b. Causes of Hearing Defect
As mentioned by Soemantri 1996:75, hearing defects can result from a number of factors, among others:
1 Prenatal factors a One or both parents of the children have a hearing defect or genetic
abnormality. b The mother suffers from a disease during pregnancy, such as rubella
and morbili, specifically during the first trimester, that is during the formation of the baby’s middle and inner hearing organs.
c Poisoning of medicines that the mother suffers from during pregnancy. This happens if she takes too many or improper medicines, for
example in the case of unwanted pregnancy and she tries to have it aborted. Poisoning can also happen if the mother is addicted to
alcohol. 2 Perinatal factors
a A prolonged process of delivery. If the process of delivery takes too long time, the baby might suffer from a lack of oxygen. Another
possibility is if the doctor has to use a suction apparatus due to difficulty during the process of delivery. These might cause a defect
on the baby’s hearing organ.
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b Prematurity, that is when the baby is born earlier than the normal period of pregnancy.
3 Post natal factors a Hearing defect occurs due to infections, such as infections of the
brain meningitis
b The application of certain medications. c Accidents resulting in injury or defect of the individual’s inner
hearing organ.
c. The Level of Hearing-Speech Defects
Deaf children and those who experience hearing problems cannot be classified in the same group. This is due to the differences in terms of the
process, types, and cause of hearing defects, which makes each child has different problems of hearing.
In determining the level of hearing-speech defect, the term decibels or dB, namely the measure of intensity or loudness of a sound, is used. 0 dB is a
point which represents the smallest sound the person with normal hearing can perceive. Hallahan, Kauffman, Pullen 2009:348 classify the levels of
deafness as follows: 1. Slight
This level refers to persons whose ability to hear is about 16 to 25 dB less than normal persons.
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2. Mild This level refers to persons whose ability to hear is 26 to 40 dB less than
normal persons. 3. Moderate
This level refers to persons whose ability to hear is about 41 to 55 dB less than normal persons.
4. Moderate-severe This level refers to persons whose ability to hear is about 56 to 70 dB
less than the normal persons. 5. Severe
The persons can hear the sounds only if they are 71 to 90 dB louder. 6. Profound
The persons who are considered to be in this level are the ones who can hear sounds that are 91 dB or more, less than the normal ones.
The terms slight, mild, moderate, moderate-severe, severe, and profound are used to refer to degree of hearing-speech defect, as measured by the intensity
of sound a person requires before he or she can hear. Hearing defect or impairment is a general term referred to individuals with impairments ranging
from mild to profound Hallahan, Kauffman, Pullen, 2009:340.
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In order to avoid the confusion in terminology, the hearing impairment or defect is divided into three namely the “hard of hearing”, “deafened”, “deaf”
Johnson, 1967: 408. 1. Hard of hearing slight-mild: one who has sufficient hearing to learn to
produce and to understand speech and language naturally by ear. 2. Deafened moderate-moderate severe: one who has developed an
awareness of speech and language naturally by ear but who no longer has sufficient hearing to enable him adequately to hear his own speech
or that of others with or without a hearing aid. 3. Deaf severe-profound: one who at the time of life when speech and
language usually develop did not have sufficient hearing to make its natural acquisition possible.
d. The Effects of Hearing-Speech Defect on Understanding Language and
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