Making Bat Events Accessible to Deaf and Hard of Hearing People

Transcription

1 Accessibility Guide Making Bat Events Accessible to Deaf and Hard of Hearing People This guide is an introduction to making events more accessible to Deaf and hard of hearing (DHOH) people. Whether you want to run a bat walk or give a talk to DHOH people, this guide will provide you with some important hints and tips on how to best plan, advertise and deliver your event. If you need further information please contact one of the local or national organisations dedicated to hearing loss. 1. Introduction to hearing loss We use the word deaf when we are talking about anyone with a hearing loss, especially a profound loss. Deaf people describe themselves in different ways and the words they use tell us which group they feel closest to. People who are 'deaf' might say they are: Deaf with a capital D deaf with a small d hard of hearing deafened deafblind (or that they have a dual sensory loss) partially deaf partially hearing hearing impaired someone who has an acquired hearing loss someone who has hearing difficulties Phrases and words that D/deaf people dislike include: deaf as a post congenitally deaf stone deaf deaf and dumb deaf mute a 'deafie' Facts and figures (Action on Hearing Loss and UK Council on Deafness) More than 10 million people in the UK have some form of hearing loss, or one in six of the population. More than 800,000 people in the UK are severely or profoundly deaf. British Sign Language (BSL) is the first or preferred language of around 70,000 people in the UK 1

2 It is unacceptable to use the phrase the deaf or the hard of hearing, as this defines people in terms of their deafness. Preferred phrases are deaf people or hard of hearing people. The biggest difference is between Deaf people (with a capital D ) and those who describe themselves as hard of hearing. Deaf people use sign language as their first or preferred language, whilst hard of hearing people usually see themselves as part of the hearing world and use speech, lip-reading and residual hearing for communication. 1.1 British Sign Language (BSL) Wherever communities of Deaf people exist, sign languages develop. Hundreds of sign languages are in use around the world and are at the core of local Deaf cultures. A sign language uses visually transmitted sign patterns to convey meaning, simultaneously combining hand shapes, orientation and movement of the hands, arms or body and facial expressions and lip patterns to express a speaker's thoughts. 1.2 Fingerspelling This method of communication uses the spelling out of the letters of the alphabet on the fingers using the grammar of the spoken language. Deaf people who use BSL sometimes use fingerspelling for proper nouns or words which have no sign as yet, such as 'sonogram'. 1.3 Other sign systems Many people have heard of Makaton. This is not an independent language but is a system of basic signs designed to be used with speech to assist in communication with some people who have learning disabilities. Some of the Makaton signs have been borrowed from BSL. 2. Advertising your event People from both groups (Deaf and hard of hearing) may wish to join a mainstream event but many will not realise that a bat walk can be made accessible, as they will associate bats with sounds and bat detectors. If you are holding a talk, then your publicity can say BSL interpreter provided. British Sign Language Interpreters are a relatively expensive and scarce resource, 2

3 so it may be helpful to say BSL interpreter can be provided: text XXXX or XXXX. Rates for an interpreter can vary and some may have a minimum call out charge, but you can expect to pay around 25 an hour for a day event and 30 for an evening event. To promote access to HoH people, select a venue with an induction loop and advertise this using the well-recognised symbol. 1 If you are doing outreach work then to contact Deaf people you will need to identify and work closely with a community leader. In common with many minority groups, members of the Deaf community will respond more positively to information spread via a respected person in their community. Hard of hearing people are easier to contact: there may well be hard of hearing self-help groups in your area and lip-reading classes are another way to promote your event. Lip-reading teachers are usually very helpful and welcome guest speakers. 3. Communication tips One of things that most frightens people when faced with a deaf audience is will they understand me? There is much you can do to improve communication: 3.1 Speaking to people who have hearing loss Follow the 10 clear communication rules: 1. Make sure you have the person s attention and that he/she is looking at you. Ask the person how he/she wants to communicate. 2. Make sure that background noise is at a minimum. 3. Look directly at the person and don t turn away whilst talking. Ideally be between three and six feet apart. 4. Make sure that there is enough light on your face. 5. Make sure that your face or mouth is not hidden behind hands, cigarettes, beard, etc. 6. Keep the normal rhythm of speech but slow down slightly. 7. Do not shout as this distorts your lip patterns and makes you look angry. 8. Use facial expressions, body language and gestures where appropriate. 9. If a sentence is not understood try to rephrase it, or, in a one-to-one setting, write it down. 1 See later on in this leaflet for information on induction loops. 3

