The inventor of CUED speech was Dr. Cornett who was the Direct of Speech programs at Gallaudet University back in the 1960s. Dr. Cornett remained vice president of Long Range Planning at Gallaudet University until 1975 when he became Research Professor and Director of Cued Speech Programs, a position he held until 1984. In addition, from 1981 to 1983, he was also Chairman of the Center for Studies in Language and Communication at Gallaudet.
His goal was that he wanted deaf kids to have the same opportunity that all kids have when it comes to the access of the English language.
The purpose of CUED speech is to add just enough information to what is seen on the lips to make every sound look different from every other sound. Simply put, CUED speech is certainly a visual communication method that use only 8 handshapes placed in 4 different areas near the mouth enabling deaf kids to discerning the differences of what was said through lip reading and listening. In short, it’s a visual way of “hearing” every consonant and every vowel being spoken. A communication method rather than a language like ASL.
Jeff Majors and Allison Kaftan, both well known deaf bloggers, were interviewed by the Baltimore Sun for an article called “A Different Cue for the Deaf :'Cued speech' has produced strong academic results -- and a dispute.”
Here are some of the research findings about Cued Speech
What’s amazing about Cued Speech is that many Deaf people are threatened by it because they think it’ll replace ASL It cannot. It’s not about choosing between signing and Cued Speech. One can go either way with it. However, cueing provides access to the spoken English language straight away.Cueing does help children who use it continue to develop literacy at a rate comparable to their hearing peer according to Elissa Speech, MD. The average deaf student prior to high school graduation reads at a 3rd to 4th grade level (Conrad, 1979, Traxler, 2000).
In comparison, there is no statistical difference between hearing students and deaf cuers on literacy, sound awareness, rhyming, internal speech, and spelling tests (Wandel, 1989, Laeybaert et al, 1996; 2003).
Cued speech supports students with auditory processing needs, including: Articulation, 2nd language learners, learning disabilities, autism spectrum disorders, and Down syndrome (Beck, 2002).Essentially, 100% spoken language is accessible with the addition of Cued Speech (Nichols and Ling, 1982).
Children with cochlear implants, educated with Cued Speech, have better speech clarity with correct syntax than children habilitated with oral or gestural means only (C. Coleon, 1997).
American Sign Language (ASL) has a different grammatical structure than English. Signing systems used in school programs do not effectively convey English because they are not sound-based(Drasgow & Paul, 1995). In contrast, Cued Speech conveys English visually (Nichols and Ling, 1982).
Cued Speech has been expanding slowly but it will soon take off with greater publicity like the 40th Anniversary of Cued Speech conference that was held a few months ago in July. Now, 2nd generation of Cued Speech users are now adults and are now the next group of Cued Speech advocates like Jeff Majors and Allison Kaftan to spread the good news and correct many myths and suspicions about the benefits of Cued Speech.
According to Education News on the gaining popularity and benefits of Cued Speech that many hearing parents are turning to:
Cued Speech is already heavily entrenched in schools systems from California to Maine . With states demanding higher levels of educational achievement and President Bush's No Child Left Behind Act , the idea that deaf children can achieve the same literacy levels as hearing children is attractive. In states like New York , where a diploma requires students to pass Regents exams in history, math, science, English and a foreign language, educators are taking a second look at Cued Speech. Research coming out of Gallaudet University shows that deaf cueing children are capable of basic pre-reading skills, such as rhyming, which are excellent predictors for future reading abilities (LaSasso, Crain, Leybeart, 2003; Leblanc, 2005).Results of Cued Speech use:
• Language Skills/Literacy - Receivers of Cued Speech are able to understand spoken language conveyed with cues at extremely high levels of accuracy.1 Consistent exposure to spoken language through cues results in language skills and literacy levels comparable to those of hearing peers.2 Many students who use Cued Speech are enrolled in regular classes, preschool through college.
• Speech reading - Due to their knowledge of spoken language, individuals who have had consistent exposure to Cued Speech often have excellent speech reading skills and are able to communicate with people who do not cue.
• Audition - Cued Speech is a tool used to convey the phonological aspects of language. Therefore, it is totally compatible with the use of hearing and can help to develop auditory awareness, discrimination, and comprehension. The foundation provided by cues integrates well with cochlear implant use.
• Foreign Language - Cued Speech is not only used for English. Deaf students in the U.S. use Cued Speech to learn foreign spoken languages, such as Spanish, French, and Latin.
