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Hearing Assistive Technology: Guidelines for Appropriate Use in Classrooms with Younger Students

Scenario Equipment to Use Who Should Use the Microphone?
Circle or Story Time: 1 or more students with hearing lossSoundfield/CADS*, Personal SystemTeacher
Small Groups and Snack Time: 1 student with hearing loss

Personal system

Whoever is talking at that child's table; Pass the microphone so the child can follow the conversation.

Small Groups and Snack Time: Multiple students with hearing loss all synched or connected to the same FM frequency or wireless network

If students with hearing loss are in the same group, use the personal system.

 

If not, do not use either system.

 

If the students are in the same group: Pass between the other members of the student's group as they take turns talking.

Small Groups and Snack Time: Multiple students with hearing loss all synched/connected to different frequencies/networks

Personal system with multiple transmitters***

Pass between the leader and participants in the students' groups as they take turns talking.

School Assembly or Special Visitor

Personal system; Soundfield/CADS or school PA system

Pass among speakers.

Speech Therapy

Personal system or Nothing

If the speech room has good acoustics, HAT may not be needed. If, however, the room has a great deal of background noise then HAT use should be considered. Pass from person to person if there are multiple speakers in a group.

Special Classes (art, gym, music, etc.)

Personal system to go with students**

Teacher wears microphone; passes among students during discussions; Puts on “mute" during student activities not requiring direct instruction.
Multiple speakers in the same room (ex: 2 teachers leading 2 different small groups and multiple students are synched/connected to the same frequency/network)

If students with hearing loss are in the same group, use the personal system.

 

If not, do not use either system.

 

If the students are in the same group: Pass among the other members of the student's group as they take turns talking.

Multiple speakers in the same room (ex: 2 teachers leading 2 different small groups and only one student has hearing loss and uses HAT)

 

Personal system

Whoever is talking to that child's group; Pass the microphone so the child can follow the conversation over the background noise of the other group.
Standardized speech and language testing (ex: PLAI, PLS, Goldman Fristoe)

 

Personal system

Speech Language Pathologist or Test Administrator.

*Classroom Audio Distribution Systems (CADS; a.k.a. sound field systems)

**Work with your audiologist to determine whether frequencies will interfere with one another if transmitters are moved throughout the building.

***Consult your audiologist regarding the use of multiple transmitters.

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