In a variety of contexts, deaf individuals often must navigate multiple societal, psychological, and physical barriers. It is frequently proposed that role models meet an important need for successful navigation in such contexts. The present article, a research synthesis, explores available literature on role models for deaf individuals, drawing from social capital theory to conceptualize how individuals in social networks can facilitate the development of resources necessary for navigating various settings. Four key themes were identified, two being that role models (a) address a critical need and (b) contribute to important developmental processes. In addition, (c) key elements appear to be necessary for effective role modeling, and (d) multidimensional cultural affiliations are important considerations within the role model process. Though more research is needed, the findings suggest that role models play an important role in how deaf individuals build social capital.

In signed languages, the articulatory space in front of the signer is used grammatically, topographically, and to depict a real or imagined space around a signer and thus is an important consideration in signed language acquisition. It has been suggested that children who acquire signed languages rely on concomitant visual–spatial development to support their linguistic development. We consider the case of a native-signing deaf adolescent female with average intelligence who had been reported to struggle with spatial aspects of American Sign Language (ASL) as a child. Results of a battery of linguistic and nonlinguistic tests suggest that she has relatively good ASL skills with the exception of some specific difficulties on spatial tasks that require attention to ASL and nonlinguistic topographic space or changes in visual perspective (e.g., classifiers and referential shift). This child has some difficulties with visual–spatial abilities, and we suggest that this has affected her acquisition of those aspects of ASL that are heavily dependent on visual–spatial processing.

Teachers’ sense of efficacy, or the belief that teachers have of their capacity to make an impact on students’ performance, is an unexplored construct in deaf education research. This study included data from 296 respondents to examine the relationship of teacher and school characteristics with teachers’ sense of efficacy in 80 different deaf education settings in the US. Deaf education teachers reported high overall efficacy beliefs but significantly lower efficacy beliefs in the area of student engagement than in instructional strategies and classroom management. Teachers’ years of experience showed a significant relationship with efficacy beliefs, yet it was the teachers’ perceived collective efficacy of their educational setting that ultimately predicted teachers’ sense of efficacy. These findings lend credence to the need for further examination of school processes that influence teacher beliefs and attitudes in deaf education settings.

Students who are deaf or hard of hearing (SDHH) often need accommodations to participate in large-scale standardized assessments. One way to bridge the gap between the language of the test (English) and a student’s linguistic background (often including American Sign Language [ASL]) is to present test items in ASL. The specific aim of this project was to measure the effects of an ASL accommodation on standardized test scores for SDHH in reading and mathematics. A total of 64 fifth- to eighth-grade (ages 10–15) SDHH from schools for the deaf in the United States participated in this study. There were no overall differences in the mean percent of items students scored correctly in the standard vs. ASL-accommodated conditions for reading or mathematics. We then conducted hierarchical linear regression analyses to analyze whether measures of exposure to ASL (home and classroom) and student proficiency in the subject area predicted student performance in ASL-accommodated assessments. The models explained up to half of the variance in the scores, with subject area proficiency (mathematics or reading) as the strongest predictor. ASL exposure was not significant with the exception of ASL classroom instruction as a predictor of mathematics scores.

The purpose of this article is to investigate the potential role of parent involvement and parent expectation in postschool outcomes for individuals who are d/Deaf or hard of hearing (DHH). Students who are DHH have lower retention and employment rates than their peers. Recognizing the importance of family in developmental outcomes for all individuals, this article focuses specifically on the role of parents in facilitating postsecondary outcomes. In an effort to address gaps in the literature in this area, this study utilizes the National Longitudinal Transition Survey 2 (NLTS-2) dataset to measure the effect of parental involvement and expectations as individuals who are DHH transition from secondary grades into a variety of postschool settings. Overall, none of the parental involvement variables were statistically significant when controlling for student and parent demographics. The parental expectation variables that had a statistically significant impact on outcomes included expectations to live independently, to be employed, and to pursue postsecondary education. This article discusses findings in the context of operationalization of study constructs in the NLTS-2 and literature related to transition and parental involvement for students who are DHH.