speak in Sign Language. Live it up! Fight for it. Prevent the hearing world from taking away your rights. Deaf schools need our support from the deaf community.

Some day, AG Bell will die like an old fossil institution. When it does, that will be the day true victory will happen for the deaf community.

Semper FI.