Rhode Island Auditory-Oral Program

The Rhode Island Auditory-Oral Program offers an educational option for eligible children who are deaf or hard of hearing to learn to use listening and talking as their primary way of communicating and learning.  This statewide program is available to those children who require a period of intensive auditory-oral language development before joining their hearing peers in general early childhood or elementary classroom settings. Parents of enrolled children are those who have chosen listening and speaking as their child’s communication method and have pursued technology such as cochlear implants or hearing aids for their child.

Created in response to the changing needs of children and families, the Rhode Island Auditory-Oral Program opened in April 2005.  This educational option was developed by an extended team of experts in the field of oral deaf education.

Parents are Partners

Staff partnership with families respects each family’s cultural values and social context. Parents are a central part of the teaching team.  Home visits and parent participation in individual intervention sessions at school are important components of the program.  The commitment of parents and program staff to working as a team ensures that children have full opportunity to integrate listening skills and spoken communication into their daily life at school and at home.

Specialized Instruction and a Team Approach

The Rhode Island Auditory-Oral Program reflects a language-centered curriculum within a whole-child approach consistent with both Rhode Island Early Learning Standards and best practices in education for children with hearing loss.  Children are engaged in high interest, play-based learning experiences purposefully designed to promote specific listening, language, and speech targets as an integral part of learning across all areas of development.  The classrooms include children with normal hearing and speech development to provide the opportunity for structured interaction among peers with and without hearing loss.  

The program combines amplification technology, acoustical accommodations, and auditory-oral education to provide children with highly specialized supports within a structured, intensive, small group environment.  Children participate in carefully planned, thematic learning experiences staffed by a teacher of the deaf with background and training in auditory-oral approaches and a teacher assistant.  In addition to group experiences, children receive individual auditory-oral intervention daily. The team includes an educational audiologist to assure an effective acoustical environment.  Staff also consult with audiologists and other specialists, including those based in hospitals and cochlear implant centers.  The team partners with additional outside consultants as needed.

A Collaborative Effort

The Rhode Island Auditory-Oral Program is supported through a collaborative effort among the Rhode Island Department of Education Office of Special Populations, Rhode Island School for the Deaf, Northern RI Collaborative, Cranston School Department, Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, participating school districts, and a variety of expert advisors in the field of oral deaf education.