Teacher Excellence 1

Teacher Excellence in General and Deaf Education

Catherine Banks, Valdosta State University

December 20, 2005

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The professional literature on what it means to be a Master Teacher of excellence of deaf

and hard of hearing students is not as extensive as the research outlining the needed

characteristics of an effective teacher in general education. Salter (2001) states in his research

that “good teaching, it turns out, is universal” (p. 116). Thus, by combining and reviewing the

research on both excellent teaching of general education and deaf education (but focusing on the

latter), a description of a Master Teacher of the deaf can be formulated.

This recent research is mostly focused on how to better serve the student. Necessary

characteristics of the teacher include attitude, behavior, skills in instruction, and good

communication. These create the most effective skills that can be used to serve the student

inside and outside the classroom whether they are deaf, hard of hearing, or hearing.

The broader approach to what it takes to be an effective teacher of general education

students is taken by Salter (2001) as he identifies sixteen characteristics or behaviors that all

great teachers possess. These traits include: (a) have prior knowledge of your students’ talents,

prior experience, and needs; (b) create a safe environment where learning is emotional,

intellectual, and psychological; (c) have passion for the material and for teaching; (d) tell

students the instructional goals and objectives; (d) have the ability to communicate complex

ideas by breaking them down and making them understandable; (e) acknowledge that you don’t

know everything and that teachers do make mistakes; (f) know yourself so that you can know

your students more thoroughly; (g) repeat the important parts during instruction; (h) ask good

questions; (i) teach students not only the right answers but how to think; (j) have good listening

skills; (k) know what to listen for from your students; (l) encourage student interaction; (m)

understand that every student learns differently and adapt accordingly; and (n) develop a trusting,

solid relationship with the students (Salter, 2001).

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In her article, Brighton (2002) recognizes the growing challenge of implementing the best

practices while considering the growing focus on final assessment scores. She points out that

best practices, combined with test practices, can exist together; it takes determination from the

teacher and support from the administration. To accomplish this balance of testing and

instruction, a wise teacher must consider the standards and use these essential elements to shape

their instructional unit (Brighton, 2002). In order to keep the standards and the instructional

objectives in line, Bafumo (2005) writes that it takes organization. To be an effective teacher,

he/she must be organized with high-quality lesson plans and have efficient time management

skills (Bafumo, 2005).

According to Aylor (2003) and other research results, communication is an essential

element of teaching and a critical skill for an excellent teacher. Through the Communications

Functions Questionnaire (CFQ), Aylor (2003) identifies eight communication skills which

include, (a) conversational skill, the ability to initiate and maintain enjoyable conversations; (b)

referential skill, the ability to convey information clearly and concisely; (c) ego supportive skill,

the ability to make a person feel good about themselves, their goals, and their ideas; (d)

comforting skill, the ability to help a person in times of emotional distress; (e) conflict

management skill, the ability to reach mutually satisfying solutions to conflicts; (f) persuasive

skill, the ability to change a person’s attitudes, beliefs, and/or behaviors; (g) narrative skill, the

ability to entertain through storytelling; and (h) regulative skill, the ability to help someone

realize their mistakes and correct them. In this research study, the students were also asked to

rate the communication skills in order of importance. All but the comforting skill listed above

was included in the rating because the students did not feel that skill was absolutely necessary for

teaching. The resulting order was referential, ego supportive, regulative, conversational, conflict
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management, narrative, and persuasive. Through efficient communication, relationships are

formed, and when used and built upon by the facilitation of the teacher, many great things can

happen in the classroom (Aylor, 2003).

Through her research, Aylor (2003) recognizes that effective teachers care about their

students’ feelings, self-image, goals and emotional stability. When this occurs, students report

more cognitive and affective learning. There are two dimensions of a teacher/student

relationship identified: content and relational. This author notes that teachers should understand

that the content and relational dimensions of the relationship with their students are

interdependent, striving off one another. That fact can be used to their advantage in teaching and

facilitating interactions in order to maximize on learning opportunities (Aylor, 2003). At the end

of the day, the assessments and records display the progress.

Assessments can be reported and used to benefit all parties involved, (teacher, student,

and parent), but the teacher must know how to use them in that manner (Anonymous, 2002).

The anonymous author of an article in Scholastic Early Childhood Today states, “Effective

teaching of young children begins with thoughtful, appreciative, systematic observation and

documentation of each child’s unique qualities, strengths, and needs” (Anonymous, 2002, p. 15).

