An American Mother Raising a Deaf Daughter in Small-Town Japan

10.47908/12/8 ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 197-217
Author(s):  
Suzanne Kamata
Keyword(s):  
Lived Experiences ◽  
Personal Narrative ◽  
Personal Narratives ◽  
The United States ◽  
Deaf Children ◽  
Self Reflection ◽  
Reflection Data ◽  
Counter Narratives ◽  
School For The Deaf

In this chapter, I describe my struggle, as an American mother in Japan, to understand and adapt to the policies of the local school for the deaf, and the possible effects of being bicultural on my deaf daughter’s educational development. As Sikes and Goodson (2017) posit, we make sense of our lives through the telling and retelling of stories of our lived experiences. As such, “personal narratives have a status as personal, as well as research, data” (2017, p. 64). In the case of parents of children with disabilities, such as myself, “the potentialities or limits of a narrative plotline are contested; the available narratives are considered inadequate, and narrators turn to counter-narratives with alternative plotlines” (Shuman, 2017, p. 244). Here, I will employ personal narrative, incorporating personal memory data and self-observational and self-reflection data to explore some of the differences regarding attitudes toward and practices of education for deaf children from a bicultural background (specifically Hispanic/Latino) in the United States and my own experiences in Japan, and to suggest areas for further study.

scholarly journals Annetta T. Mills and the Origin of Deaf Education in China

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 84-99
Author(s):  
Shu Wan
Keyword(s):  
Deaf Education ◽  
Education Institution ◽  
The United States ◽  
Deaf Children ◽  
Industrial Training ◽  
Transnational Community ◽  
History Of ◽  
Native Teachers ◽  
School For The Deaf ◽  
Education In China

As the first education institution enrolling deaf children in China, the Chefoo School for the Deaf (which will be called “Chefoo School” in the rest of this article) was originally established by the American missionary couple Charles R. Mills and Annetta T. Mills. In the first decade of the twentieth century, the Chefoo School succeeded in attracting students across the country. For investigating Mills’s contributions to the proliferation of Chinese deaf education in a transnational context, this article will consist of the following three sections. The first section primarily discusses the early history of deaf education in China before the establishment of the Chefoo School in 1898. As early as the 1840s, Chinese elites had already gained firsthand knowledge of deaf education in the United States. Around the 1870s, American and French missionaries respectively proposed to establish a specific deaf school, which took care of deaf children in Shanghai but failed to provide special education to them. And then the second section of this article will examine Mills’s efforts to seek financial support from the transnational community of deaf education. The final section of this article will switch to Mills’s agenda of localizing deaf education in China, including training native teachers fostering the proliferation of deaf education in China and providing industrial training to Chinese deaf children.

Braiding as a Feminist Methodology: Tensions and Possibilities of Weaving Together

2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-15
Author(s):  
Amber Ward
Keyword(s):  
Data Analysis ◽  
Personal Narratives ◽  
Text Representation ◽  
Feminist Methodology ◽  
Master Narratives ◽  
Self Reflection ◽  
Counter Narratives ◽  
Collaborative Databases

A transnational feminist paradigm guides this inquiry when braiding narratives, both literally and abstractly, as a feminist methodology for data analysis. The data include personal narratives (memories and thoughts imprinted on my body, spirit, and mind), master narratives (collaborative databases and public sites), and counter narratives (articles, books, and videos). The braid offers opportunities to (re)imagine coalitional possibilities through figures ([Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text]) that materialize in the tension of weaving together. When foregrounding self-reflection in the context of weaving together, I explore [Formula: see text] supremacy, [Formula: see text] positionality, and [Formula: see text] representation. The assemblage of figures leads me to a [Formula: see text] colleague turned friend turned collaborator who reminds me to work with productive tension toward love.

scholarly journals Perceived Changes in Sexuality during the COVID-19 Pandemic among Adults in the United States

Sexes ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 331-344
Author(s):  
Jessamyn Bowling ◽  
Erika Montanaro ◽  
Sarai Guerrero-Ordonez ◽  
Stuti Joshi ◽  
Diana Gioia
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Sexual Behavior ◽  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Social Interactions ◽  
Nationwide Survey ◽  
The United States ◽  
Self Reflection ◽  
Sex Drive ◽  
Stress Changes ◽  
Sexual Experimentation

