Subgroup differences in educational placement for deaf and hard of hearing students

This study presents crosstabulations of educational placement variables by selected demographic characteristics and reports the different patterns of educational placement for subgroups of the deaf and hard of hearing population. Type of school, amount of academic integration with hearing students, and the number of deaf or hard of hearing students attending the same school building were considered as dependent variables in the analysis. Degree of hearing loss, age, ethnic and racial background, and additional handicap status were considered as independent variables. Data from the 1990-1991 Annual Survey of Hearing Impaired Children and Youth were analyzed. Results indicate that subgroups defined by each of these variables differ markedly with regard to patterns of educational placement. The importance of paying attention to subgroup statistics, as opposed to global population statistics, in the formulation of educational policy is discussed.