4 10. Always be patient and friendly and take time to communicate. If you are working with a Deaf group who use British Sign Language, you will have to communicate through a BSL interpreter. Action on Hearing Loss has good information and guidance on BSL interpreters: Action on Hearing Loss has an excellent guide: BSL interpreters can be booked through Action for Hearing Loss and also through local and national agencies: ask member of your local Deaf community whom they use, as this will be the best guide. It can be a strange experience using an interpreter, especially as there is a time lag so that your audience responds to you after what can seem like a very long gap. This is particularly true if you tell a joke. It is only when you start the next sentence that your deaf audience start to laugh! You may also feel uncomfortable as your audience will be looking at the interpreter, rather than at you. 3.2 How to use an interpreter Here are some basic guidelines: Send any useful information to the interpreter well before the appointment or meeting, to give them time to prepare. Allow the interpreter to position him/herself so they are opposite the Deaf audience and near to the hearing speaker. Try to make sure that there is no background noise, so the interpreter can hear properly. Speak directly to the Deaf person or Deaf audience, not to the interpreter. Allow interpreters to have regular breaks. After minutes an interpreter will need a break, so you will probably need to book two for your event. Make sure that only one person speaks at a time. 4

5 Remember the Interpreter will interpret everything that is said or signed (even audible asides). Remember that the interpreter will not give advice or offer opinions during the interpreting tasks 3.3 Equipment that can aid communication with hard of hearing people In crowded situations or when a voice source is more than arm s length away, hearing aid users can find background noise levels are as loud as the voice they want to hear. Induction Loop Systems This is an area of hearing technology that many people are familiar with and is used in theatres, cinemas and on reception desks. An induction loop system has a sound input (usually a microphone), an amplifier and a loop of cable that is run around the area in which the system is to be used. The loop generates an electromagnetic field that is picked up by the Telecoil in the hearing aid. The hearing aid user needs to set the switch on their hearing aid to the T position. They will then hear the sound while they are within the looped area. Hearing Link has a very clear explanation of how induction loops work: Induction loops are excellent for use indoors, but when you are outside you will need something else. Some HoH people will have radio aids. Radio aids A radio aid system greatly improves the clarity of sound by allowing a human voice to be fed electronically into a hearing aid, thus reducing background noise and sound loss between speaker and listener. Radio aids have two main parts: a transmitter and a receiver. The person who is speaking (usually the tutor) wears the transmitter. A microphone picks up his or her voice. The sounds are transmitted by an FM radio signal to the receiver, which is worn by the listener. The receiver converts the signal into an electrical signal that goes round a personal neck loop connected to the radio aid receiver. The wearer switches their hearing aid into the T position and the Telecoil in the hearing aid converts the electrical signal back into sound. The receiver and the transmitter are both small and light: rather like wearing a cigarette packet or a small bat detector! Radio aids help overcome difficulty in hearing by: 5

6 Making the speaker s voice stand out from background noise. Effectively maintaining a constant distance between the speaker and the listener. Reducing the impact of unhelpful reverberation (echo). Potential problems: The hearing aid user can only hear the person who is using the microphone. Thus if questions are being asked, the tutor must either repeat the questions or pass the microphone round. In a discussion the microphone will have to be passed round and everyone will have to discipline themselves to wait until the microphone has arrived. (Learners who can t see the microphone will need to be told when they can speak). If the radio transmitter (the part that the tutor wears) is not switched off, students may be able to hear conversations that they are not supposed to hear! 4. Type of bat events possible to deliver The most accessible bat events to run for deaf people are: A bat talk inside, featuring some visual props and resources to hand around (see our Resources List). A bat walk with bat detectors, preferably in a known environment e.g. communal garden, local park etc. The Magenta models 4 & 5 vibrate quite well when the volume is turned right up, but it is worth testing any models you already have to see how much they vibrate when a bat passes close by. Hands- on activities such as building bat boxes, creating a bat-friendly garden or taking part in National Bat Monitoring Programme (NBMP) surveys such as Sunset/Sunrise and Colony Count Surveys. 5. Preparing the event If you are preparing a bat walk or talk and you want to make sure everyone enjoys the experience and understands the world of bats, try to send/hand out some publications/photos beforehand so that people have time to learn a bit more about bats before the event. 6