In the United States, the COVID-19 pandemic has decreased partnered sexual behavior and increased the use of enhancement (e.g., toys). This has been partly attributed to reduced social interactions and stress. However, individuals’ perceptions of changes are missing in research. This study aims to examine how adults perceive changes in their sexuality during the pandemic. We conducted a nationwide survey of US adults from April–June 2020 (N = 326). This qualitative study examines the open-ended responses using thematic analyses. The following themes emerged from the data: (1) changes in the purpose of sex; (2) changes in sexual identity; (3) decreases in sex drive and desire; (4) increases in sex drive and desire; (5) fluctuations in sex drive and desire; (6) increased sexual experimentation and reflection. The stress, changes in home responsibilities and living situations, and time spent with partners (more or less) has affected individuals by increasing or decreasing their sex drive and desire. Participants responded to changes with self-reflection and awareness, and incorporating new practices (e.g., technology, kink). The purpose of sex has shifted in order to gain intimacy or connect, or to pass time. These changes were perceived as both positive and negative, and more research is needed to determine the durability of these changes.

International students’ lived experiences in a predominantly White institution in Southwest Florida

2020 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Clarisse Halpern ◽  
Hasan Aydin
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
International Students ◽  
Predominantly White ◽  
Lived Experiences ◽  
Global Education ◽  
The United States ◽  
Predominantly White Institution ◽  
Southwest Florida ◽  
White Institution ◽  
Dominant Society

AbstractYearly, thousands of international students seek the United States to further their education, bringing cultural and financial capital into the country. Though previous studies have examined international students’ experiences adapting to the receiving country, research is needed to investigate their lived experiences in a predominantly White institution (PWI). Thus, a narrative inquiry was applied to explore international students’ life stories at a PWI in Southwest Florida. Data collection comprised in-depth individual interviews with 12 participants that resulted in four themes: multiracial identities, otherness, self-representation in the dominant society, and perceptions of the dominant culture. The narratives revealed challenges related to isolation, segregation, and feelings of inferiority, contributing to understanding the value of diversity and global education in higher education. Recommendations are included to better serve international students in higher education institutions.

Understanding the complexity of domestic violence service delivery through the lived experiences of domestic violence advocates

2021 ◽  
pp. 002087282110416
Author(s):  
Ga-Young Choi ◽  
Soonok An ◽  
Hyungak Cho ◽  
Eun Koh
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Research ◽  
Domestic Violence ◽  
Service Delivery ◽  
Reflective Practice ◽  
Lived Experiences ◽  
The United States ◽  
Victim Blaming ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Domestic Violence Survivors ◽  
Domestic Violence Services

This qualitative research explored the lived experiences of domestic violence advocates to better understand the elements involved in domestic violence service delivery in the United States, focusing on positive and challenging aspects of their work. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 17 advocates who assisted domestic violence survivors. Advocates’ persistent engagement in reflective practice and advocacy for the survivors against a victim-blaming culture were identified as important elements in delivering multi-faceted domestic violence services. Implications for social work and domestic violence practice in improving domestic violence service delivery for the survivors are discussed.

scholarly journals Strategizing and Fatalizing: Self and Other in the Trauma Narratives of Justice-Involved Women

2018 ◽  
Vol 28 (6) ◽  
pp. 873-887 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda M. Emerson
Keyword(s):  
Social Relationships ◽  
Personal Narratives ◽  
Public Support ◽  
Health And Safety ◽  
The United States ◽  
Trauma Narratives ◽  
Convenience Sample ◽  
Self Presentation ◽  
Self And Other ◽  
History Of

Jail admissions in the United States number nearly 1 million women annually. Many have limited access to public support and must seek assistance from family, friends, and strangers to maintain health and safety after release. This study sought to learn more about how women with a history of interpersonal trauma and criminal justice involvement perceive and manage social relationships. In-depth, story-eliciting interviews were conducted over 12 months with 10 participants who were selected from the convenience sample of an ongoing parent study in a Midwestern urban jail. Embedded trauma narratives were analyzed for self-presentation, form, and theme. The trauma narratives registered a continuum of agency, anchored at either end by patterns of strategizing talk and fatalizing talk. Providers and advocates can improve support for justice-involved women post incarceration by becoming familiar with and responding to patterns of strategizing and fatalizing in their personal narratives.

Biblical Lamentations and Singing the Blues

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel L. Smith-Christopher
Keyword(s):  
African American ◽  
Reading Strategies ◽  
Personal Narrative ◽  
Sense Of Self ◽  
Personal Narratives ◽  
Well Being

Scholars working on the connection of literature, narrative, and trauma have made important connections between an individual’s ability to maintain a coherent sense of self (a personal narrative) and their own psychological and social well-being. Some literary expressions from traumatic circumstances, therefore, can be read as individual attempts to repair personal narratives. The biblical book of Lamentations may well be such an exercise in narrative repair. Using these ideas to introduce ways of reading the biblical book of Lamentations, the chapter makes the connection with African American blues traditions as another form of narrative repair very much in the spirit of the biblical material. In fact, the comparison with the blues may well lead to new reading strategies for Lamentations as well.

