It’s always a pleasure to be able to help people overcome issues with noise but when we were asked to help support this London Secondary School, even we couldn’t imagine the difference it would make to school life.
Mrs. Semic, Deaf Student Provision Lead at the school writes :-
I joined the Deaf Student Provision (DSP) in 2017 as a trainee Teacher of the Deaf. During this time, I began to realise the challenges our Deaf students face when accessing lessons, especially in some of the classrooms with poor acoustics; this was particularly noticeable in the science rooms.
In addition, I found that students experienced discomfort in other areas such as the Atrium and the stairwells on a daily basis. They reported that the worst experience of poor acoustics was in the Atrium while having their lunch.
The Atrium – the dining area within the school - tends to be very noisy. The sound of clatter cutlery, chairs dragging along the floor as well as the general noise from students caused this environment to become very loud, and almost unbearable for our deaf students.
As we know, lunch and break time for students is meant to be a relaxing time with the opportunity to play and socialise with their peers, however this was not the case for our deaf students. They stated that the noise levels caused them a number of issues such as struggling to interact with their hearing peers, which made them feel uncomfortable and isolated as they were exposed to such extreme levels of noise. Although our school was built with the intent to have a deaf unit, a soundfield system as well as acoustic treatment in the unit itself, there was little thought and consideration given as to how noise levels could also be minimised throughout the school. Minimising noise levels throughout the school is necessary and improves students every day school life experience; social and emotional well-being.
A bid was submitted to the LA and we managed to secure some funding for acoustic treatments which was completed in the summer of 2019 by Greg and his team.
It was one of the major projects in school and I have to say they did an amazing job. We managed to treat the whole Atrium and the hallways on the ground floor leading to the stairwells, as well as a number of classrooms with poor acoustics.
The feedback from our students and staff members was very positive and there have been drastic changes in terms of noise levels across the school. The Deaf students feel happier, less anxious and more confident. The acoustic treatment enabled them to Hear, Engage, Access, Learn and Progress. Their engagement, participation and performance were evident leading to an increase in academic progress.
Furthermore, they were motivated and eager to join their hearing peers for lunch in the atrium, as well as feeling more comfortable and empowered to engage in conversations, leading to a higher-level self-esteem. It’s also worth mentioning that the acoustic treatment was not only having a positive impact on deaf students, but also on all students including those with a larger range of special educational needs and in particular to those with Autistic spectrum disorder, making their daily school life experience more positive and enjoyable.
Finally, the behaviour across the school improved, and many teachers have commented that students were more conscious and appeared to be calmer and in control of their voice volume. I would like to leave you with the quote from John Erdrich PhD:
“We would never teach reading in a classroom without lights. Why then do we teach in 'acoustical darkness'. Speaking to a class, especially of younger children, in a room with poor acoustics, is akin to turning out the light."
By Sanja Semic (TOD) Deaf Student Provision Lead St Augustine’s CE High School, Kilburn
