TEACHERS AND DEAF STUDENTS PERCEPTIONS OF COMMUNICATION EASE AND ENGAGEMENT

Ratings of communication ease and of engagement were collected for 95 deaf junior and senior high school students in a large, urban, multi-ethnic school for the deaf. These ratings were made by the students' English teachers and by the students themselves. High teacher ratings for communication ease and engagement were associated with high academic achievement as measured by the Stanford Achievement Test. High student ratings for communication ease were also associated with academic achievement. In addition, multiple regression analyses determined that the two best predictors of academic achievement were student-rated communication ease and teacher-rated engagement. The findings suggest that it is important for teachers to be sensitive to the level of communication comfort of their students because students who enjoy easier communication may be more likely to be engaged, or more actively involved, in classroom learning and to demonstrate higher academic achievement.