According to this same author, there are specific assessment skills that well-prepared teacher

should have. They include: (a) being able to communicate the results to parents; (b) knowing a

wide range of assessment tools and approaches to align with educational goals; (c) creating

opportunities to observe both formally and informally especially with infants and toddler; (d)

having the ability to conduct, interpret, and reflect on the assessment; (e) possessing the

knowledge of definitions and jargon; (f) having the ability to point out and limit test weaknesses
 Teacher Excellence 5

and limitations; and (g) understanding and practicing responsible assessment techniques,

ethically grounded, collaborative, and guided by professional standards (Anonymous, 2002).

Now that the research about excellent teachers in general was discussed above, the

research on the behaviors, skills, and attitudes of excellent teachers of the deaf and hard of

hearing will be discussed thoroughly so that the purpose of the paper can be fulfilled which is to

put all research together in order to display what really constitutes a master teacher of students

who are deaf and hard of hearing.

Even more so than in general education, the mode and effectiveness of communication

has always been a topic of debate and concern in the field of deaf education. The sign skills of

the teacher have been the major factor in determining the effectiveness of communication in the

classroom, but the recent research says differently. According to Smith and Ramsey (2004),

Long, et. al (1999), and Mayer, Akamatsu, and Stewart (2002), effective communication and

instruction is not solely dependent on the teacher’s sign skills rather the manner in which they

use the language as a “linguistic resource in classroom discourse” (Mayer, Akamatsu, & Stewart,

2002, p. 486) to encourage student participation. Not only do the overall sign skills of the

teacher bear little weight, the teacher’s hearing status has little effect as well. The results of the

research done by Roberson and Serwatka (2000) show that although the deaf students associated

more effective behaviors to the deaf teacher, the actual achievement level of students is not

affected by the hearing status of the teacher.

Steering again away from the teacher’s sign skills, Luckner and Howell (2002) discuss

the importance of the teacher’s interpersonal communication skills. They believe that it is most

crucial to have the ability to communicate with the families of the students and with other

professionals.
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As stated by Mayer, Akamatsu, and Stewart (2002), there is a threshold level of sign

proficiency needed for meaningful dialogue to occur, but they also say the overall quality and

effectiveness of the interaction is a better way to measure effective teacher communication.

Interaction is made and mediated through the use of language – signs and other tools of

communication, and Mayer, Akamatsu, and Stewart (2002) name this type of purposeful,

educational interaction dialogic inquiry. Dialogic inquiry is constructed by three understandings

the teacher must have. Mayer, Akamatsu, and Stewart (2002) list these understandings as the

following: (a) “learning is a social, interactive enterprise in which the teacher and the learner

interdependently co-construct meaning, (b) this joint meaning making is mediated through

language, through classroom conversations that occur within the context of meaningful,

purposeful activity; and (c) the interaction is dependent on the ability of the teacher to work in a

contingently responsive manner with the student” (p. 487). This author goes on to say that

teachers who are comfortable in their manner of communication will be more equipped to

communicate effectively with their students (Mayer, Akamatsu, & Stewart, 2002).

As mentioned above, sign skills are not the primary focus within recent research to

describe excellent teachers, but they are still considered an important part of what describes a

master teacher of the deaf and hard of hearing. Also stated above, interactions are the primary

means of learning, and Long, et. al (1999) correlate the success of the interaction to teachers with

higher-level skills in both expressive and receptive sign language. American Sign Language

(ASL) is one option for use in the classroom that is encouraged by some researchers. Smith and

Ramsey (2004) found in his research some benefits of fluent ASL use in the classroom. When

comparing teachers using different modes of sign language during instruction and storytelling, he

found that the teacher using ASL elicited more participation from the students through question
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asking, classifier predicates, role-playing, and the full range of ASL morphology. “Fluent signers

can smooth out rough spots and ensure coherence in the discourse” (Smith & Ramsey, 2004, p.

56).

Since the focus of the research is more on how the teacher affects the student, the

students’ opinions of the teacher’s communication skills were researched and reported in the

article by Long, et. al (1999). Student rating of communication ease was higher for teachers with

higher scores on their Sign Communication Proficiency Interview such as Superior through

Intermediate Plus rather than lower scores of Intermediate through Novice (Long, et. al, 1999).

