Acronyms:
ADA
ANMC
ANP
ASL
ASSDHH
AT
bi/bi
BAHA
BTE
CC
CI
CIC
CP
CVI
OC
CODA
dB
DSI
DHH
ENT
ESER
HH
HL
HOH
Hz
IEP
Americans with Disabilities Act
The Alaska Native Medical Center
Advanced Nurse Practitioner
American Sign Language
Alaska State School for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (in Anchorage)
Assistive Technology
Bilingual/ bi-cultural (education)
Bone Anchored Hearing Aid
Behind the ear (hearing aid)
Closed Captions
Cochlear Implant
Completely in the (ear) canal (hearing aid)
Cerebral Palsy
Cortical Vision Impairment
Open Captions
Children of a Deaf Adult
Decibel
Duel Sensory Impairment (Deaf-blind)
Deaf (and/or) hard-of-hearing
Ears, Nose and Throat (doctor or clinic)
Evaluation Summary and Eligibility Report
Hard of Hearing
Hearing loss
Hard of Hearing
Hertz (a measurement of frequency)
Individual Education Plan
ILP
IFSP
LID
NAD
OT
PSL
PT
RID
SEE
SESA
SLP
SN
TC
TTY
TVI
WFD
WNL
Infant learning program
Individual Family Support Plan
Low Incidence Disability (a program of SESA)
National Association of the Deaf
Occupational Therapist
Pidgin Sign Language
Physical Therapist
Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf
Signed Exact English
Special Education Service Agency
Speech and Language Pathologist
Sensory-neural Hearing Loss
Total Communication
Teletypewriter for the Deaf
Teacher of the Visually Impaired (or blind)
World Federation of the Deaf
Hearing that is “within normal limits”. [i.e. no hearing loss is present.]
Glossary of terms:
American Sign Language
(ASL)
ASL is a recognized language used by Deaf and Hard of Hearing individuals. The
visual modality of this language offers access to anyone with a hearing loss.
Audiologist
Person who measures the amount of an individual’s hearing.
Audiogram
The written record of a hearing test provided by the Audiologist. Sounds are mapped
out with hertz and decibels.
Auditory-Aural/Auditory
Verbal Approach
A teaching method that uses residual hearing and speech reading skills to teach
speech to Deaf and Hard of Hearing students. Sign Language is not used in this
method.
Bone Conduction Hearing
Aids
This type of hearing aid does not pass sound through the ear canal, but rather carries
the sound to the cochlea.
Bilingual
The ability to use two different languages to transfer information. For Deaf students
this may be ASL and English.
Closed Captions
Process of showing on a TV in written text the sounds and dialogue from the show
and can be turned on and off.
Cochlea
A part of the inner ear that change the sounds to an electrical pulse.
Cochlear Implant
A surgically implanted device that sends electronic signals to the cochlea that
stimulate the cochlea and transmit that information as sound to the hearing nerve.
Conductive Hearing Loss
Hearing loss due to mechanical issues to the outer and middle ear. People can have
a combination of conductive and sensory-neural hearing losses.
Cortical Visual
Impairment
A brained-based visual impairment not detectable by a typical eye exam.
Cued Speech
Phonic based system of communication that is used by deaf and hard of hearing
individuals. Uses a mathematical based system of producing phonemes visually.
Decibel
A measure of volume of sound. The smaller the decibel the softer the sound.
Deaf
Someone with little or no hearing. Can be a medical or cultural term.
Deaf/Blind
An individual with both a hearing and vision loss (either can be mild to profound).
Earmold
The portion of a hearing aid that goes in the ear canal. They are usually made of a
flexible plastic. Children may need new earmolds as their ears grow.
Ears
Divided into three parts: outer ear – pinna and ear canal, middle ear – ear drum and
ossicles (ear bones), inner ear – cochlea and semicircular canals (balance system).
ENT
Refers to a medical specialist or clinic who does ear exams and possibly surgery.
(Ears, Nose and Throat)
Etiology
Cause or origin of a disability.
Fingerspelling
Using the manual alphabet to spell out words.
Gallaudet University
Gallaudet is a university that is specifically designed for Deaf and Hard of Hearing
individuals. The classes are taught in American Sign Language.
Hearing Aids
Electronic devices that amplifies sound for an individual that experiences hearing
loss. Hearing aids can be digital, analog and bone conduction.
Sign Language
Interpreters
A person who transfers information from spoken English to American Sign Language
for individuals that are Deaf or Hard of Hearing.
Mastoid
A bone behind the ear that the implanted bone conduction aid is attached to.
Open Caption
Words on a film or movie that are present and can not be turned off.
Otitis Media
Inflammation to the middle ear, also known as an ear infection.
Phonology
Study of how sounds are organized in a language.
Play Audiomatry
Refers to the process an audiologist goes through to test a small child’s hearing.
Sensori-neural
A type of permanent hearing loss resulting from an electrical (as opposed to
mechanical) disruption of sound transference.
Speech Banana
A part of the audiogram where speech sounds are located. It is shaped like a
banana.
Tactile Sign Language
A signed language, such as ASL that is signed into the receiver’s hands. Used
typically by Deaf/Blind communicators.
Tinnitus
Ringing in the ear.
Total Communication
An approach in Deaf education where a variety of approaches such as spoken,
signed, written, and visual aides are used to educate a Deaf or Hard of Hearing child.
Visually Impaired
A person with limited vision. In some incidents, this included individuals with no vision,
and in other, it is used to refer only to people with limited, but not total vision loss.