Rehabilitation Services Administration 2010 National Training Forum

Key Facts from the August 25, 2010 Presentation of

Dr. Alexa Posny, Assistant Secretary

Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services

Population[1]

70,682 students with hearing impairments, ages 6 – 21, have Individual Education Plans (IEP).

Educational Environments[2]

86.5 percent(61,123) of all students with hearing impairments and IEPs are in public schools.

62 percent of those students with hearing impairments and IEPs who are in public schools spend more than 80 percent of their time in the regular classroom. Another 20 percent of those students spend between 40 and 79 percent of their time in the regular classroom.

Data collected by the U.S. Department of Education under IDEA only includes those students with hearing impairments who have IEPs. It does notinclude those students who are deaf and hard of hearing and who do not have IEPs, even if they are receiving accommodations under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act in their schools. This count also doesn’t include those students who are deaf-blind.

Exiting Data[3]

Children with Disabilities (14-21) leaving with diploma / Children with Hearing Impairments and IEPs leaving with diploma / Children with Disabilities (14-21) leaving due to dropping out / Children with Hearing Impairments and IEPs leaving due to dropping out
National / 59% / 43% / 26% / 5%
State Range / 14% to 79% / 10% to 40%

Of the 6,539 students with hearing impairments exiting high school in the 2007 – 2008 academic year—

  • 2,936 received diplomas,
  • 737 received IEP certificates,
  • 466dropped out.

Students who are Deaf and Hard of Hearingin Postsecondary Programs

  • About 468,000 students who are deaf and hard of hearing currently attending college[4]
  • Of these students, about 123,000 students are deaf[5]
  • Between two-thirds and three-quarters will not complete their degree program[6]

Having clear and purposeful academic and career goalsis a predictor of success for students who are deaf and attending post-secondary institutions.[7]

[1]Data Accountability Center. Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Data. Part B Child Count (2008)[Table 1-3]. Retrieved from

[2]Data Accountability Center. Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Data. Part B Educational Environment (2008)[Table 2-2]. Retrieved from

[3]Data Accountability Center. (2009) Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Data. Part B Exiting (2007-2008)[Tables 4-1 and 4-2]. Retrieved from

[4]Schroedel, J. , Watson, D., & Ashmore D. (2003). A National Research Agenda for the Postsecondary Education of Deaf and Hard of Heearing Students: A Road Map for the Future. American Annals of the Deaf, 148, 67-72.

[5] ibid

[6] Myers, M.J., & Taylor, E. M. (2000). Best Practices for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Student Success in Postsecondary Education. Journal of the American Deafness and Rehabilitation Association, 34, 13 – 28.

[7] Smith Julia A. (2004). “College Is a Challenge, But I’ve Got Dreams and I Know I can Do It”: Deaf Students in Mainstream Colleges. Dissertation submitted to Oregon State University.