How can I ask others to speak up so that I can hear?
- Josh's Perspective
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I understand your frustration when a group member is talking too quietly. Even though I ask my teacher for a separate room with no background noise, sometimes group members are still too quiet, even after telling them about my hearing loss. Luckily, I have created Plans A, B, C, and D below for you to try out in your school.
Plan A: Have a private conversation with the quiet group member
I learned from my own experiences that asking people to speak louder sometimes embarasses them in front of the rest of the group. I had to re-word my request in a way that does not point out the person's quiet personality. But it is still important to be a good advocate for your hearing needs. Here is an example of what you could say:
"I know that my hearing level is not like everybody else. Since we are all in a group project together, I want both of us to get a good grade. In order to do that, I was wondering if you can speak louder? Every word that you say is very important to me to get all the information I need to carry on to the next step. Would you be willing to help me out?"
"I learned from my own experiences that asking people to speak louder sometimes embarrasses them in front of the rest of the group... But it is still important to be a good advocate for your hearing needs."
"I learned from my own experiences that asking people to speak louder sometimes embarrasses them in front of the rest of the group... But it is still important to be a good advocate for your hearing needs."
Plan B: Get an FM transmitter for group members
Try giving the FM transmitter to the quiet group member and see if it is successful. It may be helpful if you are sitting right beside the quiet group member to hear them better.
Plan C: Pass Notes Back and Forth (Old School)
If you have a pencil and paper (and/or laptop), try exchanging written notes. If a quiet group member asks you, "why?", respond with, "Sometimes, it is hard for me to read lips while hearing the background noise.”
Plan D: Try the Ava App on your smartphone (New School)
I tried this myself and I was genuinely surprised. The app has a one-month free unlimited trial, and free captioning for up to 5 hours every month afterwards. I feel that it is perfect in situations when you are going to encounter group conversation. I attached the YouTube link to showcase speech to text conversation.
I know that all schools in Peel have a Wi-Fi connection with the BYOD device policy, so try it out.
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