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CUES OR SIGNS: A CASE STUDY IN LANGUAGE ACQUISITION Jeffrey E. Nash With the introduction of cued speech a few short years ago, expectations were raised among parents and educators that perhaps an answer was at hand to the nagging question of what is the "best" approach to introducing language to deaf children (Miles 1967). Several schools adopted cues at various levels of commitment and in varying degrees of usage. In Australia some rather complete commitments to the system were made (Cued Speech News 1971, 1972). At this point, however, most evaluations are sketchy and promotional. For instance, in a recent news release (January 1973) from the cued speech program at Gallaudet College, the youngest "cue child" is identified and heralded as acquiring language rapidly. However, systematic descriptions of the acquisition of language are few in number. This paper is a preliminary report on the language development of a profoundly deaf child named Marc. (Table 1) The case provides unique information about two visual communication systems (cued speech and signed English) and allows some tentative evaluation of both forms of communication. The principal finding is that cued speech apparently does not have sufficient properties of language to allow its acquisition to proceed in a natural and spontaneous fashion; whereas signs and fingerspelling, even when introduced following the syntax of English, do have such sufficiencies. The following report divides into two parts, the first dealing with the acquisition of language with cues, and the second with the acquisition of language through signs and fingerspelling. Hopefully, Marc's case will augment and correct expectations regarding the early use of cued speech and add to growing evidence regarding the naturalness of signs and fingerspelling. Sign Language Studies The most recent audiogram available on Marc (November, 1972). It is consistent with the earliest one done at age 8 months. 250 500 1kHz 2kHz 4kHz 8kHz AC R 70 85 95 105 NR NR L 80 85 100 NR NR NR BC R 30* 60* NR NR NR L 30* 55* NR NR NR AC - air conduction; BC - bone conduction; NR - no response. *tactile Table 1.Audiometric data. Cued Speech and the Acquisition of Language. Marc was diagnosed as profoundly deaf at age eight months (1969). This diagnosis was conducted at a major northwestern university where the adoptive parents were graduate students. The early diagnosis was seized as an opportunity to introduce the then new technique of cued speech (Miles 1967) and to couple this technique with amplification. Marc was fitted with a hearing aid at the clinic. He usually wore the aid about three to four hours per day. Marc's father had an academic interest in language and language acquisition, and his mother could be characterized as possessing above average language facility and aptitude. After familiarizing themselves with the cueing system, the parents made a judgment that cues were worth trying on two grounds: (1) as a phonological representation of English, i.e. as a supplement to oral approaches, and (2) as a visual communicative system which by itself might be acquired in natural and spontaneous fashion. Having made this decision, the parents worked through daily practice to become fluent in the cues. Soon both were cueing whole sentences in "normal" although slowed, conversation. By the time Marc was one year old, the parents were cueing to him in consistently Well-formed sentences. From this time on Marc was exposed to a steady and natural stream of cued English language. Neither parent made any Nash concentrated effort to tutor language skills through routine practice, although Marc's mother did complete the standard John Tracy pre-school correspondence course, using cues, in a matter of months. Both parents made efforts to cue to each other in their conversation whenever Marc was present. In addition, there were attempts to cue conversations held with hearing friends. The parents were trying to approximate an environment where "incidental learning" could take place. In short, Marc was exposed to as complete an environment of cued spoken English as any child thus far reported. Again, on the recommendation of the people in the cued speech program at Gallaudet, no lesson-time or repeat-after-me sessions were held beyond the...

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