Long, et. al (1999) also found that students felt if they understood their teacher, their teacher

could understand them. To fully participate and learn as active, engaged learners, deaf and hard

of hearing students need to feel at ease in communicating with their teacher and other students

through comfortable, reciprocal communication. Through this effective communication

exchange, teacher/student interactions occur as a bridge to learning (Long, et. al, 1999).

The importance of classroom discourse is seen throughout a lot of the research. There are

positive occurrences that result from meaningful discourse such as, learning to make meaning

and sense of the world around them and the development of thinking skills (Mayer, Akamatsu, &

Stewart, 2002). To facilitate the classroom discourse, there are many skills and behaviors that

the teacher must possess and use. Smith, Akamatsu, and Stewart (2004) believe that the

classroom atmosphere must be flexible and free, and to accomplish this, experienced teachers

will exhibit less-controlling behaviors with a relaxed attitude while maintaining control and

showing an ability to head off problems. They discovered there is a high negative correlation to

the amount of control taken by the teacher to the amount of complex language used by the
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students. Also, having inadequate and non-fluent language skills will pose a problem to

maintaining this type of classroom atmosphere (Smith, Akamatsu, & Stewart, 2004).

In regards to communication in discourse, Smith, Akamatsu, and Stewart (2004) state

several strategies and skills that excellent teacher possess. These strategies are the following: (a)

encourage further comments while boosting student confidence and extending interaction; (b)

develop increased sensitivity to students’ perceptions of the quality of communication in class;

(c) give greater attention to variations in communication needs of the students; and (d) put

greater effort into developing teaching strategies for effective interactive communication.

To be considered a master teacher of the deaf, there are also teaching behaviors and

strategies that are encouraged, if not expected, relating to communication in instruction. Mayer,

Akamatsu, and Stewart (2004) encourage the constructivist teaching approach because it utilizes

communication using symbols and signs to allow individuals to eventually become independent

in regulating their own language and behaviors. Instructional conversations can be used in the

classroom to “support, guide, and assist the learner in achieving fuller participation and

understanding” (Mayer, Akamatsu, & Stewart, 2002, p. 487). Greenspan (2003) delves a little

deeper and with more specificity by stating the importance of using multiple channels to

communicate with the child during instruction, including much visual support. Mayer, Akamatsu,

and Stewart (2002) describe other exemplary practices to facilitate language and communication

which include, but are not limited to, (a) taking the learners’ best attempt as the starting place; (b)

inviting suggestions and opinions; (c) requesting explanations, clarifications, justifications, and

amplifications; (d) encouraging learners to take risks and express their own points of view; and

(e) shaping instruction into meaningful and purposeful language activity (Mayer, Akamatsu, &

Stewart, 2002). Mayer, Akamatsu, and Stewart (2002) sum up exemplary teacher
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communicative practice in instruction and discourse stating, “Teachers who are responsive to

their students, and engaged in joint meaning-making, are constantly stretching to reach the

learner’s cognitive and linguistic ground” (p. 489).

The focus of the research done by Roberson, et al. (2004) is measuring the effectiveness

of teachers of the deaf and hard of hearing using two broad categories: teacher quality, the

characteristics and skills they bring to the classroom, and teaching quality, how they teach once

they are in the classroom. Some of the characteristics and skills that encompass teacher quality

are preparation, proper assessment-data collection, knowledge of content, ability to provide

evidence of pedagogical knowledge, and demonstration that their instruction actually has an

effect on student learning (Roberson, et al. 2004). According to Roberson, et al. (2004), the

major indication of excellent teaching quality is the presence of academic responding which has

been positively correlated with achievement on standardized tests. Academic responding is

defined as “the active and appropriate student behaviors that are made in direct response to an

academic task, teacher command, or teacher prompt” (Roberson, et al. 2004, p. 406).

Mayer, Akamatsu, and Stewart (2002) and Greenspan (2003) discuss in their research the

effect of the environment and atmosphere that the teacher creates. Education is a “collaborative

enterprise in which the teacher takes a leadership role” (Mayer, Akamatsu, & Stewart, 2002, p.

486) in creating and providing an atmosphere where students learn from each other and from the

teacher while engaging in joint activity, and therefore; the atmosphere must be trusting, flexible,

and controlled by the teacher. The results from the study done by Greenspan (2003) display that

the teacher must create a nurturing, supportive environment where all children should benefit

focusing on being patient and understanding each other.

