Very interesting. I've visited the Florida School for the Deaf and Blind in one of my jobs in education technology. I spent time on the deaf/HofH (hard of hearing) side and afterwards, spent some time with a guy who had attended the school.
I asked him how the four different groups there - the deaf/HoH, the blind, the deaf and blind, and those with even more challenges - got along. Here's the answer as I remember that he told me.
"We did NOT get along. Why would we want to spend time with the blind or the others? They're not like us, they're dumb and whiney. Also there's no way to communicate. What was fun was in high school, we would sneak up behind the blind kids which was hard because they had such good hearing. The idea was to box their ears from behind and to get away and not get hit by their canes afterwards. I think they hated us too."
BTW, I don't have a point here (and I certainly don't endorse that behavior) other than a school combining the deaf AND blind might not be the best way forward. And I have puzzled over the point that the deaf and the blind do no seem to have an obvious way to communicate (without technology to facilitate it).
Very interesting. I've visited the Florida School for the Deaf and Blind in one of my jobs in education technology. I spent time on the deaf/HofH (hard of hearing) side and afterwards, spent some time with a guy who had attended the school.
I asked him how the four different groups there - the deaf/HoH, the blind, the deaf and blind, and those with even more challenges - got along. Here's the answer as I remember that he told me.
"We did NOT get along. Why would we want to spend time with the blind or the others? They're not like us, they're dumb and whiney. Also there's no way to communicate. What was fun was in high school, we would sneak up behind the blind kids which was hard because they had such good hearing. The idea was to box their ears from behind and to get away and not get hit by their canes afterwards. I think they hated us too."
BTW, I don't have a point here (and I certainly don't endorse that behavior) other than a school combining the deaf AND blind might not be the best way forward. And I have puzzled over the point that the deaf and the blind do no seem to have an obvious way to communicate (without technology to facilitate it).
Thank you for facilitating this conversation, I learned so much. Will definitely grab a copy of Leland’s book. ♥️