Assistive Technology for Hearing and Communication

The ability to hear and comprehend is essential for communication. Assistive technology, like assistive listening devices and visual devices, helps people with hearing impairments communicate without trouble.

Significance

• Assistive technology lets the user overcome communication obstacles, such as poor acoustics in a room and background noise.

Types

• Assistive technology improves the ability to hear by either amplifying audio (assistive listening devices) or turning an audio message into text (visual devices). Assistive listening devices and visual devices come in various forms.

Assistive Listening Devices

• Personal frequency modulation systems, infrared systems and one-to-one communicators are all examples of assistive listening devices. Using them with hearing aids helps to maximize their potential.

Visual Devices

• Telephones with text messaging allow someone with a hearing impairment to have a conversation on the phone. Other assistive technology, such as closed-captioning television and computer software that translates spoken word into a document, are visual aids for the hearing impaired.

Considerations

• Assistive technology for children with hearing impairments is especially important. Hearing well is needed to learn how to speak and perform well in school.