Deaf ‘8 times more likely to obtain no qualifications’
● Charity says deaf pupils are being let down by education system
Deaf pupils are eight times more likely to leave school with no qualifications than their hearing classmates, analysis indicates.
The National Deaf Children’s Society wants action to address the achievement gap between deaf and hearing pupils, including a bursary to train specialist teachers.
The charity criticised a cut in support for deaf pupils and said many are being “left behind”.
Under a third of deaf pupils (29 per cent) went to university, compared with almost half (45 per cent) of their hearing classmates, the society’s analysis of the Scottish Government’s latest figures indicates.
The statistics suggest fewer deaf school leavers entered work in 2017/18, at 21 per cent, than their hearing peers (29 per cent).
More deaf pupils went to college than university (34.2 per cent) than hearing school leavers (18.6 per cent).
Eight per cent of deaf pupils left school without qualifications, compared with 1 per cent of hearing pupils.
Under half (43 per cent) of deaf pupils gained both highers and advanced highers, compared with 71 per cent of hearing students.
The charity said Scotland’s 3,300 deaf children had lost nearly a third (29 per cent) of their specialist teachers in the past eight years.
It believes a “recruitment crisis” is brewing because nearly half of the remaining specialist teachers are due to retire in the next 10-15 years.
It wants the Scottish Government to introduce a bursary for specialist teachers to avert a recruitment crisis and enable every deaf child to have tailored classroom support.
The head of the charity’s campaign in Scotland, Alasdair O’hara, said: “Deaf children arrive at school with amazing potential, only for many to be left behind. While some are achieving excellent results and going on to their dream jobs, these results show that many more are being let down by the education system they rely on.
“We know that every deaf child can thrive at school if they receive the right support, but until the funding for that is put in place, many will continue to struggle. Despite the best intentions of the Scottish Government, the system is still failing and so much more needs to be done to make sure we are getting it right for every deaf child in Scotland.”
The Scottish Government said: “The Additional Support for Learning Act places education authorities under duties to identify, provide for and review the additional support needs of their pupils.”