Deaf education students visit area schools

Last spring, students in the Professor Jean Slobodzian’s Classroom Application of Sign Communication course visited several area schools for the deaf. Their goal was to examine communication with students who are deaf or hard of hearing through readings, class activities, demonstration lessons given in schools, and independent research.

The TCNJ students taught basic lessons at the Pennsylvania School for the Deaf. They also visited deaf students at Petway Elementary School in Vineland, where in teams of two, they read stories to the children and then participated in an activity related to the story.

“I was excited and nervous,” said Jamie Mann ’10 about her experience at Petway. “Being in the classroom was a lot of fun, and the students were receptive and really sweet…. I think the students particularly enjoyed the part [of my lesson] where they had the opportunity to make their own wishes. It was cute to see what second graders wish for—a cell phone, video games, and perhaps most endearing, gifts for their friends and families. The whole experience was really exceptional. The teachers and students were wonderful and I learned a lot from the experience.”

Slobodzian’s class also traveled to Bruce Street School in Newark, where they constructed fun and safari-themed stations for the elementary students to interact with and explore for the school’s Learning Fair, said Slobodzian. One station had kindergarten through second-grade students moving a toy vehicle along various routes on a given map to get from one point to another, and also matched pictures and model animals with written animal names. Another station, designed for students from third through fifth grades, introduced the geography of Africa and the purpose of safaris. Students practiced cooperation and teamwork as they connected puzzle pieces to form the continent of Africa.

Slobodzian, a 1976 graduate of the College, is an assistant professor in the department of Special Education, Language, and Literacy.