When retrieving materials from our collections, it may be advantageous to use a broad range of search terms or vocabulary, this may at times include some terms that are no longer considered appropriate as they are not person centred and can be seen as deficit based by d/Deaf and Hard of Hearing individuals.
"Hearing impairment” is an umbrella term used in library subject headings for classifying titles. While not inclusive or person-centred, it may retrieve more results than the more inclusive phrases “hearing loss” or “hard of hearing.”
The following keyword search strategies link to search results in the library catalogue.
(deaf* or "hearing loss") and learn*
deaf* AND (inclu* OR mainstream* OR differentiation) AND (teach* OR educ*)
(“communication disorders” OR “communicative disorders”)
"special educational needs" AND (hearing loss OR deaf*)
(audiology OR "hearing therapy") AND (teach* OR educat*)
Tips For Building Your Search Statement
Use truncation to extend search results - e.g. learn* will retrieve learn, learners and learning.
Add "quotation marks" to retrieve a specific phrase.
Use the term OR to find synonyms or alternative terms- e.g. (hearing loss OR deaf*)
Use brackets around alternative terms to create order in your search - e.g.(deaf* or "hearing loss") and learn*