Liam O‘Dell: An over-reliance on technology is harming vital deaf services

At the best of times, technology can provide essential access for deaf people.

But at the worst of times, it can feed into the harmful narrative that technological solutions are a quick ‘cure’ for problems caused by hearing loss.

Technology can also reduce deaf people’s access to real-world, human services.

This issue is ever present within the Access to Work scheme, with the latest data, released earlier this month, showing that the Department for Work and Pensions spent the most on equipment in the last year.

13,000 people received special aids and equipment, while 9,500 received support workers and 2,800 people received mental health support services.

These statistics are telling. Official DWP guidance references the cost-effectiveness for the taxpayer which, although valid, immediately makes technology the preferred option – the one-time cost of equipment outweighing the benefits of ongoing practical human support such as an interpreter, palantypist or speech-to-text reporter (STTR).

With that, the case is closed, with the inaccurate assumption that a deaf person’s support needs are fully met for the foreseeable future.

The government’s reluctance to fund human solutions also extends to other areas facing the deaf community – most importantly in deaf education services.

A new lipreading campaign by the London college City Lit, called Hear My Lips, highlights what it calls an “unfair postcode lottery” when it comes to lipreading classes. In the UK, 11 million deaf people only have access to only 353 courses.

What must be remembered is that technology can only go so far to aid us in social situations. While lipreading as a practice has its own limitations – in that it is mainly dependent on guesswork – it comes with the countless benefits that emerge as a result of learning a new skill.

A preference towards assistive technology without considering human support and skills can rob deaf people of the confidence and rapport with others which are so important.

Consider the situation facing deaf children and young people in education, too. Devastating cuts to Teachers of the Deaf are harming access to learning and without the right support, the attainment gap between deaf and hearing children has widened.

With 57% of current Teachers of the Deaf set to retire in the next 10 to 15 years, an urgent drive must be launched to train new Teachers of the Deaf and protect this vital service.

Such a push must also extend to British Sign Language (BSL) interpreters, a service which is also in short supply.

As technology continues to work towards gloves and machines which can translate BSL into speech, there’s a risk that such automation could reduce access to the human, real-world use of sign language.

Not only that, but it must be recognised that technology is fallible, and there are some things which cannot be properly automated.

Of course, there’s no denying that technology can also be incredibly useful to many deaf people, but the Government must consider this alongside practical support, and realise that both are equally important.

A heavy focus on assistive technology which ignores deaf services provided by humans only has the potential to cause further isolation, which many organisations are fighting to eradicate.

Photo: Rainbow J. Summer.

Liam is a mildly deaf freelance journalist and blogger from Bedfordshire. He wears bilateral hearing aids and makes the occasional video about deaf awareness on his YouTube channel. He can also be found talking about disability, politics, theatre, books and music on his Twitter, or on his blog, The Life of a Thinker.