New Show on Gallaudet students, and, Part I of Deaf as Disability Series

I just discovered that MTV will be airing a new show focused on the lives of college kids at Gallaudet University, which, as you may or may not know, is the only college for the deaf and hard of hearing.  It's called "Quiet Campus" and will be aired on mtvU, which apparently is a MTV channel focused on college students (which confuses me - isn't regular MTV focused on college students?)  Anyway, here's the press release, and here's a blog post in the NY Times with some quotes from some of the students featured in Quiet Campus.

I think this will be cool to watch.  The premise of the show is apparently that deaf kids aren't that different from "typical" kids - they're wrestling with the same issues, have many of the same concerns.  I think it will attract viewers who want insight into a world that they're likely unfamiliar with.  And if Switched at Birth is any indication, the series could attract quite a number of viewers.

HOWEVER, my next set of thoughts about this show (Quiet Campus) is that inescapably, this is going to highlight differences between deaf kids and hearing kids.  Inevitably!  Deaf kids use ASL, and have alternate ways of using technology.  Alarms clocks in Gallaudet, I'll just bet, involve flashing lights and vibrations - not songs or musical sounds from your iPhone.  Being deaf is different, in the sense that being any kind of minority is different from the way the majority of people deal with the world.

This gets to something that I see as a big tension in the deaf/Deaf community.  One set of people who have no hearing ("Deaf") view being Deaf as being part of a separate cultural community, one with its own language (ASL), history, and current culture.  Another set of people who have no hearing ("deaf") do not wish to participate in a Deaf community - they learn to speak and read lips, they rely on cochlear implants, and they attempt to integrate into mainstream US culture as much as possible.  So, I suppose it's like any minority community - there are those who emphasize the differences from the majority culture, and are those who integrate.

And yet for the Deaf, there is another issue that doesn't face other minorities - there is something more to the difference between Deaf and hearing.  There is in fact, some kind of dis-ability; Deaf people cannot use the communication modality - hearing and speaking - that the majority uses.  And this is why we as a society have chosen to support the Deaf by (a) recognizing that Deaf people need technical accommodations, like TTY systems, and better access to the 911 system and (b) providing educational services, in the form of IDEA supports and publicly funded schools for the Deaf.

But a lot of Deaf people seem really uncomfortable with the idea that they are "disabled".  Their view is "hey, there's nothing wrong with me, I can do anything that typical people can, I don't need to be fixed".  I certainly sympathize with this view - I have trouble labeling my own daughter as "disabled".  However, in order for my daughter to receive special ed services, she must fall within one of the legally defined categories of disability - that's just how we as a society have organized these programs.  So, too, with deafness - it's one of the categories defined under the ADA, the IDEA, and all the other laws as a disability.

So, what do you think?  Is being Deaf a disability?  Is it not?  Is the issue actually one where we need to throw out the disability/ability categories entirely?  What should replace it?

I plan to keep talking about these issues, so check back soon!

Weekly News Roundup - Stop the Word, Khan Academy

I'm starting up a new feature for Fridays - I'll be summarizing some of the more notable events of the past week in the education, disability, and legal arenas (basically, what I found interesting).  Purely subjective - don't rely on me as your news source!

Probably the item that got the most attention across the press was the CDC's release of the study showing an increase in the rates of developmental disabilities in kids.  I'm still processing it myself.  It is just a number - but, like any statistic, it will (hopefully) have an impact on funding, and public awareness.  And it might even have an impact on educational policy and theories of inclusion.  I also hope it encourages a little more public acceptance.

Speaking of acceptance, the other big news was the public service announcement at the end of Glee sponsored by the .  In case you missed it, check it out on YouTube.  It's pretty powerful, and rightly a reminder that discrimination against the cognitively impaired is probably the last "acceptable" discrimination against a minority (possibly also obesity).

Lastly, our friends at the Khan Academy are in the news again!  This article in Business Week is a wonderful summary of how the Khan Academy started, and how it's being used in the Los Altos, California, school district (incidentally one of the best in the country, already).  Impressive out of the box thinking - both at the school district and at the Khan Academy.  Thanks for the tip, Jen!

Not again! ANOTHER update about words

Ok, so you'd think that maybe people in the public eye would have learned by now, given the slip-ups by President Obama, Rahm Emanuel, and Lady Gaga.  (See my earlier posts on this topic: A word about words and Lady Gaga Update  ). 

I suppose we are giving these folks too much credit, because yet again, someone thinks it's okay to use the r-word in a disparaging manner.  This time, a sports figure.

After Game 3 of the playoffs, LeBron James took offense at a reporter's question and muttered "that's retarded".  At the next press conference, he addressed the issue, saying it had been "blown out of proportion".  This is how he "apologized": "If I offended anyone, I sincerely apologize."  Well, yes you offended people; otherwise, you wouldn't have to apologize.  LeBron James and his apology.  So just actually apologize.  Maybe try to understand why your careless use of the word was indeed offensive.  Maybe reach out to disability organizations and use your bizarre amount of fame for a good cause.

Let's review:
1. It's not okay to use the r-word. 

1a. Really, don't use it when speaking to a reporter.  That's not a good idea.

2.  Spread the Word to end the Word.  You can "like" the facebook group, support the campaign through donations, or simply be a great role model in your own life.

Update: A Word about Words

Sigh.  Just when you think that something is so obvious NOT to do, someone does it anyway.

As you may or may not be aware, Lady Gaga made a major gaffe recently when she was interviewed by NME magazine (a British music magazine).  In response to a question about the similarities between "Born this Way" and Madonna's "Express Yourself" from the 80s, Lady Gaga said, " I'm a songwriter. I've written loads of music. Why would I try to put out a song and think I'm getting one over on everybody? That's retarded."

Sigh.