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Some researchers study the attitudes that the teachers bring with them into the classroom

and instruction and found that they have a big role in the effectiveness of their teaching and

student outcomes. Luckner and Muir (2001) found that excellent teachers have high

expectations for their students and are not scared to challenge them in situations where they

might fail. They stated that when this occurs the students will obtain more skills in dealing with

the hearing world and have more ease in interacting with their hearing peers. After interviewing

deaf and hard of hearing students who were considered successful, the same study by Luckner

and Muir (2001) recorded that successful deaf and hard of hearing students are aware and

appreciative of the help, support, and high expectations of their teachers.

Woolsey, Harrison, and Gardner (2004) state in their research that for deaf students to be

at the same academic level as their hearing peers, teacher behaviors must accelerate learning.

The following research will discuss the skills and behaviors that accomplish this task, starting

with Luckner and Carter (2001). Luckner and Carter (2001) did a study to find out the

competencies needed to teach deaf and hard of hearing students. The top ten competencies

found with the highest mean scores ended up being general teaching techniques instead of

focusing on any specific disability area. They are as follows: (1) Techniques for modifying

instructional methods and materials for students with a variety of special needs; (2) Approaches

to create positive learning environments for individuals with a variety of special needs; (3) Teach

students to use thinking, problem solving, and other cognitive strategies to meet their individual

needs; (4) Establish a consistent classroom routine for students; (5) Design learning

environments that are multi-sensory and that encourage active participation by learners in a

variety of group and individual learning activities; (6) Provide opportunities for the learner to

develop basic concepts through participation in meaningful and motivating real-life experiences;
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(7) Integrate academic instruction, affective education, and behavior management for individual

students and groups of students; (8) Develop effective behavior support plans; (9) Provide

opportunities for the learner to actively explore and experience common objects that learners

with vision and hearing learn about incidentally; and (10) Help parents and other professionals to

understand the impact of various disabilities on learning and experience (Luckner & Carter,

2001). Luckner composed another study with Howell in 2002 listing other necessary skills and

knowledge. They say that the teachers of the deaf and hard of hearing students must be

knowledgeable about and skilled with technologies such as hearing aids, cochlear implants, and

FM systems, and be able to provide troubleshooting and auditory training if needed (Luckner &

Howell, 2002). Collaboration skills are also discussed in regards to being able to work in a

multidisciplinary team and underlay the design and implementation of the Individualized

Education Plan (IEP) (Luckner & Howell, 2002).

Luckner and Howell (2002) also report that there is a growing increase in the number and

need of itinerant teachers and a decrease in the number of self-contained classroom teachers, and

therefore; discuss some specific skills that make an itinerant teacher effective. They must have

excellent skills in consulting with parents and teachers and coordinating the IEP. They also need

master knowledge of the general education curriculum, hearing aid and FM systems, and the use

of direct instruction. As stated in the research, one of the most important characteristics that an

itinerant teacher needs is flexibility (Luckner & Howell, 2002).

Briefly mentioned above, two major behaviors that are emphasized in the research is

giving support and collaborating with families and professionals. In a study done by Luckner

and Muir (2001), they included in their article several quotes they received from interviewing

parents in regards to the success of their children. Many of the parents stated that they attribute
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most of their child’s success to his/her teacher collaborating with them and being their source of

support and updated information on services, teaching, and technology (Luckner & Muir, 2001).

Mentioned in the study done by Luckner and Howell (2002), the support from administration is

also necessary. Master teachers should not have to do it alone. When they have the support, the

teachers should be aware of it and know when and how to use it to fight for the child’s needs

(Luckner & Howell, 2002).

In 2003, Saur and Rasmussen did a study constructing the art of mentoring deaf and hard

of hearing students. They state that “mentoring goes beyond what is the norm in the usual

education roles” (Saur & Rasmussen, 2003, p. 200). According to the authors, there are two

main aspects of mentoring in which the teacher fosters achievement and growth in the student.

The two aspects are support and challenge. The success of the mentoring process depends on the

mentor developing a personal trusting relationship with the mentee where there must be a fine

balance between support and challenge so that change and independence can occur. Saur and

Rasmussen (2003) write that critical events can have a positive or negative affect on a student.

