The integration of captioned multimedia and auditory access technologies for deaf and hard of hearing students in mainstream classrooms

This paper describes a project to develop and implement a model for the integration of multimedia and access technologies for deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) students in mainstream educational environments. Specifically, the project sought to integrate the simultaneous deployment of interactive whiteboards, soundfield amplification systems, and captioned multimedia materials. The implementation of the model was undertaken in a secondary school where DHH students were included in mainstream classes. The project comprised a period of professional development for the classroom teachers to demonstrate how classroom interaction-including the use of multimedia materials-could be made routinely accessible to DHH students in mainstream classrooms and an implementation phase. Outcomes of the project are discussed in terms of the issues encountered during the implementation phase and insights gained from the teachers and students during the implementation. Implications for future deployment of these technologies are addressed