An examination of the history of deaf education in Greece and in Cyprus

Determining factors for its development.

Abstract

The history of deaf education worldwide has mainly focused on the oral versus sign language debate. Only minor attention has been paid to the historical context and background in which educational ideas and methods for teaching deaf children developed. Significant historical information about deaf education in Greece and in Cyprus began relatively late with the founding of the first schools for the deaf in the twentieth century. This paper will provide a comparative examination of the history of deaf education in Greece and in Cyprus by highlighting the most important events that have contributed to the development of the education of deaf people in both countries. Data for this paper were drawn from “official” sources (written documents), as well as from interviews with informants (teachers, parents, and deaf people) of Greece and Cyprus. The study has revealed that the history of deaf education in both countries has been eventful, and it has developed through major shortcomings and debates. Despite the fact that Greece and Cyprus are in close geographical proximity and the fact that their educational policies on various issues are quite similar, the main findings of this study show that a number of factors have led to the development of different provisions for deaf children in these two countries. Specifically, parents' lobbying, Deaf Community empowerment, various legal measures, available technology, and teachers' training backgrounds seem to be the major contributing factors for the establishment of a) bilingual education, and special units and schools for the deaf in Greece and b) oral education and inclusion in Cyprus.