Deaf pupils give AMs an insight into the need for better acoustics

ASSEMBLY MEMBERS were given an insight into the challenges facing deaf children in a classroom with poor acoustics writes Gareth Evans for Wales Online (19/1/12).
Two pupils from Cardiff visited the Senedd on Tuesday to talk about how noisy, echoing rooms make it difficult for youngsters with hearing loss to learn.
Politicians were played audio simulations showing what it can sound like for a deaf child in a classroom with substandard acoustics.
It follows a campaign by the National Deaf Children’s Society (NDCS) Cymru to make schools more accessible to children with hearing loss.

The charity has so far enlisted the support of 29 AMs who have signed a “New Year’s resolution” to improve provision in new school, college and nursery buildings. It is hoping to encourage more members to sign up.

Pupil Daniyaal Munir, 15, said: “I struggle to hear well and can’t concentrate in noisy and echoing classrooms. I can concentrate better when there is no background noise, and it is a lot easier to hear my teachers and friends.” 
“Deaf children are not stupid,” said Kurtis Olding, 15, “they just don’t hear so well and if they are given the right support, then they could get more qualifications and better jobs in turn.”

Research published by NDCS Cymru reveals that acoustic regulations in new school buildings are often ignored, leaving children across Wales struggling to learn in noisy and echoing classrooms. Less than a third of schools built in Wales between 2003 and 2010 received any input from an acoustic expert and just 11% of schools built were tested to check they met acoustic standards.

In last week’s Education Questions, AM for Vale of Clwyd Ann Jones asked what the Welsh Government were doing to ensure schools have the appropriate acoustics for children with hearing impairments. She welcomed a requirement to incorporate provision into all 21st Century School projects and asked Education Minister Leighton Andrews whether he had plans to roll-out acoustics into nurseries and colleges.

Responding, Mr Andrews said: “Obviously, we took the step of incorporating guidance on this into the 21st Century Schools programme and that work continues. We will continue to provide support for that programme and we will also look at the implications of that for buildings in other parts of the education sector.”

Russell George, Tory AM for Montgomeryshire, said the Welsh Government should use its newly-acquired extra powers to ensure building regulations were robust. “We should not allow poor acoustics in the classroom to be a barrier preventing deaf pupils from achieving their potential," he said.

Mr Andrews said capital cuts imposed by the Westminster Government were restricting what the Welsh administration could do. He added: “I think that we provide significant guidance to local authorities to undertake this [acoustics] programme. Clearly, we do not have all the capital that we require to provide local authorities with the support that they need to undertake this programme on a rigorous basis, but at the end of the day we are doing what we can from our resources.”

Jayne Dulson, director of NDCS Cymru, said she was delighted so many AMs had signed up to support their campaign.