Collaborating With Deaf Adults in Early Intervention

225 Vol. 24, No. 4, December 2021 YOUNG EXCEPTIONAL CHILDREN https://doi.org/10.1177/1096250620939510 DOI: 10.1177/1096250620939510 journals.sagepub.com/home/yec Article reuse guidelines: sagepub.com/journals-permissions © 2020 Division for Early Childhood Shortly after Madison gave birth to her son Alex, she was told that he had not passed the newborn hearing screening evaluation. She was advised to follow-up with further testing by an audiologist. When Madison followed up with the audiologist a month after Alex’s birth, the audiologist confirmed Alex was deaf. Having never met a deaf adult, Madison wondered what Alex would be like growing up. Would he be able to communicate? Would he have friends and be sociable? How would he do academically? Madison had no idea what raising a deaf child would entail until she met a deaf adult, which was six months after Alex was born. The deaf adult, Lauren, was Madison and Alex’s sign language instructor. Lauren was the only deaf adult officially trained and hired by the early intervention program working with Madison and Alex. During their first meeting, Madison and Lauren used written English to communicate. Over time, Madison and Alex not only learned visual communication skills and sign language, they also learned about deaf lifestyles. Lauren invited Madison and Alex to various events where they met and interacted with deaf people of all ages and backgrounds. Madison felt less stressed about raising Alex after being able to interact with 939510 YECXXX10.1177/1096250620939510Young Exceptional ChildrenCollaborating with Deaf Adults / Gale research-article2020