DeafKidz International releases new interactive games for deaf children to stay safe and informed about COVID-19

DeafKidz International is the UK’s leading organisation working to ensure that Deaf, hard of hearing, deafened and DeafBlind children, young people and vulnerable adults are able to live safely and without fear of abuse and exploitation.

Following the worldwide pandemic, the charity has developed three brand new online games aimed at helping young Deaf children understand how to protect themselves from COVID-19.

I spoke to the team to find out more about their work and in particular the interactive games which aim to keep Deaf children and their families safe and informed.

Hi! Firstly, can you tell us more about Deaf Kidz International and the type of work you do?

DeafKidz International (DKI) is the UK’s leading organisation working to ensure that deaf children and young people are able to live safely and without fear of stigma, discrimination and abuse in their communication mode of choice.

DKI was set up by founder Steve Crump in 2009 after he learned of the appalling abuse suffered by deaf children in sub-Saharan Africa. DKI is fast emerging as a global leader for the safeguarding and protection of deaf children, with a view to creating sustainable change, empowering deaf children and young people to succeed while also reducing their vulnerability to and risk of abuse.

DKI merged with UK Charity Sound Seekers (The Commonwealth Society for the Deaf) earlier in 2020. As the new combined charity, DeafKidz International aims to comprehensively respond to the protection, health and wellbeing needs of deaf children, young people and vulnerable adults in low resource and complex humanitarian settings.

DKI works in countries across sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, The Middle East and Jamaica. With the global COVID-19 pandemic, now more than ever, DKI’s primary focus is the protection of deaf children, young people and vulnerable adults in the current crisis and will continue to ensure No Deaf Child is Left Behind

So, over to the DEAFKIDZ vs COVID19 interactive games – why were these devised?

The new DEAFKIDZ vs COVID19 interactive games are a fun and informative way for young deaf children to understand how to keep themselves and others safe from COVID-19.

We created this knowing that in this current challenging time of COVID-19, we are all concerned about how to stay safe and although there are resources available explaining COVID-19 and how to minimise the spread of the virus. A few have been developed in consultation with deaf children and with their specific communication and information needs central.

We wanted to address this, and therefore created a resource to empower deaf children to stay safe and to reduce their risk to infection and transmission, based on informed choice and safe behaviours.

Who designed the games and what do the games involve?

DeafKidz International (DKI), a deaf-led UK based charity, created the games with our technical partner, Litmus Games (leading UK games developer). The games were made possible thanks to the support of the Oak Foundation and its US based partner, the Tides Foundation through their partner Tides.

The DEAFKIDZ vs COVID-19 games contains an animated simple introduction to the virus, and is followed by three visual, interactive and fun mini games which reinforce the vital messages of keeping hands away from the face, washing hands properly, as well as the importance of maintaining a social distance, using a scenario of pushing a trolley around a supermarket.

We selected these three topics for the games as we believe them to be universally relevant protective measures.  Different countries are at difference stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, therefore hope the games will be beneficial to countries across the world.

What type of research was carried out beforehand to make sure the games were effective and accessible?

To ensure the correct approach and to ensure that deaf children’s needs are being met, DKI collected preliminary research and consulted extensively with deaf children, parents, carers and professionals in South Africa, Jamaica and the UK.

We found that interactive PC video games were their preferred learning tool. The reasons given were that deaf children quickly engage with games as they are visual, utilise clear expressions, gestures and actions, require minimal spoken words and therefore don’t require high levels of literacy nor auditory ability.

What sort of age groups are the games aimed at?

The DEAFKIDZ vs COVID-19 games are aimed at being easily relatable and understandable to deaf children of all ages as well as young people with low levels of literacy.  Using visual animation removes language barriers therefore the games are accessible to deaf children and young people in countries across the world. The instructions for the games are in British Sign Language and International Sign on the website.

What are you hoping deaf children will achieve from playing these games?

The aim is for deaf children to learn about important public health messages in a fun, informative and accessible way, empowering and equipping them with the knowledge to protect themselves and others from COVID-19. We believe it is also a helpful resource for parents and guardians of deaf children, especially for those struggling with how to explain COVID-19 in a simple, child friendly manner.

What sort of feedback have you had about them so far?

We have had very positive feedback so far from a variety of deaf schools across the UK and in our project countries, Pakistan and Zambia. Parents of deaf children and those from deaf community groups and organisations in the UK have shared the games and expressed how the games are a fun and educational tool for deaf children.

The games have been endorsed by the World Federation of the Deaf (WFD), shared widely by other deaf charities and schools, and also featured in online publications like Children and Young People Now.

How does DKI feel the COVID-19 pandemic has affected deaf children in general?

Over the past few months, we have seen the COVID-19 pandemic impact deaf children across the world. It is clear there has been a severe lack of accessible information resources on COVID-19 aimed specifically for deaf children, or resources for parents of deaf children to easily explain the situation to their children.

We have seen many countries, including the UK, raise concerns over the barriers deaf people face in accessing information and resources on COVID-19 including live news, due to the lack of sign language interpretation and text heavy information not designed for deaf children and young people.

With face-masks being used on a daily basis worldwide, we recognise the huge challenges this brings for the deaf community and the communication barriers it creates. Schools being closed worldwide means deaf children face either a lack of educational alternatives or remote and online teaching with questionable accessibility.

This unprecedented public health crisis has exposed flaws in existing systems of child protection and support with regard to deaf children. The global economy being on hold and households losing income disproportionately hits the world’s most vulnerable children, including deaf children, making them an easy prey for child labour, domestic servitude, prostitution, forced begging and other exploitative situations, with likely life-long lasting effect on these deaf children.

Deaf children at risk of physical, psychological and/or sexual abuse and violence face heightened risk in these times, particularly if they are forced to isolate with an existing perpetrator of abuse or with an individual with a propensity to abuse.

Deaf children are also 30-50% more likely to experience mental health problems, compared to hearing children, which is only exacerbated in this COVID-19 crisis. It is vital that deaf children are supported through this challenging time.

For more information about the charity and their new interactive games, please see the below links,

Link to play the DEAFKIDZ vs COVID-19 games:

https://www.deafkidzvscovid19.com/

DeafKidz International website:

http://www.deafkidzinternational.org/

To make a donation to support DKI’s work visit:

https://www.justgiving.com/deafkidzint

To get in touch with DKI please contact info@deafkidzinternational.org

DeafKidz International is a UK Registered Charity (No. 1151219) and UK Registered Company (No. 07922360)