Ki Young Kang, a Language & Literacy Fellow, has her first publication accepted at the American Annals of the Deaf. She began as a Language & Literacy Fellow in 2018. Kang’s publication is titled “The experiences of and teaching strategies for deaf and hard of hearing foreign language learners: A systematic review of the literature.” (view article here) and published in American Annals of the Deaf. Kang is also a doctoral student in the College of Education & Human Development’s Department of Learning Sciences. We asked her questions about her work.
How does this publication help with your research goals and/or interests?
My interest in teaching English as a second or foreign language teaching to deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) students is what brought me to the doctoral program. This publication helped me explore what has been studied on foreign language learning and teaching in deaf education and what needs to be studied.
Summary of Topic
This article presents a systematic review of the literature on deaf and hard of hearing students’ experience in learning foreign languages and teaching strategies being used to foster deaf and hard of hearing students’ foreign language learning. Searches in three databases yielded eight studies from 2000 to 2019 for the final review. The results showed that accessible instruction for DHH students in foreign language classes begins with meeting DHH students’ language and communicative needs and affects foreign language learning motivation. The teaching strategies that were found to support DHH students’ access to foreign language learning include the use of visual aids and technology, individualizing learning goals and employing suitable communication methods.
Jessica Scott is Kang’s faculty advisor and co-author of the publication. The American Annals of the Deaf will publish the article in their Winter 2021 issue.