Living with Deafness and Hearing Impairment

Discover what it means to live with deafness and hearing impairment

According to the World Health Organization, more than 1.5 billion people (nearly 20% of the global population) currently live with hearing loss. For 430 million of these, the hearing impairment is disabling.

On this two-week course from the University of East Anglia, you’ll delve into how hearing works and the impacts of hearing impairment and deafness. As you explore the lived experience of hearing-impaired people, you’ll discover strategies for supporting them and their carers.

Understand issues surrounding hearing and hearing impairment

The course will start with an overview of hearing, deafness, and hearing impairment. You’ll learn about the anatomy of the ear, and be introduced to correct terminology for discussing hearing impairment.

Learning from videos and interviews with hearing-impaired people, you’ll also begin exploring some of the communication difficulties associated with deafness and hearing impairment.

Explore the impacts of hearing impairment on people and their carers

Week 2 of the course will focus on the many impacts of hearing impairment, both for the hearing-impaired and for their families and carers.

You’ll consider some of the issues hearing-impaired people face in education, relationships, when using technology, and more. Then you’ll examine the broader impacts of these issues for families and support networks.

At the end of the two weeks, you’ll reflect on what we can all do to facilitate communication for hearing-impaired people. You’ll be encouraged to put your learning into practice to better support those living with deafness and hearing impairment.

This course is designed for anyone interested in gaining a deeper understanding and appreciation of the lived experience of those affected by deafness and hearing impairment.

It will be particularly useful for health and social care professionals, or anyone else working and/or living with hearing-impaired colleagues, family, friends, or students.

This course is designed for anyone interested in gaining a deeper understanding and appreciation of the lived experience of those affected by deafness and hearing impairment.

It will be particularly useful for health and social care professionals, or anyone else working and/or living with hearing-impaired colleagues, family, friends, or students.

• Identify the impact of deafness and hearing impairment
• Explore how hearing impairment impacts individuals on a day-to-day basis
• Investigate how others can assist those with hearing impairment
• Identify some of the key assumptions of deafness and hearing impairment
• Compare the different types and levels of deafness and hearing impairment and how this impacts on day-to-day activities
• Explore the lived experience of deafness and hearing impairment
• Investigate the lived experience of deafness and hearing impairment from the carer perspective