The teacher as mentor needs to be able to recognize, analyze, and take advantage of them by

being informed of the potential power of the events. The roles that an excellent mentor teacher

fills are being a listener of the students, a guide, an interpreter of experiences so that the effect is

growth and understanding, and a person to pull in resources to help solve critical issues (Saur &

Rasmussen, 2003). When a critical experience occurs and all of these roles and behaviors are

done properly, the result should be that “the individual grows and maintains his/her integrity by

incorporating both internal feedback and feedback from the environment creating a new, stable

personal structure” (Saur & Rasmussen, 2003, p. 207).

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Throughout the research on the best instructional practices used by master teachers of

deaf and hard of hearing students, there are two main areas discussed: general strategies and

character education with critical thinking and values clarification. According to Woolsey,

Harrison, and Gardner (2004), teachers of the deaf and hard of hearing need to incorporate

current research-based strategies. If not, the instructional demands placed on the student will not

warrant the existence of sufficient academic progress because students learn better and behave

better in the presence of effective instruction and engaging activities (Woolsey, Harrison, &

Gardner, 2004). These same three authors found in their study that student levels of academic

responding are directly related to the instructional practices used by teachers in the classroom.

These are brought about by interaction and active student engagement (Woolsey, Harrison, &

Gardner, 2004). Luckner and Muir (2001) say that one form of efficient instruction used by

excellent teachers includes pre-teaching and post-teaching as a means to hold students

accountable, but at the same time, making sure they have sufficient exposure to that which they

are being held accountable. In their study, Smith and Ramsey (2004), list other instructional

strategies master teachers use. They include sufficient wait time and persistent questioning

leading to student understanding of the accuracy or inaccuracy of their response.

Luckner and Muir (2001) state that teachers must be aware they are preparing students

for life after school as well as helping them get through school. Ways to prepare them for life

after school include adding character education with values clarification into instruction and

promoting critical thinking skills. In the study done by Easterbrooks and Scheetz (2004), they

found that “the development of critical thinking skills must become central to the instruction of

students with hearing loss if educators are to expect them to sort through the information

avalanche presented both inside and outside the school walls” (p. 262). To teach character and
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values, teachers must give the students the opportunity to evaluate decisions, be a model of the

character values throughout the day and during instruction, and allow the students to process the

information to get personal meaning out of it. Nelson (2005) and Luckner and Muir (2001) both

discuss in their research study that master teachers are aware of the importance of students

acquiring self-determination and self-advocacy skills. By acquiring these skills through

character education, the teacher can help the students gradually become less dependent on the

teacher. Nelson (2005) found that the belief of teachers that their students would not benefit from

self-determination skills is the most frequently identified barrier to students acquiring those must

needed skills.

There is a growing population of deaf and hard of hearing students that are educated in a

general education classroom known as inclusion. Researchers have done studies to find the most

effective teacher characteristics in addition to the characteristics already discussed that are

needed to successfully teach this population of students.

Avramidis and Norwich (2002) reported on the effects of teacher attitudes on the success

of deaf and hard of hearing students in an inclusive setting. They say that the teacher’s

acceptance of the policy of inclusion is likely to affect their commitment to implementing it,

therefore; the success of inclusive practices is dependent in part upon the teacher’s beliefs and

attitudes. These attitudes toward inclusion are usually strongly influenced by the nature and

severity of the disability. Administration and others who are more distant from the classroom

have a more positive attitude toward inclusion than the teachers do (Avramidis & Norwich,

2002).

Keefe, Moore, and Duff (2004) discuss the four major characteristics that excellent

teachers must have in order for collaborative or co-teaching to successfully occur in a general
 Teacher Excellence 15

education setting that includes a student with a hearing loss or other disabilities. The result of

their study identifies the four “Knows of Collaborative Teaching.” First, know yourself which is

recognizing your strengths and weaknesses and admitting any preconceived notions. Second,

know your partner because before two teachers can plan an effective instructional plan for their

students, they need to know each other’s preferences and styles. Third, know your students. By

knowing your students, lines of communication between the teacher and the student can be

opened. And, lastly, know your stuff. The teacher has to know the content thoroughly in order to

teach it effectively (Keefe, Moore, & Duff, 2004).

