Doctors in Shanghai hope to largely abandon the traditional method of teaching congenitally deaf-mute children by using sign language and eye contact now that modern methods of treatment have been adopted.
Audiology departments at Shanghai hospitals will test all new-born babies' hearing in their first six months to pick up those who have congenital hearing defects.
Some of the infants with hearing loss will be fitted with hearing aids while others will have artificial cochleas surgically implanted.
Professor Wang Zhengmin of the E.N.T Hospital attached to Fudan University has researched and developed the artificial cochlea. His work has enabled the cost of an artificial cochlea to be reduced from 200,000 yuan (US$24,000) to 30,000 yuan (US$3,600), which most Shanghai families can now afford.
Recently the medical center for treating hearing disabilities was co-invested and co-established by Shanghai Health Bureau and Fudan University. It is the first treatment center for deaf-mute children to have a normal speaking environment.
The teaching area has a kitchen, bedroom and sitting-room so the deaf child can communicate with his teacher face to face and in a home-like environment. thus listening and speaking competence can be gained by learning the laws of everyday speech.
Every such classroom is equipped with teaching facilities meeting international criteria.
"It is the only center nationwide which promotes "speaking through listening". Doctor Jiang Ye, one of the principals of the treatment center told Xinhua, "the center is capable of taking more than 400 children and their parents each week."
Yao, an 8-year-old boy, had an artificial cochlea implanted on February 19, 2002 and began training at the center in March. Now he is able to understand seven to nine word sentences, communicate with others and recite poems. He is going to receive normal primary education this September.
Traditional teaching using sign language and eye contact limits the affected children's speaking, listening and communication skills. Children trained this way will eventually become part of the deaf-mute world divorced from the normal world.
"Modern training could help the deaf-mute children achieve 90 percent of normal hearing. If it goes well, many of the deaf-mute children in Shanghai will become normal children," said Professor Wang.
Worldwide, 6 per thousand of all infants have serious congenital deafness, while 4 percent have a moderate or small degree of deafness.
Half of all deaf people are congenitally deaf. About 20 to 25 percent have acquired deafness, and the rest have become deaf for unknown reasons.
(Xinhua News Agency July 26, 2002)
