Hearing Aids "fix" hearing

Unless you yourself have a hearing loss, the only kind of hearing loss you can probably identify with is the kind that can occur when you get a cold, and that's a conductive loss. You may wrongly assume that hearing aids will "fix" the problem and. Hearing aids cannot fix the hearing of someone with a sensorineural hearing loss, especially a child.

Hearing aids can make sounds louder, but cannot make them clearer. Listening through a hearing aid has been described as tuning a radio slightly off a radio station, allowing static, then making it louder. Just as with a hearing aid, as the radio plays louder, the static and noise become worse.  

This page will demonstrate visually how hearing aids work for conductive and sensorineural hearing loss. Take a look at this image:

Try to read the word in the center. Scroll down to the bottom of the page to see the word enlarged, then return here.   Go ahead...I'll wait.

You should have been able to easily read the word in the center. This is how a hearing aid works for a conductive hearing loss: once sound is loud enough (bigger) it can be understood.

Now take a look at this image:

Again, see if you can read the word in the center. Scroll to the bottom to see this image enlarged, then return here.  I'll wait for you again.

Could you read the word in the center? This is the way hearing aids work for sensorineural loss. Even though the aid makes sounds louder, it does not fill in parts of the sound that are missing or distorted. How much of the word is missing can be affected by things such as condition of the inner ear, auditory fatigue, listening experiences, prior exposure to the word, condition of the earmold, condition of the hearing aid, and background noise.

Some information for filling in the parts of the words that are missing or distorted may be gained through speech-reading (lip-reading). Even under the best conditions only about 30 to 40 percent of speech can be understood on the lips. Mouth the words pan, ban, and man. Notice that the position of your lips is the same for all 3 words. Even some words you may not think look the same, do. Try mouthing the words red and green. Once again, the position of your lips is the same for both words.

Other clues for filling in missing parts can be body language, context, tone of voice, repetition, pictures, or any of a number of different strategies. FM or Sound Field systems can be beneficial if background noise is adding to the problem.

I hope this demonstration has helped you understand why it is important to become familiar with and use strategies that will help a hearing-impaired child understand what is being said.
By the way, the word is on the second card is FIRETRUCK

Adapted from: Nussbaum, Debra. There's A Hearing Impaired Child In My Class. Washington, DC: Gallaudet University, 1988.