7 6. Running the event Every event at which you speak should start with checking that everyone can understand you a simple offer to speak louder or more clearly can allow members of your audience to let you know if they have a hearing loss or will be lip-reading. Speaking at an outdoor bat walk adds an extra layer of complexity and it is important to be as organised as possible, stopping at regular points, waiting for everyone to gather close by and making sure your face is lit before you start to speak. If you are leading a walk for a group who are lip-reading, you will need to limit the numbers so that everyone can be close enough to lip read you. The last of the evening sun, street lights or small camping lamps can all be useful tools. With a Deaf audience using British Sign Language, organisation is even more important. You will need to have an idea of what you will say, then let the BSL interpreter know the basics of this when you book them. You may need to use two interpreters for a bat walk, especially with a larger group, but they should be able to advise you whether this is necessary or not. When you book let them know of unusual terms you may use like: hibernation, echolocation, pipistrelle, Daubenton s bat etc. as they will need to either check the sign for these, if it exists, or know how to spell them out. You will want them to arrive first so that when the first Deaf people arrive you are able to communicate with them. It is also worth getting the interpreters to show you the signs for hello, welcome and thank you while you are waiting for people to arrive so you can say something directly to the group as people arrive and at the end of the walk if you wish. If you are meeting outside then try to start quite early so that you can give your introductory talk while there is still a reasonable amount of light. Make sure that you and the interpreter(s) face the setting sun in an area where the audience can gather in a wide arc in front of you rather than having to peer over each others shoulders. If you haven t already spelt out the terrain of the walk in your advertising then do so in your talk some deaf people may have balance problems and these can be heightened in the dark. Point out if you plan, for instance, to walk through any tunnels or totally dark spots or on any uneven paths. If you have any helpers then introduce them at the start, make sure they have a light or lamp and preferably have some identifying feature such as a reflective band on their arm. It can be difficult for helpers to start any conversations when the walk gets going as the interpreter is likely to remain beside the leader but by introducing them to the group and saying they will be happy to try and answer any questions you have at least opened the communication. 7

8 Consider in advance how you are going to discuss any concepts involving sound for instance bat calls, echolocation and bat detectors. Taking pictures along can be useful to help with this and any visual props are likely to be popular. When you set off assign a front and back marker. As with all bat walks there will be times when the group gets strung out and with a group of Deaf people engrossed in conversing in BSL you won t be able to shout or wave to get their attention or tell them to stop. Planning the points in advance where you will stop and letting your front and back markers know this will help. As mentioned previously, bat detectors can be successfully used by feeling their vibrations when echolocating bats pass by. Some makes and models vibrate more than others and it is worth testing them out for yourself so you can find out which of those available is best and what it is like to use them in this manner. As with any bat walk you will need to explain in your introductory talk that there are things other than bat calls that will make them vibrate such as bush crickets (take along a picture) or feet brushing through long grass (tune to 25KHz and let them experience it for themselves). The audience will need to turn the detectors up to full volume to feel the vibrations so it will be noisy for any hearing participants and the leader may wish to have a headphone in one ear attached to their own bat detector so they can clearly hear their own detector and confirm the species of passing bats. 8

9 The experience of feeling the vibrations on a bat detector is not as rich as hearing the call so they are best used as early warning devices to flag up the presence of bats and as a tool to give some interpretation of the call. To get the best experience however, a site or route should be chosen where participants have the best chance of seeing bats either up close or clearly silhouetted against the sky. A walk where there are bats with distinctive flight patterns, such as Daubenton s bats, or of noticeably different sizes such as pipistrelles and noctules is also advantageous. The site or route should also be chosen based on suitable points to gather. Places where you can gather everyone together to see the BSL interpreter unobstructed, or where there are street lamps to collect around are particularly useful. If possible it is worth ending the walk beneath a street lamp or other light source so that participants can hang around and chat amongst themselves before heading home. If our experience is anything to go by then you are unlikely to get everything right at the first attempt but if you explain that it is the first time you have delivered a walk for deaf people then you should be able to get some constructive feedback on how things could be improved. This may be best done by after the event so people can head off if they wish. As with any bat walk, half the enjoyment for people is to be out together at night as a group, and all the walks we led were popular and good fun, even when bats failed to appear. 7. Further Contacts / Organisations Action on Hearing Loss The national organisation that represents all deaf people. Useful sections on communication Featherstone Street, London. EC1Y 8SL Telephone: Website: Association of Sign Language Interpreters (ASLI) Has a directory of sign language interpreters on it s website which can be searched by area to find a local interpreter. Fortuna House, South Fifth Street, Milton Keynes. MK9 2PQ Telephone: Website: British Deaf Association A Deaf-led organisation that represents the British Sign Language community. 10th Floor, Coventry Point, Market Way, Coventry. CV1 1EA Telephone: Website: 9

10 Hearing Link Provides information and support for anyone with a hearing loss. Their website is developing and has a very friendly feel to it. Their website has an excellent section on communication professionals: The Waterfront, Eastbourne, East Sussex. BN23 5UZ Telephone: Website: Association of Teachers of Lipreading to Adults A useful way of contacting teachers of lipreading. See especially their leaflet on communication tips. c/o Hearing LINK, The Waterfront, Eastbourne, East Sussex. BN23 5UZ Telephone: Website: See also E.1.a - Bat Walks for Deaf and Hard of Hearing People - Film D.2.a - Bristol Deaf Community Case Study This guide has been prepared by Addventure in Learning, the Bat Conservation Trust and David Jackson Credit photos: Bat Conservation Trust unless otherwise stated December The Bat Conservation Trust (known as BCT) is a registered charity in England and Wales ( ) and in Scotland (SC040116). Registered office: Quadrant House, 250 Kennington Lane, London SE11 5RD