Tool #8 Ask For Clarification

One of the most common advocacy strategies named is "Ask for Clarification". This is an interesting strategy. How does a child ask for clarification if they don't know they didn't hear auditory information correctly? 

1) The child thinks/ knows they didn't hear a message completely or correctly

2) Confidence and comfort to ask a speaker to repeat or clarify their message.

Asking for clarification is "risky" for kids. It means they have to interrupt the pace of the classroom.

Typically it will be used in I : I or small group conversations. 

Students with hearing loss many times hesitate to ask questions in class. It takes courage to raise your hand and admit you didn't hear or understand what was said.

To avoid being embarrassed some kids do what we call the "hearing impaired nod". We've all seen it "smile, nod and hope" that they are not asked a question that requires a response! 

Young children need to begin to understand the effects their hearing loss has on communications. Understanding that background noise and distance may cause them difficulty in understanding an auditory message is the first step in realizing that some auditory messages will not come through clearly! 

Rather than saying, "huh?" or "what?" students at this age can be taught to repeat back what they did hear. This is a natural and effective conversational technique. When the child with hearing loss gives this type of feedback., the speaker knows exactly what part of the message was missed or misheard. 

Middle school is an awkward time for all students. Students with hearing loss need to continue to gain the confidence to ask for clarification directly or by using the "give back what you heard" technique or ask a question in the large group. Again, the student needs to understand the effects of their hearing loss on understanding auditory messages and not suffer from the "I hear it all" syndrome. They also need to understand it's better to ask for clarification rather than do the "hearing impaired nod" and risk missing important information.