Deaf Teachers' Practices: Supporting and Enabling Preschool Deaf Children's Development of a Participative Identity

In this dissertation study, I investigate the practices of possibly the first fully accessible partner as a deaf child engages in a community of practice: the deaf preschool teacher. I utilize classroom observations and interviews of three deaf teachers in which the participants were encouraged to reflect on their observed classroom practices. I found that these teachers engage deaf children in both shared and joint capacities in visually mediated ways that encourage the deaf child's self development. They treat deaf children as legitimate peripheral participants who are engaged in a learning curve that is typical rather than deficient. These deaf teachers are also participants within a supportive community of practice in a school program founded on a Bilingual-Bicultural philosophy.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ph.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Education

Grantor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2015

Author dc:creator

• Morgan, Dianne Denise

Contributors dc:contributor

• Jenny Singleton

• Education, Bilingual and Multicultural

Language dc:language

eng

Identifier

(MiAaPQ)AAI3160928

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/79822