Author Karen Hardwicke

Hello!

This is my first blog following the publication of my first book, A Girl Like Ananya. If you read it, I hope you enjoyed it!

A deaf pupil at my (very wonderful!) school, Laycock Primary, recently asked me what was special about Ananya and why did I write about her?

A brilliant question!

So many pupils over so many years – children who sign, children who don’t. Children with additional needs and children who are ‘straight deaf’ – a term that a deaf adult introduced me to years ago meaning deafness is the primary need. Children that have made me laugh out loud and children who have kept me awake at night wondering how I can do things differently…

So why Ananya?

And my answer? Of course, ALL the children I have taught have been special but Ananya stood out. More about Ananya shortly…

We read a lot about the concerning level of attainment in deaf children. In 2019 the Guardian reported that, based on a NDCS report, deaf children in the UK struggle at every level of education:

“The National Deaf Children’s Society (NDCS) analysed government data and found that 44% of deaf pupils achieve two A-levels or equivalent, compared with 63% of hearing pupils.

Fewer than three-quarters of them (73%) will gain five GCSEs or equivalent by the age of 19, compared with 88% of hearing pupils. If English and maths are included, that figure goes down to just over half (52%) of deaf pupils and three-quarters (76%) of their hearing classmates.”

Unsurprisingly, the gap between hearing and deaf attainment is evident before pupils start secondary school:

 “Fewer than half (43%) reach the expected standard for reading, writing and maths at key stage 2 (KS2) at the end of primary school, compared with three-quarters (74%) of other children.

At KS1, when children are aged seven and under, deaf children are trailing, with just over half (53%) reaching the expected standard compared with 84% of their hearing classmates.”

Reasons for this disparity are complex and would need a blog of their own. In my experience as a Teacher of the Deaf, it is very linked to the deaf child’s level of language, the presence of additional needs but also their educational setting (again, another blog for another time…)

A language delay means the deaf child may struggle to access the fast-moving curriculum, however modified. Learning can be a struggle, especially reading and writing. For a child with a language delay, what meaning do the ‘little words’ have in books? Words like ‘are’ and ‘is’ and ‘by’? Sometimes, we talk about deaf children ‘barking at print’ (engaging in decoding with little or no comprehension of what the text means on a global level, although the meaning of individual words or even groups of words may be understood) Little wonder when words they encounter in print are not yet in their vocabulary. One day, just one day there needs to be a reading scheme designed with deaf children in mind…

So, the picture is a concerning one. Then from time to time, in the life of a ToD, a pupil like Ananya comes along!

 In my school, we talk a lot about ‘aspiration’ with the children. Ananya was aspiration personified! She set very high standards for herself in every area; academic, musical, in sport.

Ananya is that deaf child who will most likely go to university and secure a high achieving professional job.

The question we need to ask is why is it so unusual to meet a deaf child with age -appropriate language levels and age- appropriate academic attainment?

When audiology is at its most sophisticated and we have neonatal screening, why is the attainment of deaf pupils so different to that of their hearing peers?

This question is a little bit like the Holy Grail for the ToD and anyone working with deaf children. Part of the joy of being a ToD is this eternal challenge to find the solution, which of course would not be the answer for all deaf children, all of the time…

Which brings us back to ‘A Girl like Ananya’. Writing for and about deaf children is VERY important to me. But perhaps it also helps in some small way towards the bigger issue; by raising deaf awareness and communicating the ‘deaf experience’ to the hearing world?

As I always say, God loves a trier!