Importance of Social Support for Hard-of-Hearing Students in pursuing their “Educational Careers”

The aim was to describe different processes in what is termed the “educational career” of hard-of-hearing students. The data comprises narratives from 30 hard-of-hearing former students representing four groups: students from a special school who continued to university education or to employment; students from ordinary schools who continued to university education or to employment. The results indicate that support within the educational experience is of great importance and the social support provided by parents is of crucial importance for a student's educational trajectory or career. This support, in combination with an adjusted school environment, seems to greatly diminish the importance of the hearing impairment. The conclusion is that hard-of-hearing students should not necessarily choose a special school just because of the impairment itself. When the needs of these students are met, there seem to be more accentuated mechanisms in ordinary educational settings than in special schools that promote post-secondary education.