According to UNESCO, school closures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic have impacted approximately 1.4 billion students. Children in pre-primary through high school, as well as adults in collegiate and graduate education are now engaged in “distance” or “remote” learning. While this allows education to continue despite school closures, it is not without drawbacks. Poor audio quality is an impediment for learners at all levels, and can be especially difficult for those with hearing loss. Maura Cosetti, MD, Director of the Ear Institute of New York Eye and Ear Infirmary at Mount Sinai and David Spritzler, MED, Education Specialist at the Ear Institute, share guidance for distant learners with hearing loss.
Guidance for All Distance Learners
As with a classroom setting, individuals with hearing loss have specific needs related to online education. These steps will improve auditory access for all participants in distance learning.
Request that the presenter uses a wearable microphone and is well-lit throughout the lesson.
Using a built-in mic on tablets or computers can produce muffled audio. A wearable microphone doesn’t have to be anything fancy; a Bluetooth headset or the headphones that come free with a phone will significantly improve sound quality.
Additionally, presenters should be well-lit throughout so that students can speech read their mouths.
Ask for a sound check before the lesson and that student microphones are muted throughout the lesson.
A sound check will ensure that the audio is working on both ends. Teachers or presenters can do this by asking each student a different open-ended question, such as, “What’s the last movie you saw?”
Also, having other learners mute their microphones prevents students from talking over each other and introducing distracting background noise to the lesson. Teachers can have students use a signal, such as waving or holding a thumbs up, when they want to speak.
Reduce background noise.
Turn off music, TV, and loud appliances and be sure to close windows and doors. If your child must share space with other people during lessons, ask everyone to try to be as quiet as possible.
Let the teacher know when you cannot hear.
Adults are likely to know when they are having trouble hearing, and what to do about it. However, children are often unaware that they are not hearing well and may be shy about speaking up when there is a problem. Help your child learn to identify problems by encouraging them to ask themselves if they understand what is being said and to let an adult know if they cannot.
Guidance for Children Who Are Distance Learning
Children with hearing loss have additional challenges regarding distance learning. Parents and guardians should adhere to the following tips to ensure that their child has the best experience while distance learning.
Ask for hearing assistive technology from your child’s school.
Ask your child’s school to send home their hearing assistive technology. This equipment, commonly referred to as “FM”, is usually used to improve the signal-to-noise ratio in the classroom, but it can also be used to connect the audio output from a laptop or tablet directly to a child’s hearing aids or cochlear implants, greatly improving sound quality. Some hearing devices can also connect via Bluetooth, ask your child’s audiologist.
Check your child’s hearing equipment.
Make sure your child’s hearing equipment has been freshly charged and that replacement batteries are on hand.
Additionally, do daily “listening checks”: while standing behind your child, ask them to repeat various letter sounds (could try the “Ling” sounds) in random order, then answer open-ended questions.
Request accommodations from the teacher.
Ask that teachers use captioning for videos and that they send presentations and other materials in advance. This will allow you to “pre-teach” new words and familiarize your child with new content.
Also, get in touch with your child’s teacher of the deaf and educational audiologist. They can help troubleshoot problems as they arise and can provide support to you and your child.
Make sure your child takes a break.
Listening through technology is hard work! Give your child plenty of time to rest in between lessons.
Even in the best of times, children with hearing loss have to work harder than their peers to learn, and commonly experience “listening fatigue” from the increased expenditure of energy. Distance learning is proving to be much more challenging than regular school for all students, and the added stresses of not seeing friends or playing outside make it even harder for kids to pay attention and learn. Therefore, it’s not reasonable to expect children to do the same work that they would in normal circumstances. In order to learn, children need to be presented with activities that are challenging, but achievable. Stress is counterproductive. If your child is resistant to doing schoolwork or participating in distance learning, discuss ways to adjust expectations with teachers.