In Plato's cratylus, which dates to 360 B.C., Socrates alludes to the use of signs by deaf people. In his Natural History, completed in 79 A.D., Pliny the Elder alludes to Quintus Pedius, the deaf son of a Roman consul, who had to seek permission from Caesar Augustus to pursue his training as an artist. During the Renaissance, scores of deaf people achieved fame throughout Europe, and by the middle of the 17th century the talents and communication systems of deaf people were being studied by a variety of noted scientists and philosophers. However, the role of deaf people in society has always been hotly debated: could they be educated? Should they be educated? If so, how? How does Deaf culture exist within larger communities? What do advances in the technology and the genetics of hearing loss portend for Deaf communities? In this landmark volume, a wide range of international experts present a comprehensive and accessible overview of the diverse field of deaf studies, language, and education. Pairing practical information with detailed analyses of what works, why, and for whom, and banishing the paternalism once intrinsic to the field, the handbook consists of specially commissioned essays on topics such as language and language development, hearing and speech perception, education, literacy, cognition, and the complex cultural, social, and psychological issues associated with individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing. Through careful planning, collaboration, and editing, the various topics are interwoven in a manner that allows the reader to understand the current status of research in the field and recognize the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead, providing the most comprehensive reference resource on deaf issues. Written to be accessible to students and practitioners as well as researchers, The Oxford Handbook of Deaf Studies, Language, and Education is a uniquely ambitious work that will alter both theoretical and applied landscapes. It surveys a field that has grown dramatically over the past 40 years, since sign languages were first recognized by scientists to be true languages. From work on the linguistics of sign language and parent-child interactions to analyses of school placement and the mapping of brain function in deaf individuals, research across a wide range of disciplines has greatly expanded not just our knowledge of deafness and the deaf, but of the very origins of language, social interaction, and thinking. Bringing together historical information, research, and strategies for teaching and service provision, Marc Marschark and Patricia Elizabeth Spencer have given us what is certain to become the benchmark reference in the field.

Contributors Introduction, Patricia Elizabeth Spencer and Marc Marschark I. Educational Issues 1. Perspectives on the History of Deaf Education, Harry G. Lang 2. Demographic and Achievement Characteristics of Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Students, Michael A. Karchmer and Ross E. Mitchell 3. Curriculum: Cultural and Communicative Contexts, Des Power and Gregory R. Leigh 4. Educational Consequences of Alternative School Placements, Michael S. Stinson and Thomas N. Kluwin 5. Early Intervention: Current Approaches to Family-Centered Programming, Marilyn Sass-Lehrer and Barbara Bodner-Johnson 6. Educational Programming for Deaf Children with Multiple Disabilities: Accommodating Special Needs, Harry Knoors and Mathijs P. J. Vervloed II. Literacy and Literacy Education 7. Processes and Components of Reading, Peter V. Paul 8. Approaches To Teaching Reading, Barbara R. Schirmer and Cheri Williams 9. Writing: Characteristics, Instruction, and Assessment, John A. Albertini and Sara Schley 10. Bilingualism and Literacy, Connie Mayer and C. Tane Akamatsu III. Cultural, Social, and Psychological Issues 11. Deaf Communities, Bencie Woll and Paddy Ladd 12. Peer Interactions of Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Children, Shirin D. Antia and Kathryn H. Kriemeyer 13. Social and Emotional Development of Deaf Children: Family, School, and Program Effects, Rosemary Calderon and Mark T. Greenberg 14. Parent-Infant Interactions: A Transactional Approach to Understanding the Development of Deaf Infants, Meg Traci and Lynne Sanford Koester 15. Mental Health and Deaf Adults, Irene W. Leigh and Robert Q. Pollard, Jr. IV. Language and Language Development 16. The Development of American Sign Language and Manually Coded English Systems, Brenda Schick 17. Development of Spoken Language by Deaf Children, Peter J. Blamey 18. Expressing Meaning: From Communicative Intent to Building a Lexicon, Amy R. Lederberg 19. The Role of Cued Speech in Language Development of Deaf Children, Jacqueline Leybaert & Jesus Alegria 20. Formal and Informal Approaches to the Language Assessment of Deaf Children, Janet R. Jamieson 21. Assessing Children's Proficiency in Natural Signed Languages, Jenny L. Singleton and Samuel J. Supalla V. Signed Languages 22. Origins of Sign Languages, David F. Armstrong and Sherman Wilcox 23. Sign Language Structures, Susan D. Fischer and Harry van der Hulst 24. Modality and The Structure of Language: Sign Languages versus Signed Systems, Ronnie B. Wilbur 25. Interpreters and Interpreter Education, Christine Monikowski and Elizabeth A. Winston 26. The Neural Systems Underlying Sign Language, Karen Emmorey VI. Hearing and Speech Perception 27. Speech Perception and Spoken Word Recognition, Lynne E. Bernstein and Edward T. Auer, Jr. 28. Advances in the Genetics of Deafness, Kathleen S. Arnos and Arti Pandya 29. Technologies for Communication: Status and Trends, Judith E. Harkins and Matthew Bakke 30. Screening and Assessment of Hearing Loss In Infants, Barbara Cone-Wesson 31. Cochlear Implants: Issues and Implications, Patricia Elizabeth Spencer and Marc Marschark VII. Cognitive Correlates and Consequences of Deafness 32. Intellectual Assessment of Deaf People: A Critical Review of Core Concepts and Issues, Susan J. Maller 33. Cognitive Functioning In Deaf Adults and Children, Marc Marschark 34. Working Memory, Neuroscience, and Language: Evidence from Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Individuals, Jerker Ronnberg Epilogue--What We Know, What We Don't Know, and What We Should Know, Marc Marschark and Patricia Elizabeth Spencer Author Index Subject Index

"The Oxford Handbook of Deaf Studies, Language and Education is a resource that recognizes the physical condition of deafness and the social, cultural and linguistic reality of Deaf life. The diverse group of contributors represents the cross-discipline perspectives and interconnected issues that inform and shape deaf studies today. This handbook will serve as a source of information for those in the field, students and families. I applaud the editors for compiling such a comprehensive and timely tool."--I. King Jordan, President, Gallaudet University<$ |k No