BURLASA, HANNAH MAE B.

G-09 APOSTLE PHILIP (12:00-1:00)

Being a Better Communicator: Communicate with an individual with difficulty

seeing, hearing, or communicating regarding the challenges this individual
experiences and how these challenges are overcome. Then, answer the
following questions.

1. What are the challenges experienced by someone with visual, hearing, or

communication problems?
Visual impairment affects cognitive tasks, motor development, social
adjustment, and interaction. Learners with poor vision often perform poorly on
cognitive tasks such as understanding relationships and abstract concepts.
Blindness can also delay motor development, leading to decreased motivation
and difficulty in learning from feedback and observation. Social adjustment
and interaction can be affected, as a visual impairment may lead to less play
and increased social isolation. Additionally, individuals with visual
impairments may struggle to make and maintain friendships, benefit from role
models, and respond to social signals, reducing opportunities for reciprocal
interaction.
Hearing loss affects learners' language skills, resulting in smaller
vocabularies and difficulty with abstract words. They also struggle with
function words and omit word endings. Deaf or hard-of-hearing children often
have atypical speech, causing difficulties in assessing and monitoring their
speech. Academic performance is generally lower for these students, but some
excel in their studies. Hearing loss can lead to feelings of isolation, lack of
friends, and unhappiness in school, causing behavioral difficulties and
depression. It is important to note that hearing loss is not synonymous with
intelligence. And lastly, communication problems include struggling to express
thoughts clearly, understanding complex language, or using assistive devices
for speech.

2. How does the individual overcome these challenges?

Visual Impairments. Utilizing assistive technologies such as screen
readers and magnifiers, relying on tactile markers or braille, using a white cane
or guide dog, and seeking assistance from others.
Hearing impairment. Modern technology can intensify their hearing loss
by providing hearing aids, assistive listening systems (ALS), and cochlear
implants. Filipino Sign Language (FSL) is the national sign language of the
Philippines, based on manual hand signals and body gestures. Other
technological aids include speech-to-text translation, television, video and
movie captioning, text telephones, and computer technologies. Educational
programs are recommended to handle learners with deafness. Oral and aural
approaches, such as auditory training and speechreading, are essential for
learners with deafness to function in the hearing world. Auditory training
involves detecting, discriminating, and identifying sounds, while speechreading
involves retrieving spoken messages through lip movements, facial expressions,
eye movements, and body gestures.
Communication impairment. Communication disorders specialists
provide therapies to help learners speak effectively. They identify, evaluate, and
provide services for specific communication disorders. Activities include
discrimination activities to help learners distinguish between sounds,
vocabulary-building techniques like graphic organizers and mnemonics, and
augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) techniques, which involve
sharing thoughts and emotions without talking. These techniques can be used
with or without physical aids.

3. On your part, while you were communicating with a person with a visual,
hearing, or communicating problem, what challenges did you experience and
what did you do about them?
There was once a time when I communicated with a person with a visual
impairment, and she asked me what the color blue looked like. In that
moment, I realized that communicating with people who have visual
impairments is difficult. But what I did was use metaphor, or symbolism, in
describing to her the color blue. I also ensured that my descriptions were
detailed and clear, avoiding reliance on visual cues. For the person with a
hearing impairment, I have a hard time communicating with them because
they can't hear me, so what I did was speak clearly and face the person to
facilitate lip-reading and minimize background noise. And for the person with a
communication impairment, I am being patient, using simple and clear
language, and repeating or rephrasing information as needed.

4. What did you learn from the experience, and how will you use it to become a
better communicator?
From this experience, I learned the importance of patience, adaptability,
and active listening. Effective communication requires being aware of the other
person's needs and being willing to modify your approach. To become a better
communicator, I will be patient by allowing ample time for conversations
without rushing. I will adapt communication methods by using appropriate
tools and techniques depending on the individual's needs. I will enhance active
listening by focusing on understanding the person's message rather than just
responding. Additionally, I will increase awareness by continuously educating
myself about different communication challenges and best practices.
BURLASA, HANNAH MAE B. G-09 APOSTLE PHILIP (12:00-1:00)

Activity 1: Lessons from Helen Keller

Watch the movie The Miracle Worker about Helen Keller, a deafblind child who
was introduced by her teacher, Anne Sullivan, to education and eventually
became an influential person. Write a short reflection paper (2–3 pages) about
the movie. You may use the following as a guide:

1. Describe Helen Keller throughout the film.

2. How did her teacher, Anne Sullivan, help Helen Keller?
3. As a future teacher, what lessons did you learn from the movie?

"The Miracle Worker" is a movie about Helen Keller, a young girl who was
both deaf and blind. Her childhood is portrayed as fascinating and inspiring,
demonstrating that people like Helen should be treated equally, not pitied.
Unfortunately, her parents treated her as special and lost hope that she could
not live a normal life because of her disabilities. As a result, they let her do
whatever she wanted, which made her a spoiled child prone to tantrums when
she didn't get her way. She wasn't disciplined properly, and her mother would
reward her bad behavior with candy, reinforcing her misbehavior.

The movie shows the importance of patience and belief. Annie Sullivan,
Helen’s teacher and the "miracle worker," believed in Helen’s intelligence and
potential. Annie teaches Helen through the tactile technique of finger-spelling,
and through gestures, Sullivan gives Keller the gifts of language, expression,
and liberation. She was patient and determined in her efforts to teach Helen,
ultimately succeeding. Because of Annie's dedication, Helen Keller graduated
from Radcliffe College and became a renowned advocate for social equality,
even receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

The movie taught me that anything is possible if we believe and persist.

It emphasized that we should not give up on our convictions easily. One of my
realizations from the movie is encapsulated in Helen Keller’s quote, "Life is
either a great adventure or nothing." Life is full of obstacles and successes, and
it's not a linear journey. We all face challenges, but overcoming them makes life
worthwhile. Life’s challenges and uncertainties make it dynamic and push us
to achieve things we never thought possible. The story of "The Miracle Worker"
is a powerful example of how we can motivate ourselves to stay positive and
patient. It teaches us about perception, prejudice, communication,
perseverance, patience, and love. The movie illustrates the strength required to
be a teacher, how to overcome personal limitations, and how to learn, grow,
and transform.