Outcomes From an Interprofessional Preschool Hearing Health Education Program
Yula C Serpanos1,2, Susan Hendler Lederer1
1Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Adelphi University, Garden City, NY.
American Journal of Audiology
|January 7, 2026
Summary
Preschoolers can learn essential hearing health concepts through the Love My Ears (LME) curriculum. This early hearing education program demonstrates effectiveness in teaching sound safety and protection, highlighting the importance of early intervention.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Audiology
- Early Childhood Education
Background:
- Early hearing health education is crucial for preventing noise-induced hearing loss.
- Preschool-aged children are a vulnerable population for hearing health risks.
- An interprofessional approach can enhance curriculum development and delivery.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the outcomes of the Love My Ears (LME) interprofessional preschool hearing health education curriculum.
- To assess the efficacy of LME in improving children's knowledge of sound, volume safety, and hearing protection.
Main Methods:
- The Love My Ears (LME) program was delivered as a 5-week curriculum to 18 preschool children.
- The curriculum covered three core areas: sound/hearing, volume/sound safety, and hearing protection.
- Postprogram assessments evaluated knowledge of 12 specific concepts, with 80% accuracy considered successful mastery.
Main Results:
- Children demonstrated high accuracy (≥ 80%) in understanding concepts related to hearing protection (4/4).
- Good accuracy was also observed in descriptive concepts of sound/hearing (2/4) and volume/sound safety (2/4).
- Learning of topic-specific vocabulary was less successful compared to descriptive concepts.
Conclusions:
- The Love My Ears (LME) curriculum is effective in delivering hearing health education to preschool-aged children.
- Interprofessional curriculum design significantly contributes to the success of early hearing health initiatives.
- Preschool hearing health education is vital for establishing lifelong healthy listening habits.
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