There are approximately 70 million people in the world that learned sign language as their first language or learned in their early childhood. The origin and creation is somewhat unknown. It is hypothesized that signed languages have been around as long as spoken languages (“Sign Language”, n.d.). Like spoken language, sign language has specific rules for grammar, is used to communicate emotion and thoughts, and has different dialects. It is important to mention that across the world the use of sign language is not widely accepted. There are some forms of government that do not allow the use of sign languages at all. Within any language, culture is important. The creation of culture depends on the creation of language and vise versa. One might be surprised to discover that it was just in 1995 when the first sign language was brought to parliament and recognized (in Uganda) (“Sign Language”, n.d.).

Like spoken language, there are are different types of signed languages around the world. Sign languages are typically used by the deaf and hard of hearing. There is a subset of the world population that learns sign language as their first language, but are not deaf or hard of hearing. They’re called Children of Deaf Adults, or CODAs, and are more common than one might think. Of children born from deaf parents, over 90% are hearing. This population is also referred to with the phrase “mother father deaf” (Clark, 2003). As one could imagine, deaf parents of hearing children experience some uncommon complications throughout their life. There is little research on how this unique situation affects the development of these children.

CODAs have direct contact with both the hearing and deaf/hard of hearing community. They grow up learning sign language at home and spoken language at school. It is common for CODAs to act as interpreters for their parents. This fact can sometimes be concerning. People often worry that these children will have to communicate information that may not be age appropriate. Furthermore, they worry that this information could have a lasting psychological impact on the children because they are exposed to the information too soon. The children may feel that they have to adopt a large responsibility too young and against their will. It is fascinating to reflect that hearing individuals tend to support these interactions (Clark, 2003). It is possible that the hearing community does not understand the lasting impact this could have because they are not familiar with the experiences of a CODA. On the contrary, CODAs enjoy learning and being a part of multiple cultures. They also report that it is rewarding to have an important function in their family (Clark, 2003). The founder of Children of Deaf Adults, Inc., Millie Brother, said she “felt comfortable in both but not fully immersed in either” (Williams & Brother, n.d.). She feels that a community of CODAs is an important third culture. She feels like being a CODA, and connecting groups of CODAs, creates a sort of third culture that she enjoys being a part of (Williams & Brother, n.d.).

The hearing community can sometimes be insensitive to the deaf community. As previously mentioned, this could pose as a problem when CODAs are with their parents. They may feel that they have to omit parts of a conversation that could be offensive to their parents. Sometimes hearing individuals assume that if they see a whole family signing, they must all be deaf. Consequently, these people may verbalize offensive thoughts that a CODA can hear (Clark, 2003). Moreover, CODAs could feel uncomfortable sharing their feelings about offensive remarks with their parent out of fear that they will upset them. Hearing individuals do not typically contemplate the role hearing plays in their daily life. Hearing is important to talk on the phone, and notice occurrences such as fire alarms, burglars, opening doors, someone trying to get your attention, etc. CODAs can become extremely aware of this problem for their parents and become overly worried as a result (Clark, 2003).

Sometimes hearing individuals view being deaf or hard of hearing as a disability or impairment. They may view a child who is learning sign language as their first language to be language delayed. CODAs are learning a spoken language and sign language, so they should be viewed as bilingual. They are learning two languages at the same time. This child might know 500 words of one language and 500 words of another, compared to a child that knows 1,000 words of just one language. The bilingual child knows just as many words but could be mistaken for a child that’s falling behind developmentally (Singleton & Tittle, 2000). CODAs can experience some possible problems with having deaf parents. Sometimes parents find the need to communicate verbally with their hearing child. This could inhibit the child from learning sign language and thereby cause issues when they need to communicate back to their parents (Singleton & Tittle, 2000).

Professionals have communicated their concern that CODAs will experience setbacks in spoken language. There is very little research to suggest that this is the case. It is essential however that the child is introduced to spoken language in order to learn it. Research suggests that the child needs about five to ten hours of exposure in a week to develop normally (Singleton & Tittle, 2000). If the child does not have adequate exposure to the spoken language and has a delay that does not mean the child is language-delayed. Sign language is their first language and they may be sufficient in that language. It is their second language that they may need extra help in. If a CODA needs extra help in learning a spoken language it may be helpful to increase exposure in play groups, preschool, family/friend interactions, babysitters, and other CODAs (Singleton & Tittle, 2000).

