Multilingual Deaf Education

• 80% of Deaf people do not receive an education.

"Approximately 56 million deaf people, 80% of the 70 million deaf people in our world today, receive no education at all. This is especially true among deaf women, girls, and people in developing countries. This is a profound breach of the universal right to education." (World Federation of the Deaf)

Of those Deaf children who attend school most do not receive an adequate education.

• Most Deaf children enter school without a language.    

Over 90% of Deaf children are born into hearing families ( National Association of the Deaf ) These children are not exposed to a language during the critical years of  language acquisition. 

• All school staff should be proficient in the local sign language. 

Only about 1%- 2% of Deaf children receive their education in sign language. It is important for a Deaf child to have access to direct and indirect information. (World Federation of the Deaf, Human Rights, bilingual education,  paragraph 4) 

Deaf children have the right to receive education in the national sign language (Salamanca Statement and Framework for Action on Special Needs Education, paragraph 21 page 18).

Teachers of Deaf children are required to be qualified in sign language. (United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) Article 24.4.)

• School should hire Deaf teachers, assistants and general staff.

Deaf adults fluent in their local sign language serve as a language model to Deaf children.  Deaf adults have the added benefit of serving as role models as well as language models as Deaf children acquire a language as well as information, including how to live as Deaf in a non-Deaf world.

Without proper language development and social development students struggle academically, emotionally, and socially.  

• The written form of the spoken language in the community should be taught as a second language.

Deaf children acquire their second language (written form of the spoken language of the community) based on their first language (sign language).

Governments are required to provide early and comprehensive information, services and support to children with disabilities and their families. (CRPD Article 23.3)  This includes information about deaf culture, sign language and bilingual education. 

Governments are required to recognize and support specific cultural and linguistic identity, including sign languages and deaf culture. (CRPD Article 30.4)