VIDBE-Q Volume 67 Issue 4
Andrew Prouty,
Deafblind Consumer
Hello! My name is Andrew Prouty, I am deaf and have low vision, caused
by CHARGE syndrome. My parents have been my best supporters. They wanted
my life to be as rich and fulfilling as my two siblings. This required full access to
communication and to the world.
One of many things they did was learn American Sign Language (ASL), so
they could communicate with me. (Unlike many parents who tried to make their
deafblind or deaf children learn how to speak orally, which can cause language
deprivation.) My parents also pushed schools to provide me access to deafblind
teachers and interveners. In this article, I will discuss my perspectives on
interveners.
Interveners were absolutely critical to me experiencing the world as much as
possible. I had interveners before the term became popular in the United
States. My parents met and became friends with the Canadian educators John and
Jackie McInness, who wrote the book "Deaf-Blind Infants and Children: A
Andrew's Perspectives as a
Deafblind Consumer
