Auditory Learning Manual for Malayalam Speaking Children with Hearing Impairment

Abstract

Hearing is a powerful sensory modality, which enables language development in a natural way. Auditory impairment in an individual can seriously impede their ability to communicate. The aim of the present study was to develop an auditory learning manual for Malayalam speaking children with hearing impairment, and to check its usefulness on the target population. In addition, the study aimed at comparing the performance between a group of younger and older children with hearing impairment using the developed material. The participants included two groups of children with hearing impairment aged 4 to 6years and 6; 1 t0 10 years. They were selected only if they had a language ability of at least 4-6 years and were exposed to Malayalam from early childhood. Their aided speech spectrum was within 40-50 dB HL and their listening age was 1 year or more. The study was carried out in two phases. Phase I dealt with the development of the material for the auditory learning manual and Phase II was concerned with administration of the developed material on Malayalam speaking children with hearing impairment. The results of the present study showed that the performance of the younger group was better than the older ones in all the tasks except detection which can be attributed to the ease of activity. From the study it can be considered that all the tasks developed in the manual can be carried out by children with hearing impairment, who speak Malayalam. This can be administered on children as young as 2; 6 years.