Academic and Social Status of Hearing, Deaf, and Hard of Hearing Students Participating in a Co-enrolled Classroom

The researchers examined the communication participation, academic achievement, and social behavior of five Deaf or Hard-of-Hearing (DHH) students, five DHH students with additional disabilities (DHH-D), and 18 nondisabled, hearing peers in a co-enrolled, Grade 3-4-5 combination classroom. DHH students were not significantly different from their hearing peers in communication participation and social behavior. Differences did exist in academic achievement, but DHH students made steady academic progress over 3 years. DHH-D students were significantly different from their hearing peers, but not from their DHH peers in all areas. The finding adds to the data indicating that co-enrollment is a possible model of inclusion for DHH students and also provides initial data about the functioning of DHH-D students.