| Deaf Bilingual, Bicultural education refers to an epistemology for audiologically deaf and culturally Deaf students. In the context of this thesis, American Sign Language and English are the languages of instruction and acquisition. The cultures that the student acquires are the Deaf Culture of the Deaf Minority and Hearing Culture appreciation with multi-cultural awareness via heritage cultures of their home community, region and nation.; Using Qualitative Research, an institution which describes itself as Deaf Bilingual Bicultural Education was studied. Pedagological practices are in accordance with the curriculum and policies sanctioned by the Ontario Ministry of Education. The inquiry was to ascertain whether or not the philosophy, principles and approaches of mandated policy (07/93) were occurring in the ten years following the philosophy's adoption. Investigative tools of active participant observation and interviewing processes were used to reveal insiders' experiences and perceptions. Six students, aged eight through 18, their parents and six family nominated "most significant educators" were voluntary participants. The researcher was one of the nominated educators. Findings included that the canon of the Hearing majority was contested; an appreciation of American Sign Language and Deaf culture was reconstructed; and, a system where Hearing and Deaf worlds are mutually inclusive was constructed. The ethnographic stories of the participants show a system with a cultural, rather than deficit view of Deaf people was emerging.; However, evidence that the institution was successfully producing fully literate Deaf bilingual, bicultural students was not yet evident. Such paradigm shifts require changes in personal experiences, pedagogy and policy, as well as systematic and cultural redefinition. Recommendations for systemic change were suggested to promote such literacies. Recent references about education for deaf children are rare and problematic with much of it being contradictory or inconclusive, hence the final recommendation is for a further research agenda that frames theory, and examines practices in order to improved strategies for meeting the needs, capabilities and life long-learning of the Deaf. |
