Sen. Breen introduces bill to facilitate kindergarten readiness for the deaf and hard of hearing

AUGUSTA — Sen. Cathy Breen, D-Falmouth, introduced a bill today to provide resources to parents of deaf and hard of hearing children for the purpose of Kindergarten readiness.

“The goal of this bill is to provide information and resources to help parents of deaf and hard of hearing kids make informed choices,” said Sen. Breen. “These parents face a unique set of challenges that can understandably result in delayed language and literacy development for their children. My bill mandates the sharing of data and creation of milestones that can help prepare deaf and hard of hearing kids for a great education and a bright, productive future.”

Sen. Breen’s bill — LD 642, “An Act Regarding Kindergarten Readiness for Children Who Are Deaf and Hard of Hearing” — requires the Department of Education to issue an annual report to the Education and Cultural Affairs Committee detailing the literacy development of deaf and hard of hearing children as it compares to that of children who are not. This will capture information on children up to 5 years of age.

It also creates a task force to develop milestones for deaf and hard of hearing children and a toolkit for parents based on current best practices. Members will include parents and teachers who use American Sign Language (ASL), those who use spoken English and those who use both. Other members will include a pediatrician, and audiologist, a licensed social worker and representatives from the Maine Newborn Hearing Program and the Child Development Services System, among other experts. The task force report may contain legislative recommendation for the 130th Legislature to consider.

The Education and Cultural Affairs Committee will hold a work session on LD 642 in the coming weeks.

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