Cochlear Implant School Toolkit: Helping children with cochlear implants achieve academically and socially in mainstream schools

This paper presents findings from an evaluation of the effectiveness of The Cochlear Implant School Toolkit (The Toolkit) on parent and teacher knowledge of and attitudes and self-efficacy about mainstreaming children with cochlear implants (CIs). Approximately 25,500 children have received CIs in the United States. Children with CIs are increasingly entering mainstream schools. However, mainstream school systems are rarely equipped to adequately welcome these children. With funding from the National Institutes of Health, KDH Research & Communication developed The Toolkit to provide parents, teachers, and students information and tools to successfully mainstream (academically and socially) children with CIs. The outcome evaluation of the parent components of The Toolkit explored three interrelated research questions. To what extent do the parent materials increase parents' knowledge of advocating for their child with a CI, positive attitudes, and self-efficacy about mainstreaming? The research questions guiding the teacher evaluation examined the extent to which the materials increased teacher knowledge, positive attitudes, and self-efficacy about having a child with a CI in their class. We collected primary quantitative data from 60 parents and 60 teachers throughout the US. We used a pretest/post-test quasi-experimental study to explore the statistical relationship between exposure to The Toolkit and the dependent variables. Preliminary findings indicate The Toolkit is effective in increasing parents' and teachers' knowledge, attitudes, and self-efficacy about mainstreaming children with cochlear implants. These findings demonstrate the need for an intervention to help parents and teachers create a supportive academic and social school environment for children with CIs.