scholarly journals Deaf Children’s Concept Formation in Mathematics

2005 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 375-376
Author(s):  
Elsa Foisack
Keyword(s):  
Sign Language ◽  
Concept Formation ◽  
Concept Maps ◽  
Deaf Children ◽  
Large Variability ◽  
Self Confidence ◽  
Video Recordings ◽  
Time To Learn ◽  
School For The Deaf ◽  
Bilingual School

The question of why deaf children have difficulties in learning mathematics is the basis of this study. The aim of the study is to illuminate deaf children’s concept formation in mathematics by describing how some deaf children express themselves and act on their way towards understanding two basic concepts: the concept of multiplication with whole numbers and the concept of length.Theories developed by Feuerstein are used in order to describe how deaf children develop concepts, and to investigate possibilities to help deaf children develop their cognitive potential in a more effective and adequate way. Concept maps illustrate steps and pathways taken by the pupils. The importance of language in concept formation, with focus on sign language is illuminated.The children in this study were pupils in a School for the Deaf, a bilingual school with the languages Swedish Sign Language and Swedish. Seven 11-year-old pupils, all the pupils in one group in grade 4, were studied. Video recordings were made of pupil-teacher interactions in problem solving situations in sign language only, with paper and pencil, with learning materials, and with real things.A large variability in the pupils’ ability to solve the problems was found depending on different factors identified by Feuerstein, e.g., self-confidence, looking for meaning, search of challenge, intention to finish the work, and use of known facts. No difference was found concerning the steps towards comprehension of the concepts for the deaf pupils in the study compared to those of hearing pupils. In accordance with earlier studies, it was found that the deaf pupils needed more time to learn mathematics than hearing pupils normally do. As a consequence, they may learn certain concepts at a later age, and the pathways towards comprehension may vary compared to those of hearing pupils. The structure of sign language and the lack of an established terminology in mathematics are also of importance.The bilingual situation for deaf pupils is a reason for developing methods of teaching mathematics to deaf pupils alternative to methods used today.

scholarly journals Black dissent in America: exploring Ava DuVernay’Selma and 13th against the background of the 2020 anti-racial discrimination protests

2021 ◽  
pp. 95-115
Author(s):  
Maria Eduarda Gil Vicente
Keyword(s):  
Racial Discrimination ◽  
The United States ◽  
Police Brutality ◽  
Specific Group ◽  
Recent Event ◽  
Racial Relations ◽  
The Past ◽  
Counter Narratives ◽  
Black Resistance ◽  
White Majority

The 2020 protests on police brutality and racial discrimination in the United States constitute the most recent event of black dissent in what is a history marked by injustice, humiliation, exploitation and the denial of freedom, equality and self-representation of a specific group of people. Dissent can be exercised in many ways and in different areas of society. Over the past few years, Ava DuVernay has produced filmic works that are counter-narratives to the forms of representation imposed on African-Americans by the dominant white majority. This paper analyzes two of those works, Selma (2014) and 13th (2016), and considers their potential as instruments of dissent within the context of black resistance, at a time when racial relations are once again under scrutiny.

scholarly journals Co-Cultural Theory and Communication

Communication ◽  
2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Lived Experiences ◽  
Cultural Difference ◽  
Cultural Theory ◽  
The United States ◽  
Basic Question ◽  
Cultural Group ◽  
Cultural Groups ◽  
Dominant Group ◽  
Group Status ◽  
Group Members

Co-cultural communication theory, or co-cultural theory for short, emerged from the scholarly research of Mark Orbe in the 1990s. A co-cultural theoretical approach provides a lens to understand how traditionally underrepresented group members communicate within societal structures governed by cultural groups that have, over time, achieved dominant group status. The theory’s foundation was established by Orbe and colleagues by exploring the communicative lived experiences of underrepresented group members in the United States; the earliest work engaged the communication of co-cultural groups defined through race, ethnicity, gender, socioeconomic status, disability, and sexual orientation. The theory centralizes the lived experiences of co-cultural group members and focuses on instances when cultural difference is regarded as salient. At its core, co-cultural theory explores one basic question: How do co-cultural group members use communication to negotiate their cultural identities with others (both like and unlike themselves) in a societal context where they are traditionally marginalized? Through discovery-oriented qualitative research, six factors emerged (field of experience, abilities, perceived costs and rewards, communication approach, preferred outcome, and situational context) as central to the selection of specific co-cultural practices. Since its inception, co-cultural theory has been embraced as a core theory for individuals interested in studying the intersection of culture, power, and communication.

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