Yarra Valley Grammar – Hearing Unit

Yarra Valley Grammar is committed to the provision of a fully inclusive educational experience for students who are deaf or hard of hearing from Early Learning to Year 12.

Our mission is to provide a supportive, inclusive educational setting, fostering social, personal and academic development of students who are deaf or hard of hearing. The objective of the Hearing Unit is to develop the students’ language, listening, social and academic skills and facilitate full inclusion, so that each student is given the opportunity to reach their maximum potential.

Our goal is to foster and promote the oral language of students who are deaf or hard of hearing so that their spoken and written communication skills will assist them to take a productive and meaningful role in the community.

The Program

Deaf and hard of hearing students are integral members of the regular classroom, supported by Teachers of the Deaf. The needs of each student are met through classroom support, individual withdrawal sessions, auditory training, note-taking, oral interpreting and language teaching. Programs are flexible and determined by the individual needs of the student, which are continually reviewed and assessed.

As part of this program, the students have access to assistive hearing technologies to provide the optimum listening environment and access in the classroom. The language program is based on age appropriate language experiences, the classroom curriculum and the natural language of the student’s peer group. Deaf and hard of hearing students are supported in the development of skills that enable them to acquire and express information, gain an understanding of their community and current events, understand their own needs, take responsibility for their listening and communication and develop social awareness. Students are encouraged to achieve their full potential, academically, emotionally, socially and physically. Full and active participation in the School’s curricular and co-curricular program is encouraged and celebrated.

Our deaf and hard of hearing students are supported by qualified Teachers of the Deaf, Speech Pathologists and Learning Assistants.