Charity warns of looming educational crisis for deaf pupils in Scotland

• Teachers of the Deaf numbers in Scotland have fallen by 40% in a decade The fall in numbers is twice that of other parts of the UK
• Almost half (45%) are due to retire in the next 10 years
• Deaf young people in Scotland are twice as likely as their hearing classmates to leave school with no qualifications and half as likely to go on to university

Thousands of deaf children across Scotland are not getting the support they need in school after a 40% fall in the number of specialist support teachers for deaf children over the last decade, the National Deaf Children’s Society is warning.

A new report published by the Consortium for Research into Deaf Education (CRIDE), also shows that Teachers of the Deaf numbers in Scotland have fallen at twice the rate compared to other parts of the UK. In addition, around 45% of Teachers of the Deaf in Scotland plan to retire over the next 10 years – so unless action is taken urgently things will only get worse.

Teachers of the Deaf play a vital role in supporting the language and communication development of deaf children. They give advice to families of newly identified deaf children, visit deaf children at school or college – to give them any extra help they need – and provide guidance to mainstream teachers and schools on deaf awareness and inclusion.

However, as the number of fully qualified Teachers of the Deaf in Scotland has fallen, increasing numbers of deaf children are missing out on this support.

Families of deaf children have told the National Deaf Children’s Society that in some areas their local Teachers of the Deaf have too big a caseload to work with deaf learners on a one-to-one basis.

The charity is calling on local authorities across Scotland to commit to returning qualified Teacher of the Deaf numbers to 2011 levels over the next decade.

The National Deaf Children’s Society also wants the Scottish Government to develop and deliver a Scotland-wide workforce strategy for Teachers of the Deaf, and to ensure they are properly paid for the extra responsibilities they take on, in recognition that their specialist expertise is valued.

Such a workforce strategy will involve fully funded places being available for teachers wanting to study for the mandatory qualifications, so a new generation of Teachers of the Deaf can be trained to replace those who are leaving.

Without this, the charity warns deaf children will continue to fall behind and the gap between them and their hearing classmates’ risks becoming wider.

Gemma, from Fife, whose 13-year-old daughter Megan is deaf, described her Teacher of the Deaf asan “absolute necessity” who quickly solves any issues.

She said: “We are a hearing family and although my daughter’s hearing needs are not as big as other young people’s, the Teacher of the Deaf has helped validate my daughter’s past experiences, educate myself on my daughter’s needs and empower her to be confident in the school.”

Mark Ballard, Head of Policy and Influencing for Scotland with the National Deaf Children’s Society, said: “Every deaf child in Scotland should, as a fundamental right, be able to get the support they need from a fully qualified Teacher of the Deaf to help them reach their full potential. We are very concerned that these new figures show a 40% fall in the numbers of qualified Teachers of the Deaf in Scotland, twice the decline in other parts of the UK.

“With the right support in place, deaf children can achieve anything their peers can, but sadly, this simply isn’t happening. The latest Scottish Government statistics show they’re twice as likely to leave school with no qualifications and half as likely to go to university.

“That’s why we want to see a commitment from local authorities and the Scottish Government to work together to return the number of fully qualified Teachers of the Deaf employed across Scotland to the 2011 level, over the next ten years.”

Mr Ballard pointed out that a lack of funding means many teachers in Scotland who want to become a qualified Teacher of the Deaf must often cover the costs themselves.

He added: “There are great courses available to give teachers the extra skills and knowledge they need to become qualified Teachers of the Deaf, but we must make sure the funding and incentives are in place to support teachers to undertake the training.”