Family Language Planning with Deaf and Hard of Hearing Children: Fostering Multilingual Development

Families who live in the United States or migrated here from other countries and who do not speak English often feel pressured to stop using their home language with their children and to focus on learning English (Fillmore, 2000). This is true for hearing families and for families of children who are deaf or hard of hearing. Parents report that their decisions about language opportunities for their deaf or hard of hearing child reflect a multitude of factors. These include: (1) pressures from society; (2) information about communication; (3) families' own experiences; (4) families' knowledge about language development; and (5) deaf or hard of hearing child's listening and language abilities. Whatever language a child's family uses, removing it from their child's life can negatively affect the connection between the child and his or her family and lead to a loss of cultural knowledge and identity for the child. Holding on to the language of the child's family is important and complex--and it can be even more complex for multilingual families.