I have lost count of the number of times I have heard my husband ask the question "I'm sorry, can you say that again?" He is met more often with annoyance or frustration than with genuine kindness. Frequently he is ignored all together. What people do not realize is that this 32-year-old man is not inattentive, he has hearing loss and tinnitus from his military service, as do thousands of veterans; many of whom are sitting in our college classrooms right now.

Service-connected Hearing Loss and Tinnitus
Service-connected hearing loss and tinnitus (HL-T) are the two most common service-connected disabilities across all war eras. Even with the use of protective hearing equipment HL-T in the military can develop from exposure to loud noises (e.g., improvised explosive devices, artillery fire, aircrafts, etc.) and injury of the inner ear (e.g., blast explosions or head trauma). Veterans may not fully experience the impacts of HL-T until after they separate from service and enter new environments where the communication styles may differ from their military environments.

Veteran Disability Identity and Utilization of Services
Veterans with service-connected disabilities have varied disability identities, some do not ever identify as a person with a disability, disabled person, or as having a disability all together. Veterans adjusting to the functional impacts of their service-connected disabilities may not be aware of what helpful resources are available to them or how to access the resources. Veterans may still be developing advocacy skills around their own disability and accessibility needs. Furthermore, the stigma in military culture around mental health disabilities and treatment can lead to avoidance of seeking disability services for any condition to avoid appearing weak or incapable.

Student Veterans with Hearing Loss and Tinnitus
Depending on the degree of acquired hearing loss, student veterans may identify as being deaf, hard-of-hearing, a person with hearing loss, or with no disability identity. Regardless of self-identification, HL-T is a communication disability. A veteran's preferred method of communication may affect how they identify and the resources they are likely to use. Instructors should not assume that all veterans with service-connected HL-T are aware of, or utilizing, campus disability services. Also, student veterans may know about campus disability/accessibility services but be unaware of their own eligibility for such programs. Nevertheless, each individual will have a unique HL-T experience and will need, or create, unique adaptations to changing environmental and pedagogical demands.

A student veteran's HL-T may affect their learning and engagement in class. Instruction in the college setting relies on oral lectures, interactive discussions, and small group discussions (in-person or virtual). Some factors that may intensify the impacts of HL-T in the language rich college classroom are:

• Speaking characteristics of an individual: accents, pitch, tone and volume of voice, and rate of speech
• Disruption in the line of vision for lip-reading
• Distance from the speaker
• Ambient or background noise

DeafTEC: Supporting Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Students
DeafTEC: Technological Education Center for the Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Students is a National Science Foundation Advanced Technological Education Resource Center. DeafTEC is housed in the National Technical Institute for the Deaf, one of the nine colleges of the Rochester Institute of Technology in Rochester, New York. DeafTEC's programs serve as a resource for high schools and community colleges, educating Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing (DHH) students in STEM programs as well as employers interested in hiring DHH persons.

DeafTEC "Project Good to Go: Teaching Student Veterans with Hearing Loss"
In 2017, DeafTEC expanded its resources to support veterans with service-connected hearing loss and tinnitus through "Project Good to Go: Teaching Student Veterans with Hearing Loss" (PG2G). The aims of PG2G are to:

1. Improve the access to learning for veterans with hearing loss and tinnitus in STEM community college programs.
2. Increase awareness of the unique experience of service-connected hearing loss and tinnitus and how this may differ from traditional DHH populations.
3. Be a resource for faculty, staff, and administrators working with student veterans with hearing loss and tinnitus.

Empower and Amplify the Student Veteran with HL-T Voice
To better understand the student veteran with hearing loss and tinnitus experience, PG2G conducted an IRB approved study. Student veterans were invited to participate in a survey and focus groups. The data was compiled and reviewed by the PG2G team and resulted in the "Top Ten Things Student Veterans Would Like Faculty to Know" professional development and handout. The "Top Ten" was reviewed by study participants, additional student veterans, active-duty military members, and veteran educators before dissemination to preserve the veteran voice and perspective. The "Top Ten" handout can be used by student veterans themselves to talk to their faculty about their specific academic concerns.

A Resource for Educators to Further Understand Service-Connected Hearing Loss and Tinnitus
The "Top Ten" is a list of best practices for teaching student veterans with hearing loss and tinnitus. The "Top Ten" sets out universal design practices that will not only benefit student veterans with hearing loss and tinnitus but also ALL students with and without disabilities in the classroom. The "Top Ten" handout is a resource for faculty and staff working with student veterans. Beginning in 2018, PG2G offered the professional development to campuses and at conferences but in 2020 PG2G switched to online webinars (the PG2G PD schedule is currently TBD).

"Top Ten Things Student Veterans Would Like Faculty to Know"

1. College can be intimidating. Student veterans and faculty may be equally intimidated by each other and the experience of HL-T may make the classroom more intimidating

2. "I have a VA appointment" is not the same as "I have a doctor's appointment." VA medical appointments are assigned months in advance and cannot be rescheduled easily. The wait for audiology services in particular can be up to a yearlong resulting in significant delays in assessment and services

3. A classroom feels like chaos. The classroom environment including background noise and movement can feel chaotic, distracting, and unsafe.

4. Seating selection is more than a chair. Veterans may self-accommodate through their chair selection. Seat changes can derail learning

5. Being accessible beyond the classroom builds connections. Students may prefer to communicate through email or one-on-one rather than during class due to their service-connected communication needs.

6. Communication is key for success. Reflect on your communication style during lectures as well as how oral communication is used in the classroom and coursework (graded and ungraded work). Think about where those with hearing loss may have difficulty with certain components of the class

7. Recording a lecture can have a positive impact. Recording lectures can provide students a second opportunity to review material and adjust for communication factors that limit their ability to acquire and process information

8. Instructional delivery style can make a difference. Reflect on how you deliver your course content and, in particular, the way in which your methods of oral communication, or the structure of class discussions may be harder to follow for those relying on lip reading or interpreters

9. Prepare, prepare, prepare! Providing materials ahead of class allows students with hearing loss to prepare for lectures. Ensuring that all videos are properly captioned before class improves access for all students.

10. You are not alone in supporting your student veterans. Connect with your disability/accessibility services and veteran resource centers/campus professionals.

The "Top Ten" list and full descriptions can be reviewed here.

Article Topics

Military Friendly Institutions Research on Student Veterans Serving Military in HigherEd Veterans Academic Success Workplace Inclusion

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