Deaf children in rural areas often lack the development of self-esteem essential to their overall development of social and academic skills. Deaf children in rural communities generally have low interpersonal communication and leadership skills. Being isolated with no role model for their identification (deafness) could limit their language acquisition and identity development. The purpose of this project is to develop a special curriculum project which would help initiate a program that would enable deaf children in rural areas to develop self-esteem skills through a one week summer camp program focusing on learning about themselves and related essential self-esteem skills through special activities. The objectives in creating this curriculum are to improve self-esteem, provide opportunities for students to explore and develop their identity as development of self-esteem, maintain reading and writing through the summer months, and provide opportunities for friendships to form. Creating this curriculum involved a variety of resources. Summer camps and curriculum in the field were researched, literature was located and reviewed, respected professionals offered ideas and critiques, and revisions occurred. The future may now hold materials that can truly be implemented to improve the named objectives for deaf children. Research (Stinson & Kluwin; Foster; Charlson, Strong & Gold; et al) consistently demonstrates that a large number of Deaf students experience isolation and low self-esteem in their respective educational settings (mostly mainstreamed settings and rural settings). In a newspaper interview for the Nevada Appeal, Gary W. Olsen, DlllIARC Executive Director and former Youth Leadership founder and Camp Director claims that if Deaf children are not given the opportunity to develop their self-esteem early, they will definitely have a difficult time achieving their goals in life because they do not actually know themselves well.
Department, Program, or Center
Master of Science of Secondary Education of Students Who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing (NTID)
Daviton, Candi, "A Program of self-esteem development for deaf children in rural areas" (2006). Thesis. Rochester Institute of Technology. Accessed from
RIT – Main Campus