CODAs can sometimes be negatively impacted when they have to act as an interpreter for their deaf parents. On the other hand, deaf parents that are aware of this issue sometimes resist teaching their child sign language. While the intention is to relieve pressure the child might feel to interpret for their parents, this creates communication issues within the family. These deaf parents may have had hearing parents, which is another dynamic that can be researched. Deaf children of hearing parents report “limited, uneasy, frustrating interactions with their own hearing parents” (Singleton & Tittle, 2000). This can result in a lack of communication about parenting and provide limited information about successful parenting. When these people have children, their limited knowledge of effective parenting can cause problems with raising their own child (Singleton & Tittle, 2000). This, of course, is not indicative of all relationships between people that are deaf and people that are hearing. This provides an opportunity to foster relationships within the deaf community. These parents may turn to the deaf community for advice on parenting while also forming their own type of family within the deaf community. Overall, the research shows that these parents are willing and eager to obtain more information on parenting (Singleton & Tittle, 2000).

In a hypothetical situation where there is a hearing grandparent, a deaf parent and a hearing child (CODA) the family dynamics can be complicated. As mentioned before, there can be issues in communication between CODA and parent. Hearing grandparents can sometimes see this as an issue they should fix, so they step in. Although their intentions may be pure, their actions could undermine the authority of the CODA’s parents. This can extend further when individuals outside of the family direct conversation to the hearing child or hearing grandparent, ignoring the deaf parent. Although there are many facets to these relationships that can be analyzed, deaf parents of hearing children are not at a higher risk for family issues (Singleton & Tittle, 2000).

Phonological Development in Hearing Children of Deaf Parents (Toohey, 2010) set out to investigate if three CODAs experienced differences in phonological development. All three children performed at a normal level when tested on their language development. These language development tests measured phonemic inventory, syllable structure, and phonological processes. Previous studies cited that 29 of 52 CODAs in a sample had language development issues. Toohey (2010) pointed out that 6 of those 29 children had undiagnosed hearing issues and complications as a result. Another 6 had psychological problems including brain damage and psychomotor troubles that contributed to low language development scores. Toohey (2010) also noted that the tests used could be interpreted in a variety of ways. A reader should be skeptical about the findings of that study. On the other hand, Phonological Development in Hearing Children of Deaf Parents (Toohey, 2010) only used three children and observed them until they were 3 years of age. This sample is extremely small and findings could differ if the study continued into later years. Therefore, these findings should also be questioned.

CODAs experience a unique family dynamic that can be both rewarding and challenging. The deaf population has a rich history and a strong sense of community. CODAs experience the deaf, hearing, and CODA worlds. Family communication can sometimes be an issue but overall, CODAs do not experience lasting language development deficits. These bilingual children sometimes act as a bridge between the hearing and deaf worlds. While that might sometimes be a burden, it can also be fulfilling. Like anyone, different CODAs have different experiences and more research is necessary to fully understand the life of a CODA in the past and present.

References

Clark, K. (2003). Communication & Parenting Issues in Families with Deaf Parents and Hearing Children. Retrieved from http://www.lifeprint.com/asl101/pages-layout/coda.htm

Sign Language. (n.d.). Retrieved December 13, 2017, from https://wfdeaf.org/human-rights/crpd/sign-language/

Singleton, J. L., & Tittle, M. D. (2000). Deaf Parents and Their Hearing Children. Retrieved from https://watermark.silverchair.com/221.pdf?token=AQECAHi208BE49Ooan9kkhW_Ercy7Dm3ZL_9Cf3qfKAc485ysgAAAb4wggG6BgkqhkiG9w0BBwagggGrMIIBpwIBADCCAaAGCSqGSIb3DQEHATAeBglghkgBZQMEAS4wEQQMVuG-Fv-8UPpVVRDQAgEQgIIBcdS2R9RADlk4ny5OyC6o_SAqhEWrAJ6YwNnPUJqNZTxI6jU51bkh7mWrGFcwJ6Di2-KtfG2Ka_eZVBjXnOMYQc2JCOPIuJ-_Inp79ZCY21nfu3hqWVTEL6AEvNqDZ3SshR8y2VggBzaqt-ZbXiZpC9lXtmt4RQn2zEZFU4IYsiNGvpMxzrisnMiALz-b-qgJXkOBOTZLbkuPdJseZYJ6HXkHCDlX7QuZd7iMl2Dtb1KokC9-WojhuAhh1DxX91ZVh4zP0cQWo30NgMGdcv6AsVAHKA_N8reDDSilsjrgJdIiMUdglGLA7GpkVZ_GxIBFJsRVdxdS-i-SYpSvY3yVctKgQNA02VQ-UbQ2svXI1uMmB2HiPdaFIaBxgMwfLLJ8nOOLhIgQ_rrO9-WnIGWPxuwZvQDwJ4RMZF58x89XQv8NV9GX9yBFXa3j3Y2Qa_Y6lP4OfAkLqjCMKBrahSCorjEphvfY_vJnWFxxZ5ZT30uF2w

Toohey, E. N. (2010). Phonological Development in Hearing Children of Deaf Parents. Retrieved from http://opencommons.uconn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1150&context=srhonors_theses

Williams, R., & Brother, M. (n.d.). Messages from our Founder & President. Retrieved from https://www.coda-international.org/milliebrother