I was shocked to read that a 3-year-old boy in Nebraska has been denied the right to use his sign language name at school.
Below is the entire article by Steve Ross with 1011now.com. It is Lipreading Mom’s conviction that children with deafness or hearing loss should be allowed to use the communication method that works best for them in school. In this young boy’s situation, his first language is See Exact English (SEE). Yet the right to communicate his name with sign has been denied him.
What are your thoughts?
Grand Island Preschooler Forbidden Sign Language for His Own Name
Hunter Spanjer says his name with a certain special hand gesture, but at just three and a half years old, he may have to change it.
“He’s deaf, and his name sign, they say, is a violation of their weapons policy,” explained Hunter’s father, Brian Spanjer.
Grand Island’s “Weapons…
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deafinprison.com 
This happens all the time. When I was in college I got into a hell of a fight with a social worker who was teaching me. I found out he was forcing his totally deaf son (8 years old) to be mainstreamed, denying him ASL or association with any Deaf Community people. I ended up leaving the program because he retaliated against me. I have thought of his son all these years – I remember how difficult it was for me in school and I had some hearing. It must have been a nightmare for that child.
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I have a story about mainstreaming I’ll try and post over the next day or so. It’s really a misguided way to raise children.
BD
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I can see what they do in Anchorage – they have bifurcated classes – half a day spoken and half in sign. Half the kids in class are seriously hard of hearing or deaf and the other half are hearing kids. It seems to work extremely well, at least through grade school and the hearing kids come out prepped for ASL in Jr. High and High School. I was sort of okay with mainstreaming because I had some hearing, but it would be hell to be totally deaf and mainstreamed. OMG – I can’t imagine.
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Thanks for reposting, David.
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No, thank you. Keep up the great work.
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