Comparison of Academic Achievement between Students with Congenital and Acquired Deafness in a Nigerian College

Background:-Most students with deafness have some difficulty with academic achievement, especially with reading and mathematics. However, the range of intelligence levels of students with deafness does not differ from the range in their hearing counterparts. Academic performance must not be equated with intelligence. Most children who are deaf have normal intellectual capacity and it has been repeatedly demonstrated that their scores on non-verbal intelligence tests are approximately the same as those of the general population. Deafness imposes no limitations on the cognitive capabilities of individuals. The problems that deaf students often experience in academics and adjustment may be largely attributed to a bad fit between their perceptual abilities and the demands of spoken and written English. Several studies have suggested that one of the most potent predictors of academic achievement for the students with deafness is the amount of personalized and specialized attention they receive. Objective:- The objective of this study was to investigate the presence of differences between the academic achievement of students with congenital and that of students with acquired deafness. Methods:- Fifty students with deafness (twenty-five students with congenital deafness and twenty-five students with acquired deafness) were studied ex-post facto. All fifty students were of the same educational level at the Federal College of Education (Special) Oyo, Nigeria. The instruments used were teacher-made achievement test and subjects academic records on English and Mathematics. The teacher-made achievement test was tested valid with the use of Kuder-Richardson (KR-21), which indicated an alpha level of 0.62. Result:- There was no significant difference in the academic achievement (t = 2.00, p=0.973) in mathematics performance (t = 2.00, p=0.765) or in English Language performance (t= 2.00, p=0.680) between students with congenital deafness and those with acquired deafness. Conclusion: Academic achievement is comparable among non-mentally retarded deaf students who are undergoing proper rehabilitation irrespective of whether the deafness was congenital or acquired Keywords- Academic achievement, Congenital deafness, Acquired deafness, Nigerian colleg