Deaf Students

[cabindoor]

I've recently had contact with a person that is Deaf and wanted to know if I could accommodate him as he states that several instructors in the area have turned him away due to the cost of services to get this accomplished. This person actually did some leg work and found an agency that will supply a volunteer signer, but once I told him that the course is a mandatory 10 hours, he said that the signer would have to be paid 40 dollars an hour and that I would need TWO signers based on the length of the course. I of course told him that $400 is a bit steep for his services, but has anyone else come across a situation like this? How have you handled it and could you share any info? Thanks so much!

Art Wallace
El Paso, TX

[WildBill]

Maybe some of instructors have better ideas, but I think that there are a couple of options. 1) Find a cheaper service or a volunteer and 2) try to get some other students in the class so the fee can be shared.

[apostate]

Are not translation services the responsibility of the student desiring such? If an instructor makes reasonable accommodations for the proficiency test (for example, visual range commands) and classroom instruction, I believe that's all one can reasonably expect.

[Divided Attention]

Find a translator that wants to take the class too - have them pay the signer's class fee in exchange. That way the instructor does not have to pay them. How will you indicate time to fire on the range portion? Will you have to rig a light / laser pointer? Interesting quandary.

[tacticool]

Like teaching classes in Vietnamese, it sounds like a good business opportunity for the right instructor.

[WildBill]

Like teaching classes in Vietnamese, it sounds like a good business opportunity for the right instructor.

I am sure that there are some niche markets for the CHL instructor entrepeneur.

[Crossfire]

Find a translator that wants to take the class too - have them pay the signer's class fee in exchange. That way the instructor does not have to pay them. How will you indicate time to fire on the range portion? Will you have to rig a light / laser pointer? Interesting quandary.

We have only had one student who was completely deaf, although we have had others who were hearing impaired. The deaf student took the class with his wife, who signed. So, we did not have to worry about the classroom part.

On the range, as with any hearing impaired student, we just put an RSO with him. One tap on the shoulder means shoot. Two taps means stop. Hand signs for how many shots.

[Charles L. Cotton]

I had one person call about teaching a deaf student and they were going to provide the signer. I never heard back, so I wondered if the cost was prohibitive. I think it would be quite presumptuous to expect the instructor to cover the cost of a signer. That's not a reasonable accommodation.

Chas.

[cabindoor]

Chas,

I agree. After looking at what some signers were requiring to be paid, I would actually be PAYING for this guy and about 5 or more of his buddies to attend. LOL. Still looking at what I can do, though.

[mikeloc]

Charles you or Keith might want to contact DPS and find out if they have a solution. Texas Parks & Wildlife requires the state to provide two sign instructors free for the ten hour hunter education course. TPW will schedule the people to sign for the hunter education class.

Mike

[Charles L. Cotton]

Charles you or Keith might want to contact DPS and find out if they have a solution. Texas Parks & Wildlife requires the state to provide two sign instructors free for the ten hour hunter education course. TPW will schedule the people to sign for the hunter education class.

Mike

If I ever have someone ask me about again, I'll see if TPW will provide one. I seriously doubt DPS will because of budgetary issues with the CHL Division now. They don't have the money to hire the number of people they really should have in that dept., but TPW might be willing to accommodate a CHL class. We have a TPW instructor at our club, I'll ask him.

Thanks for the input.
Chas.

[recaffeination]

If the deaf student was willing to sit close and pay attentin to powerpoints and other visual aids, and they were able to pass the written test that way, would that legally count as the ten hours of required instruction?

[57Coastie]

I had one person call about teaching a deaf student and they were going to provide the signer. I never heard back, so I wondered if the cost was prohibitive. I think it would be quite presumptuous to expect the instructor to cover the cost of a signer. That's not a reasonable accommodation.

Chas.

I suspect that the possible legal significance of Chas.' statement here may not be recognized for what it is by all our readers.

"A reasonable accommodation" is a concept which has arisen under the Americans with Disabilities Act, the "ADA."

With the greatest of respect for Chas. and his legal expertise, and I really mean that, I must submit that his conclusion that expecting the instructor to cover the cost of a signer is not a reasonable accommodation is stated as a fact, and not as his opinion. There are elements of our government which are entrusted to make such determinations, quite often with fine lawyers on both sides.

I am neither saying nor implying that I disagree with Chas.' opinion. I only mean to suggest that the big question here is whether or not there is a reasonable accommodation out there somewhere to meet the legitimate needs of this deaf person, and, if so, what it might be. Others here have suggested other accommodations. One or more of them might be reasonable, and I compliment those members of the forum for using their imagination in this respect.

This is from one who has had a Cochlear implant to mitigate his deafness. I know what it is like to be unable to hear. It is horrible. A hearing professional has suggested that several elements of my prior lifestyle most likely contributed to my deafness, one of which was my firing handguns for almost 60 years in competition and otherwise, back to the days when ear protection was not common, and tended to be a pinch of cotton pushed into the ear, if even that. I may also be stating an opinion as a fact when I say that I can assure you that the cost of a Cochlear implant is not something every wage-earner can absorb easily.

Jim