Role Of Technology In Assisting The Hearing Disabled
We are finally moving towards making the disabled a part of mainstream society. A number of efforts are on to make the lives of the hearing disabled, productive as well as comfortable. These efforts involve developing technologies that will not only recognize spoken English and convert it into sign language, but also convert sign language into spoken English.
Although these products are mostly in the prototyping or research stage, these are likely to open up a number of opportunities, hitherto denied, to the hearing disabled. As a society we are also becoming enlightened to the need of improving the lives of the hearing disabled. However, there is a lot of scope for improvement in this regard.
Today, technology has provided a number of solutions to remedy hearing disabilities. Hearing aids have undergone tremendous improvements. Cochlear implants are now available that can correct deafness or hearing disability in certain cases.
However, there are people with hearing disability whose condition cannot be corrected through such means. Sign language is a viable and time-tested solution for people with hearing disabilities that cannot be cured. Much of the research work that is being carried out to use technology for providing solutions to the hearing disabled is also largely based upon sign language.
An interesting solution that is being developed is a two way dictionary that converts spoken English into sign language and sign language into spoken English. The technology will be able to read a sign language signal and convert it into spoken English. There are a number of challenges involved in developing this technology.
Once these tools are commercially viable, the hearing disabled will not have to think over how to learn sign language. These tools are likely to revolutionize the teaching and learning of sign language not just for the hearing disabled but also for people with normal hearing ability.
The time may not be far away when we can think in terms of including sign language as a regular language in our school curriculum, thereby eliminating the social barriers that have segregated the hearing disabled.
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Tags: deaf, deafness, disability, handicapped, hearing, hearing disability, hearing disabled, how to learn sign language, learn sign languages, sign language, sign language courses
