Summer camp for hearing-impaired teens and audiology students
UT Dallas
Recently, a camp was organized in Denton County, Texas for teenagers with hearing loss and for their parents, who were able to share information and their experiences with one another.
Members of the University of Texas – Dallas (UT Dallas) audiology aural habilitation doctoral class also took part to make sure the teens could hear everything that was happening.
Camp CHAT (Communication Habilitation via Audition for Teens) is one of several camps offered to children with special needs by the Callier Center for Communication Disorders at UT Dallas, reports the news center at the university. In this case, the weekend camp was for teenagers who use hearing aids or who have cochlear implants, and their families.
“We provide amplification sets for the normal-hearing siblings so they can try the wireless technology. And many of them say, ‘I didn’t know it would sound like this. You wear this all day long?’ It gives the family more empathy for the one who is wearing the technology all day long,” said Dr. Linda Thibodeau, a professor at the School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences, who organized the event.
“The teens feel like they’re special because they are paired with this person who really cares about them,” Thibodeau added, talking about the graduate students. “Also, if they do have an issue with the technology, they know somebody will help them right away.” The camp gave graduate students the chance to learn more about their profession, and importantly those they aim to help, through their close work with the teens in outdoor, non-classroom activities. Thibodeau says different results can be achieved by leaving the formal setting.
Source: University of Texas – Dallas