Luckner and Muir (2002) state that 84% of deaf and hard of hearing students are in a

general education classroom, therefore; through their research, they constructed a list of ten

factors for promoting success in general education that teachers should be aware of, encouraging,

and advancing. The ten factors are parental involvement, self-determination, extracurricular

activities, friendships and social skills, self-advocacy skills, collaboration and communication

with general education teachers, pre-teach/teach/post-teach content and vocabulary being learned

in the general education classroom, collaboration with early identification and early intervention

service providers, reading, and high expectations (Luckner & Muir, 2002).

Thus, by focusing on the student and how to best create an environment of learning and

success, there are many dimensions identified that create the master teacher of the deaf. By

reviewing the literature, it is evident that a master teacher of deaf and hard of hearing students

must have all the skills, behaviors, and attitudes of an excellent general education teacher along

with everything that encompasses an excellent teacher of the deaf.

 Teacher Excellence 16

Works Cited

Anonymous. (2002). Assessment: Partnering with parents. Scholastic Early Childhood Today,

17(1), 15-16.

Avramidis, E. & Norwich, B. (2002). Teachers’ attitudes towards integration/inclusion: a review

of the literature. European Journal of Special Needs Education, 17(2), 129-147.

Aylor, B. (2003). The impact of sex, gender, and cognitive complexity on the perceived

importance of teacher communication skills. Communication Studies, 54(4), 496-509.

Bafumo, M. E. (2005). Operation organization. Teaching Pre K-8, 36(1), 10-12.

Brighton, C. M. (2002). Straddling the fence: Implementing best practices in an age of

accountability. Gifted Child Today, 25(3), 30-33.

Easterbrooks, S. R. & Scheetz, N. A. (2004). Applying critical thinking skills to character

education and values clarification with students who are deaf or hard of hearing.

American Annals of the Deaf, 149(3), 255-263.

Greenspan, S. I. (2003). Working with the hearing impaired child. Scholastic Early Childhood

Today, 17(7), 20-21.

Keefe, E. B., Moore, V., & Duff, F. (2004). The four “knows” of collaborative teaching.

Teaching Exceptional Children, 36(5), 36-42.

Long, G., Stinson, M., Kelly, R.R., & Liu, Y. (1999). The relationship between teacher sign skills

and student evaluations of teacher capability. American Annals of the Deaf, 144(5), 354-

364.

Luckner, J.L. & Howell J. (2002). Suggestions for preparing itinerant teachers: A qualitative

analysis. American Annals of the Deaf, 147(3), 54-61.

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Luckner, J.L. & Muir, S. (2001). Successful students who are deaf in general education settings.

American Annals of the Deaf, 146(5), 435-446.

Luckner, J.L. & Muir, S. (2002). Suggestions for helping students who are deaf succeed in

general education settings. Communication Disorders Quarterly, 24(1), 23-30.

Luckner, J. L. & Carter, K. (2001). Essential competencies for teaching students with hearing

loss and additional disabilities. American Annals of the Deaf, 146(1), 7-15.

Mayer, C., Akamatsu, C. T., & Stewart, D. (2002). A model for effective practice: dialogic

inquiry with students who are deaf. Exceptional Children, 68(4), 485-502.

Nelson, B. (2005). Creating positive outcomes for deafblind youth and young adults: A personal

futures planning transition model. Re:view, 36(4), 173-180.

Roberson, L., Woosley, M.L., Seabrooks, J., & Williams, G. (2004). Data-Driven assessment of

teacher candidates during their internships in deaf education. American Annals of the

Deaf, 148(5), 403-412.

Roberson, L. & Serwatka, T. S. (2000). Student perceptions and instructional effectiveness of

deaf and hearing teachers. American Annals of the Deaf, 145(3), 256-262.

Salter, C. (2001). Attention, class!!!: 16 ways to be a smarter teacher. Fast Company, 53, 114-

126.

Saur, R. & Rasmussen, S. (2003). Butterfly power in the art of mentoring deaf and hard of

hearing college students. Mentoring and Tutoring, 11(2), 195-209.

Smith, D. H. & Ramsey, C. L. (2004). Classroom discourse practices of a deaf teacher using

American Sign Language. Sign Language Studies, 5(1), 39-62.

Woolsey, M.L., Harrison, T.J., & Gardner III, R. (2004). A preliminary examination of

instructional arrangements, teaching behaviors, levels of academic responding of deaf

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middle school students in three different educational settings. Education and Treatment

of Children, 27(3), 263-279.