They faced difficulty communicating with their children's schools...and "Community Development" supported them with a psychological bag
Deaf people live “silent suffering” during “distance education”
The transparent mask helped the deaf to read the lips of others.
From the source
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A study conducted by the Ministry of Community Development revealed that people with deafness suffered from several obstacles imposed by the “Corona” pandemic, most notably their inability to communicate with teachers in their children’s schools, to receive instructions and instructions from them, in light of “distance learning”, which necessitated the intervention of specialists from The Department of Care and Rehabilitation of People of Determination in the Ministry through a set of initiatives aimed at solving their problems, or helping them to solve them.
The Ministry has issued practical guides that include instructions to prepare them for a normal life after the recovery phase, in addition to helping parents to communicate with the administrations of the schools in which their children learn, to follow up on their educational affairs.
The Director of the Department, Care and Rehabilitation of People of Determination in the Ministry, Wafa Hamad bin Suleiman, told "Emirates Today" that the ministry conducted a study to monitor and understand the challenges facing people of determination during the period of domestic isolation of the "Covid-19" pandemic, the results of which showed a set of challenges faced by deaf people. , especially with regard to accessing information and providing it to them in accessible formats, in addition to communication and social interaction during the pandemic.
Suleiman addressed the difficulties facing deaf people of determination in following up on their children's affairs, in light of the "distance learning" programs reliance largely on the cooperation of students' families in teaching their children and following up with teachers to receive instructions and instructions from them, which posed a challenge to them and required their support from During the intervention of the members of the competent team in the ministry.The challenges faced by the deaf category as a result of the conditions and variables resulting from the “Corona” pandemic are summarized in seven main obstacles, including the wearing of masks by members of society, and consequently the difficulty of deaf communication with members of society due to the inability to read the lips covered by the muzzle, and the inability to leave the house, which doubled their isolation. In light of their hearing disability that originally isolated them from participating in activities and integrating into society, and the presence of new terms and vocabulary related to the “Corona” pandemic that were not present in the local and international sign language lexicon, in addition to their exposure to moral pressure and mental illness due to the increase in the level of silence as a result of the isolation in which they live. In which.
The challenges also include the problems of educating children and following up on their affairs with their schools, which constituted an additional burden on all families, but represented greater pressure for the deaf category, as their children needed to be taught at home, and to be followed up during the implementation of “distance learning” programs, which constituted great pressure. them, especially during communication to obtain the required instructions and information.
Obstacles also included the difficulty of deaf people communicating with doctors while they were in the hospital for people who needed medical examination and treatment, whether as a result of normal diseases or as a result of being infected with “Corona”, in addition to their difficulty in understanding information and what is happening around them and the changes that occurred in daily life as a result of the spread of the pandemic.
Bin Suleiman confirmed the adoption of the results of the distance education study for people of determination conducted by the ministry with the aim of identifying their problems, explaining that the ministry has taken measures to make educational environments more suitable and communicate with deaf people, and to remove obstacles caused by "remote communication", by providing visual communication programs during the process. educational services, the “signal” service, and other measures that make educational environments more friendly to the deaf and other people of determination.
She added that the "By Signal" service is innovative, as it allows people with hearing disabilities and hard of hearing to communicate with society, especially since there is a necessary need for this communication under conditions of home isolation and physical distancing.
Bin Suleiman presented a set of initiatives aimed at educating community members and providing information to the deaf in accessible formats, in light of the results of the study conducted by the Ministry on the challenges facing the deaf people of determination.
Bin Suleiman drew attention to the importance of providing sign language translation for media briefings on the developments of the “Covid-19” virus, since the beginning of the spread of the pandemic, which contributed to the delivery of information, directions and instructions to the deaf, like other members of society, and increased their awareness of the developments of the pandemic.
She indicated that the Ministry launched a psychological aid package for people of determination during the pandemic, “Rest assured”, directed to families of people of determination about dealing with their children during the pandemic, stressing the training of specialists and parents on the bag, with the aim of enabling them to mitigate the repercussions of the pandemic and its psychological and social pressures on families that include among its members people. of people of determination.
She added that the ministry also launched the "Rest assured 2" guide, which aims to help families and people of determination in general, including those with hearing disabilities, to make a gradual and safe transition to the stage of recovery.
The guide dedicates a special section to directives that help the deaf and hard of hearing to overcome the pandemic stage, and gradually enter the normal situation by preparing them for the stage of recovery.
Initiatives of the Ministry of Community Development to help the deaf
■■ Manufacture of special masks for people with hearing disabilities and those who communicate with them, containing a transparent part that enables them to read lips to ensure their continued communication with others.
The launch of the “Virtual Meetings for People of Determination” guide, which contains guidelines for organizers of meetings and other events.
■■ Provide the service of “requesting a sign language interpreter” through the website, to the entities and institutions that serve the deaf.
■■ Launching the training program "Emirati Sign Language Dictionary" on the smart "Dubai Residence" platform under the name "Ithra for Continuous Learning", with the aim of training front-end staff to deal with the hearing impaired category.
• The “Corona” pandemic is a new term that is not included in the local and international sign language lexicon.
• The Ministry conducted a study to monitor the challenges of people of determination during the period of home isolation.
Wafaa Hamad bin Suleiman: “Providing sign language for (Covid-19) media briefings contributed to the delivery of information to deaf people like other members of society.”
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