Modern Methods in Teaching the Deaf to Speak
FIRST ORAL GRADE
r H
Tbo progress of modern methods hi In- to tbo exact positions of tho articulating
structlug tho defective members of tho com- lorgans being Indispensable, and equal quick
munlty has no better Illustration than. In tho nees on tho teacher's In order to detect any
system employed to teach tho deaf to speak.' defect In tho sound or unnecessary exaggo
Not bo long ngo It was tho general practlco ration or distortion of tho features."
to refer to tho lnmatca of these institutions AVork In .NlrnNlm School,
as deaf and dumb, whereas It has becn Tho application of the oral system of In
demonstrated that tho dumbness Is geucrallyetructlon for tho deaf can bo witnessed any
a result of tho deafne.a and no necessary day during tho school year at tho Nebraska
accompaniment of tho allllctlon. 'School for the Deaf In tho suburbs of
Until tho last twenty or thirty years they Omaha, about one-half of 'tho pupils In this
sign languogo bus been tho only means of jlnstltutlcn nrc at present being taught or
communication to deaf persons and the worklally and the number of those receiving such
of tho schools for the deaf was confined to 'training Is Increasing rapidly. Hitherto the
teaching prcllcloncy In tho signs. Whllo the oral work has never been taught to such
sign manual Is still tho main reliance fur young pupils and so carefully as it is at
tho deaf, under more modern methods the present, so that those engaged In the profe3
mutes aro taught actually to speak, and, gion insist that much better results are to
whllo they cannot hear their own spoken bo expected In tho near future,
words, they can determine by tho move- Tho accompanying photographs are rcpro
monts of the lips what other pcoplo nro say- duced, giving graphic Illustrations of the
lug. To quote from a recent writer of ex- links In tho chain by which tho deaf pupils
perlonco: are brought to a realization of their power
"Orallals base their assumption of tho cf speech. While the oral method is not
power of tho born deaf to acquire articulate employed to tho exclusluii of tho sign lan
speech on tho fact that tho vocal organs of guage, nor to that of linger spelling at any
such children do not disqualify them from time, they servo to define and explain the
speaking, this seomlng to point to the fact words and teach tho clear and definite
that it Is tho inability to hear which pre- knowledge of what to say, whllo the oral
vents tho natural development of language, method Instructs in how to say it. With
I. c., by tho imitation of vocal articulate reference to this work and Its Import, quo of
sounds, the repetition of which, constantly the Intelligent teachers at tbo Nebraska
falling on tbo ear of nn Infant, at last school, describing tho pictures, gives this
arouses in turn tho Instinct to Imitate. This explanation:
ho does with graduully Increasing accuracy "Our little deaf children aro taught Just
until intelligible speech Is the re3iilt. The aa the henrlng are. The first prattle of tho
deaf Infant, by reason of bla infirmity, hearing little one Is 'ba-ba and the first and
l cut off from nil this and at easiest utteranco of the deaf child, too, Is
tho end of two or three years 'ba-ba.' Is it then contrary to nature that
ho Is still where his hearing brother the deaf child makes this mistake In Its first
began able to make vocal but Inartlculato efr0rt to say papa when tho hearing child
sounds and here ho miiat remain unkss cnllnot do better? Having obtained this
specially taught, first to nrtlculato and then Vowel sound, which Is nature's first, we cor
to uso theso sounds Intelligently as language. rt,ct tho 'b' and try to get 'p Instead. 'I"
Atvnki'ii CIiIIiI'n Dormant Power, is only nn aspirate, while 'b' has the addl
"Various preliminary exercises have first tlonnl voice, so tho child Is taught through
to bo gone through In order to awaken the slfiht and touch something easier than he
child's somewhat dormant powers of atten- Imd been trying to say.
tlon, perception and Imitation, tho length "l the first Illustration Miss IJamford, In
f timo to bo spent over them varying ac- charge of the first oral giado, having asstd
cordlng not only to his mental capacity, but uously adopted those methods which are
to tho amount of home training, spoiling or deemed the best for beginners, until she has
neglect ho has hitherto received. Eventually, nmdo them her own, Is pictured giving the
however, tho day arrives when he la ready little boy hU first lesson, and what first les
,o learn his first sound, the idea being to son could butter satisfy his parents? While
teach primarily those most easy for him to this plcturo was In preparation tho summons
pronounco and lip-read. to recess was given, when another pupil at
"Tho alphabet, as usually taught to hear- nco nroso and practically showed the slic
ing children, is discarded for tho present and cess of the mothed employed by asking his
tho child learns only the phonetic Bounds, teacher in spoken words whether ho were
for liiBtonce, to pronounce the sound of to glvo the requisite class-signals for dls
'f,' blB attention Is directed to his teuchor'n missal, saying clearly, 'one-two-three-four.'
nouth, where he sees the upper front teeth AciiiilrliiK Artlviiliitlon.
lghtly resting on tho lower lip. This alono flRUre 2 tho chU(, ,g eeen nt practIct.
.vlll not enable him to say It; tho sense of upon lh(J vowe, soun(1 ,0, ,n n scalu
ouch (a most Important factor in the In- oxorclao ot several vowols. As In
itructlon of tho deaf as with tho blind) Is ,elrnlnB muslCi tho chlid requires
.ext brought into use, and the child s hand 8,mpl(J BcaleH ani, exorclacs flr8ti e0 ,n
s put near tho teachers mouth In such .i Ilc,lulr,11B articulation tho simplest an J
Josltlon that he cau feel the breath on tho fundamental sounds are first given and. then
-jack of It, his other hand being placed In from thllao woril3 nnd sentences nro lmmedl
ront of his own mouth to show him 'that atuly congtructed. The pupils of Mr. Shreve,
lo must experience a similar feeling on that. who ls a gnumato o( Nebraska university
Io thus leadlly pioduces the required sound. anii who8l) nntural executive ability Is sup
.vhich, by the way, Is entirely without voice, piulnented by ample technical skill In this
loveral non-vocal sounds being taught first department, show the good resulU obtained
is presenting lesa dlfllculty. The 'V Is then froI11 constnnt and methodical syllabic drill,
.vrltten down by the teacher and road nnd ..Tho noxt plctllro Is that of th0 third o, ol
opled by tho pupil, and hero wo get a sam- (,ra(lei an(1 ,t el,0W8 an interested pupil and
lo of tho deaf child's first lessons In lip- hIs teacher, Miss Jack, wh-so work at thi
oadlng, articulation, reading and writing. onim, 8choo, wng known for ,t8 su,C0)tJ
vhlch progress simultaneously for the pros- , demonstrating when enough had b.on
nt at ntiy rate. tnuirht nn nn Inillrntnl linn nml tniitrht
"In tho formation necessary f, r 'th'-tho thoroughly. Tho work of this grade re-
Ip of tho tonguo between tho teeth, the
quires tho wishes of tho pupils to be cx-
mud Is again called Into requisition In or- prcs8CU ln Bpokon ,nngunBC( n8 sbo.Mi In tho
or hat he breath may he felt. All non- Bllre. Can lt bo donle4j tmU tho beat
ocnl articulations nre Illustrated ln this
vny, careful nttentlon, on tho child's part, (Continued on Fifth Pago.)
mum
(JIVING PUPIL DRILL ON LETTER 'D.'
PRACTICE ON VOWEL EXERCISE.
MAP DRAWN FROM MEMOIIV.
f if,;ZafM
lw
KXPHESSINO WISHES IN LANGUAGE.
SKILLKUL ARTICULATION OF HISTORIC NAMES.
IIIQHEST ORAL GRADE.