Deaf epistemologies : multiple perspectives on the acquisition of knowledge / Peter V. Paul, Donald F. Moores, editors.

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Epistemology is the study of how "knowledge" is formed. Standard epistemology isolates the "known" from the "knowers," thereby defining "knowledge" as objectively constant. Multiple epistemologies suggest that individuals learn in different ways shaped by life factors such as education, family, ethnicity, history, and regional beliefs. In this groundbreaking volume, editors Peter V. Paul and Donald F. Moores call on ten other noted scholars and researchers to join them in examining the many ways that deaf people see and acquire deaf knowledge.

This collection considers three major groups of deaf knowledge perspectives: sociological and anthropological, historical/psychological and literary, and educational and philosophical. The first explores the adoption of a naturalized, critical epistemological stance in evaluating research; the epistemology of a positive deaf identity; how personal epistemologies can help form deaf education policies; and valuing deaf indigenous knowledge in research. The next part considers dueling epistemologies in educating deaf learners; reforms in deaf education; the role of deaf children of hearing parents in creating Deaf epistemologies; and the benefit of reading literature with deaf characters for all students. The final part explores the application of the Qualitative-Similarity Hypothesis to deaf students' acquisition of knowled≥ a metaparadigm for literacy instruction in bilingual-bicultural education; collaborative knowledge-building to access academia; and examination of the benefits and disadvantages of being deaf.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

CHOICE Review

This book is not designed for the novice reader or student interested in deaf education. Rather, it is nearly purely theoretical in that it examines the several aspects/constructs of what is known about "deafness." Epistemology, the study of knowledge, addresses the issues not only of the definition and nature of knowledge but also of the way that knowledge is acquired, that is, the relationship between the knower/inquirer and the known/knowledge. The editors have assembled some very serious thinkers on this subject, all authorities in their respective fields, to present the reader with multiple perspectives on an elusive topic: What is "deafness" and how do scholars know what they know about it? These broad areas include sociological, anthropological, historical/psychological, and educational/philosophical perspectives. As with all epistemological scholarship, the editors and contributors make it clear that there is no single best explanation for how deaf people know what they know, or what the hearing population "knows" about what it is like to be deaf. Each perspective is a theory, and a theory must rest on evidence that supports its continued viability and validity. Summing Up: Recommended. Research collections. J. D. Neal University of Central Missouri