The objective of the project is to facilitate the integration of deaf children into the mainstream and special education through the engagement of parents, caregivers, teachers, and deaf mentors, as well as the community at large. The program’s goals are to increase the proportion of deaf students with access to primary education through Vietnamese sign language (VSL) and to train 500 primary school teachers and teaching assistants to use VSL to teach the subjects of mathematics and Vietnamese.
The project has been progressing well and the key results include the following:
• All planned training and learning materials were produced and put into use;
• 4,000 new VSL signs were developed and taught in project schools;
• 384 teachers, 100 teaching assistants, 401 deaf adults, and 1,518/1,681 parents/caregivers were trained; and
• 1,694 deaf students in 183 selected schools in 20 provinces and 2 special education centers participated in the project during the 2020-2021 school year; of which 1,650 (97.4%) deaf students passed the first semester learning exam with satisfactory results.
The project has also contributed to the sensitization and prevention of Gender-Based Violence for female deaf students. Trained teachers, assistants, and parents have helped deaf students improve their learning results through sign language. School subsidies have provided more resources for project schools to implement various activities, including teachers' professional exchanges, awards for good performing teachers and students, and procurement of equipment required for better teaching and learning. In addition, the participation of deaf adults has increased, which has contributed to the overall project results. In June 2021, the project was extended by 14 months and will now close on August 30, 2022. Given the current state of implementation, it is expected the project will conclude all activities successfully by the closing date.