User:Organism438/Deafness in Italy

Language Deprivation
Language Deprivation is the lack of consistant accessible language input in early years of life. In Italy, about 1/1000 people are affected by hearing loss. About 95% of deaf children are born to hearing families and about 5% are born to deaf parents. Hearing families often want their children to attend mainstream schools that encourage cochlear implants and integration. Almost all residential and special schools for the deaf are closed except for the existence of bilingual/bimodel experimental schools. Only a small number of deaf children have LIS as their first language and only deaf children of deaf parents are exposed to sign language since birth. Deaf children born into hearing families rarely have early access to sign language although they may acquire it later on.

In studies done regarding the impact of hearing aids and cochlear implants, it is evident that children who were able to be exposed to language had a significant change in language skills. Behavioral problems were also known to be a cause of language deprivation or poor language development as the lack of being able to understand and express led to interferences with emotions, social rules, and interactions. 30%-50% of profoundly hearing loss children with or without hearing aids exhibited behavorial problems. Children who had access to language through cochlear implants showed similar levels of behavorial problems to their normal hearing classmates.

Primary & Secondary Education
Families with deaf children often have to move in order for their children to attend bilingual or deaf schools. There are bilingual/bimodel experimental programs that exist in Italy. Istituto Statale dei Sordi in Rome, Scuola per i'infanzia Statale in Cossato, and Istituto comprensivo Santini in Noventa Padovana are all examples of bilingual programs that are present in Italy. Bilingual curriculums use both Italian and LIS. LIS is also an individual class from 1 hour to a maximum of 6 hours per week. In places like Palermo, Guidonia, Cossato, LIS is a second language course for hearing students.

Deaf children who do not take part of special programs do not have automatic access to interpreters during school. They may only have access to a communication assistant and teachers who aren't guaranteed to know sign language. In cases where deaf children have a communication assistant/ TA who is competent in LIS, the child will receive individual explanations in LIS for 20 hours a week. However, the rest of the curriculum will be provided through spoken Italian. This is the case when there is only 1 deaf child in a class of hearing children.

The government provides support through three branches, the Second Teacher, the Communication Assistant, and speech therapy. The Second Teacher works like a translator within the school system, providing what the teacher is saying to the deaf student. Communication Assistants work in the classroom as well as in homes and other services provided by the state. They work based on contracts and often overlap with Second Teachers. Speech therapy is offered by the country to families as well.

In order to qualify as a support teacher there is a required number of hours in LIS training by the Ministry for Public Instruction. There are also projects focused on training deaf people to become communication instructors. At nursery and elementary schools, the assistants working are often deaf.

Higher Education
Interpreters are provided by some universities to Deaf signers.

https://www.academia.edu/31433860/THE_INCLUSION_OF_D_DEAF_STUDENTS_IN_THE_UNIVERSITIES_OF_TURIN_ITALY_SERVICES_PROVIDED_INDIVIDUAL_PLANS_AND_OPEN_QUESTIONS

https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/51796322/Pedagogy_Inclusion_of_Deaf_students_in_Turin_Universities-with-cover-page-v2.pdf?Expires=1667103416&Signature=LeI4lzy2NAO23DWNcAfeceJjtHMB7rorAkQSr3ZC8xo6W7Rf2e6uuDBqaz~xI-IZ8d7C6ytPKMZBGb4uoWQORuVEXzp~3gPi-2eJpqQ-AMTExTIOusP7t7snpmt989C4pqOMxDHCII6bzlWargI8GziVOJ87ffZihtIgWD2BudEWvOsn~q4LC6motkXxfuSxhZQpHU9Figh4mrxJDOx-UpVZqmCJG6Uhw3x1MFd-TbdRqBIirPdgdYcrZ7zWw1LXqTx~NJlEE7WzZEq4GUNUwoO7Y3YBPswW2KAHQkmguR9kjCtF6Xs7XP4SAUPmgqusCBspUlCS2NpGFtC5TF4avA__&Key-Pair-Id=APKAJLOHF5GGSLRBV4ZA

• Funding models

• Legal protections (or lack thereof)

• Admissions practices

• Accommodations / Support

• Fields of study

• Outcomes & disparities

Employment
Not much information is available about employment and job opportunities for deaf people in Italy. The government does require companies of 15-35 employees to hire at least one individual with a disability. In return, employers are able to receive tax subsides, wage contributions, and reimbursement for workplace adaptations. 44% of persons with disabilities from 15 to 64 were employed in contrast to 55.1% of total population employed in the same age.

Bar Senza Nome: Only deaf owned and deaf employee worked bar in Italy. They also offer LIS classes. It was started in 2012 by two deaf guys. They also obtain beer through a deaf brewer.

OneSense: Deaf owned restaurant that opened in 2018. Restaurant is also run by deaf people.