Currently, there are about 40,000 deaf and hard of hearing children in elementary and secondary schools across the United States, some 200 of them are active CUED speech users. Cued Speech is used today in about 15 countries and is available in 56 languages and major dialects.
Washington Post covered Cued Speech in July, 2006 who interviewed Dr. Cornett’s son as well.
The idea for the new way to teach English came when Cornett, who died in 2002, found few students were reading on campus, said Cornett's son, Robert, an astronomer at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. He wanted to provide the same elements of spoken and written English for deaf people.Cornett's Cued Speech Program was finally out of the picture at Gallaudet by the mid-1980s.
But use of the communication system has faded at Gallaudet, and the clinics that taught Crumrine's parents and others about cuing are no longer regularly offered on campus.
"His feelings were very hurt by that," Cornett's son said. "This was the thing that he contributed most."
In 2003 Dr. Jane K. Fernades showed a different feeling for both ASL and Cued Speech in a 2003 article called “In Search of Keys to English Print”
“It is exciting because several authors seem to suggest that Cued Speech can and should be employed as part of a bilingual approach to learning.”
And Katherine A. Jankowski, Ph.D., Dean Laurent Clerc National Deaf Education Center Gallaudet University introduced in 2003 on the Clerc Center website about Phonics, Signs, Cued Speech, Fingerspelling and Other Learning Strategies called “Cracking the Code Reading & Writing— And the Challenge of “How." The title is, ironically so, nearly the same as the Baltimore Sun newspaper website that hosted a video produced by the National Cued Speech Association with a video called “Breaking the Code”(see right hand column and click on name of video) about Cued Speech.
Just a simple observation here.
However, current prejudicial thinking by ASL advocates and users is still rampant regarding CUED Speech when they show extreme bias and reluctances in acknowledging the benefits of Cued Speech for deaf and hard of hearing children.
Lisa Houck, director of curriculum and instruction at the Maryland School for the Deaf, said cued speech is not used there and is not under consideration.
It's also not in use at McDaniel College, which has one of the largest graduate programs in deaf education in the country.
"Our philosophy is, we feel American Sign Language should be the language of instruction," said Rust. "And by developing a strong foundation in ASL, you can lead students to develop English literacy skills."
College students who cue might encounter resistance from campus disability offices.
"I am so much against [cued speech], and so are the deaf," said Marla Holt, coordinator of deaf services at the University of Baltimore. "Their natural language is American Sign Language."
Holt, who is also a sign language interpreter, said that in her 15 years at the university, no deaf student has asked for a cued speech transliterator. She would provide one if asked, she said, but only reluctantly: "I would not be real thrilled about it, but that is their right. Luckily, I have never been asked that."
Luckily? Somebody need to write a letter to her. Pretty shocking to see that Marla Holt would be that biased and showed reluctance to even help a deaf student who prefer a CUED speech transliterator instead of a sign language interpreter. You see, she is the Coordinator of Deaf Services and not coordinator of ASL services or coordinator of Deaf culture.
Marla Holt, be sure to know your required duties at University of Baltimore. You're to provide assistances and support services to all deaf and hard of hearing university students attending there.
Next, I think it’s high time that Gallaudet University re-institute the Cued Speech program and help provide options and choices for attending students who want to go Gallaudet University (or CSUN or NTID). Perhaps contact your local Congress person when the next round of Federal spending on Gallaudet University comes around by letting him or her know about the benefits of Cued Speech and why it should be included at Gallaudet University?
Another question. How will Cued Speech fit into all this “Deafhood” thing? What can we make of this Deafhoodism action if Deaf people only think in terms of ASL only as being the sole savior and answer to everything for all deaf and hard of hearing people from mild to profound hearing loss?
Please.
How can scores in Deaf residential schools be measured up to those who use Cued Speech and their excellent literacy test results?
Indeed. Pretty compelling stuff if I say so myself. By the way, I am hard of hearing and I do not use nor have I ever used Cued Speech since my hearing aid does a pretty good job for me with hearing loss in the 65 - 70 dB range or moderately-severe hearing loss. I speak fine, thank you.
Here’s a poll for all you deaf and hard of hearing people out there: Should a CUED Speech program be allowed back on campus of Gallaudet University?
UPDATE: See my recent blog concerning Marla Holt's comments in the Baltimore Sun about Cued Speech. Somebody did write to Marla Holt complaining about what she said on her reluctance to provide Cued Speech transliterator at University of Baltimore.
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