School students who are deaf and hard of hearing are falling behind because of a lack of sign language interpreters in the classroom, advocates have warned.
A national shortage of certified sign language interpreters and educators, and training opportunities in educating deaf children, means students aren't getting the support they need, they say.
Australian schools mainly use Teacher Aides as Educational Interpreters (TA:EI) to help deaf and hard of hearing students learn in classrooms. There are no minimum skills or qualifications required to be an EI.
Such policies are creating an "illusion of inclusion", according to the Australian Sign Language Interpreters' Association (ASLIA), the peak body for Auslan interpreters.
ASLIA education spokesperson Peta McNaughton said there was too much ambiguity in the roles of EIs, which can differ in every school and between classrooms.
"There is a widespread, incorrect belief that by providing an educational interpreter in a classroom, a deaf child experiences full inclusion," she said.
"Despite best intentions, this is not the case. In this scenario, the deaf child is surrounded by peers who don't sign, staff who don't sign and perhaps only one person, the EI, with whom they are able to communicate."
New framework rolled out in Queensland
Queensland's education department launched a new framework for deaf and hard of hearing students during the International Week of the Deaf in September 2021.
The new framework runs to 2025 and aims to "provide quality, accessible education for all deaf and hard of hearing students".
But an ABC Radio Brisbane investigation ahead of this year's International Day of People with Disability (IDPwD) found the department was not aware of any schools using accredited AUSLAN interpreters.
Instead, 141 state schools use about 240 teacher aides as educational interpreters to cater for 356 students who use Auslan, according to the Queensland's Department of Education.
The department employs a further 70 deaf staff who work as teacher aides who "model" Auslan, and around 45 Advisory Visiting Teachers (AVTs) who support all teacher aides.
Poor language accessibility was highlighted in hearings at the Disability Royal Commission, which heard "the [education] system currently is failing and very much neglecting deaf children".
Young student loses classroom support
Brisbane student Joel Heath is one student impacted by a lack of consistent Auslan support.
Seven-year-old Joel loves science and wants to be a policeman when he grows up.
He was born with bilateral hearing loss and has worn hearing aids since he was three months of age.
Even before he started school, Joel was immersed in a bilingual learning environment, where he was exposed to both English and Auslan.
But Joel has gone from a full-time interpreter in the classroom in 2021 to 15–30-minute sessions several times a week, often with different interpreters, with periods of no support ranging between 30 minutes to two hours a day.
The Heath family chose to send Joel to Warrigal Road State School for its reputation of providing support to hearing deaf and hard of hearing students.
"I spend two hours a day driving him to school and home, just so that he's in the best environment to support him in his learning years," Minda Heath said.
Last year, Joel thrived in the classroom and developed a strong rapport with a full-time educational interpreter, Ms Heath told ABC Radio Brisbane.
Full-time support from an educational interpreter is something his previous teacher said he needed. His speech pathologist also recommended it was imperative that Joel continue to receive Auslan support at school and other environments.
However, Joel's family is now disappointed with the amount of interpreting Joel receives in the classroom.
While Joel is a bright student, like many deaf and hard of hearing students, experiences hearing fatigue and gets confused by tasks and doesn't ask for help.
"He's just not old enough or mature enough to be his own advocate," Ms Heath said.
"[At] the start of the year, he couldn't even remember the names of the interpreters because there were different people coming in and out at different times during the day."
"[His previous teacher] would notice that he would just switch off from listening to her and watch his educational interpreter," she said.
Department says accessible education is priority
An education department spokesperson said Queensland state schools proudly promote inclusive education.
The spokesperson said allocation of resources to support students with a disability at the school has not been reduced, but overall staffing numbers fluctuate based on changes in student numbers and students.
"School teams make decisions as to the best use of their total resource allocation based on the needs of students," the spokesperson said.
"The way that resources have been utilised at the school in 2022 to cater for the needs of the student population has meant a different mix of resources to include an increase in Teacher of the Deaf time, not a reduction in the overall allocation."
Disability Royal Commission highlighted failures
At the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability in October, Deaf Australia chief executive Jen Blyth said there is no child that has been left unscathed by the education system in Australia.
Ms Blyth told the royal commission the ideal situation is for children to have access to an interpreter trained and qualified to work with deaf children.
Griffith University lecturer in inclusive education Michelle Ronksley-Pavia said all students have the right to access an equitable, rigorous, and high-quality education.
She said the Disability Discrimination Act required schools to provide reasonable adjustments so students with disability or deafness can be included in learning and social activities at schools.
"We're always fighting and coming up against ableist ideas in the classroom," she said.
"It's about making sure that everybody in the school community has a fundamental understanding of how to support students with disabilities or deafness, so they can participate and engage fully in school life."
Ms Heath believes if more people advocate for their needs and what support children need to "be successful in a hearing world", it will make a difference.
