Beauty and Tears – You Are Not Alone with Hearing Loss & Deafness

This photo is making the rounds elsewhere.  This Easter weekend, we hope everyone finds some smiles, sunshine, or a hug – even if it’s one you give yourself, for however you enjoy the day.

 

 

Let’s caption the world. The reason so many of us use the Internet, in our humble view, is that we crave social inclusion (see one of the comments in the CCAC film about this also, go to http://ccacaptioning.org/index/leave-out-translated-versions/ to view it.

Life is all about communication and relationships  – or – here’s to social inclusion via quality captioning in all the places we need it. Be good to yourself, and to others. Smile.

 

http://CCACaptioning.org – the place to be for captioning advocacy! Join us, you belong.

http://CaptionMatch.com – the place to ask for captioning now – try it – you deserve access!

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More on the Message We Like!

The photo above represents “Community” – and we all belong to a few. CCAC itself is a very large membership community, with many more friends, fans, and followers on social media.

Community in your local life is any association you belong to locally — perhaps a charity,  a “friends” group for a cultural institution that depends on your support, your church or other religious community, and many more.

Communities are not always easy for people with deafness and hearing loss to enter and participate in. This is one reason the CCAC exists – to raise awareness about the need for quality captioning – it’s our language.  Captioning is also helpful for communities that welcome others whose first language may not be the usual one. And for others with different reading or speaking styles.

The feedback we posted in the prior blogpost – a wonderful thanks to the CCAC for information and inspiration — to ask for CART – using also the CCAC film, “Don’t Leave Me Out!” –is expanded here with permission from the CCAC member. She would like everyone in California to let others know, in case they want to attend. Or perhaps others want to develop CART services for their own communities, as follows:

Lynn says:

The prior blogpost…” is true, because of some posts I saw on CCAC blog I became aware of the need for CART during worship and when the opportunity came up I used the CCAC “Don’t leave me out!” video to convince our church council to approve a pilot program whereby both worship services are captioned, open capitoning.

The church is Aldersgate United Methodist Church in Tustin, California. I am asking CCAC’s help in spreading the word and by either attending, if you live in Orange County California at least one service to show your support, or email the church office and express your support for them providing CART.

The email is AUMCTustin@aol.com and the website is www.Tustinaumc.com ; both worship service times are listed but I don’t think CART has been posted yet. Every day we do a little more to get the word out.

Lynn”

Thank you Lynn for the advocacy you do for others! And for being a member of the CCAC.

http://ccacaptioning.org – Join us from the web. Sole focus is captioning advocacy.

http://captionmatch.com – The place to ask for captioning of any sort, if you are looking for a provider.

We Like this Message!

New message to CCAC:

“The CCAC web, blog, and members’ forum inspired us to try to get CART for (….) and the CCAC film helped make it possible! We showed the film to the board of (…) to raise support and funds. Thank you!”

– and we thank this person for her positive communication!

Spread the words. If more use the CCAC membership forum as a hub to share information, create captioning advocacy projects and continue the intelligent discussions we have there (!:-), then we can accomplish the CCAC mission.

New members welcome all the time. Not only for deaf/hoh! The more the better. Your organizations too. There are so many good groups working for the deaf, hoh, and disabled. We want you to join us around captioning advocacy too.

Membership for individuals remains free. And for non profit organizations also.

Go to http://ccacaptioning.org and join us.

See http:?/captionmatch.com to ask for captioning of any sort.

Benefits of Captioning – More than you may think!

Please share widely. We thank the Journal of Hearing Health & Technology Matters for using our report. Read more on the link, or see embedded page below (http://tinyurl.com/bnw74vb). Below formatted for the CCAC blog.

The proven benefits of real-time captioning should be available to

all  By Lauren E. Storck, President of the Collaborative for Communication Access via Captioning (http://ccacaptioning.org)

A survey conducted recently by the Collaborative for Communication Access via Captioning (CCAC) revealed that the benefits of real-time captioning for persons with hearing loss are both diverse and important. Responses from the 220 survey participants also underscored the need to make real-time captioning more widely available globally.CCAC is an international non-profit organization that advocates for captioning. The basic question that our survey asked was how does using real-time captioning for an event (work, school, conference, lecture, etc.) “change your experience of that event? How does it make you think or feel?”

The survey then listed a number of possible responses (see Table 1) and asked respondents to check all those that applied. In doing this, the survey was designed to offer people a simple and structured way to express how important real-time captioning is for them. 

 

MORE THAN COMPREHENSION

The summary of responses shown in Table 1 below clearly illustrates that the value of captioning extends far beyond simply enabling people to understand what is said at an event.

Please go to the link shown above to view the Table. Results described below.

These results argue forcibly for the value of captioning beyond mere comprehension. Communication via captioning provides significantly deeper human benefits to people for whom hearing loss or deafness are part of their life. It allows hearing, listening, thinking, and being with others. Captioning captures the words, but also much more. It encourages self-respect and shared participation and enjoyment.

Captioning also facilitates mutual human exchange, which is part of everyday life and builds good relationships, not only between service providers and people who use captioning, but also among everyone at an event.

 

WHAT THE SURVEY TELLS US

As Table 1 shows, almost everyone who replied to the survey question about how real-time captioning affected their experience of an event said that it allowed them to be “included,” “able to think and participate without straining to hear or lip-read,” and “able to enjoy the event.” These were the three most frequently cited benefits of captioning.

Other replies selected by more than half the respondents were “happy,” “valued as a person,” “respected,” “satisfied,” and “more relaxed.” These too are major benefits of captioning inclusion.

Even the feeling least often selected, “alive,” was one that 27% said they experienced. Nearly 50% of respondents selected “energized” as a benefit of real-time captioning.

 

IN THEIR OWN WORDS

The original comments that many respondents wrote added richness to the survey’s findings. An analysis of their words reveals that the availability of captioning made a great many of them feel “equal” and “empowered.” Their comments identify benefits of captioning that were not mentioned in the main question on the survey.

People are almost shouting in several of the comments about the need for real-time captioning, e.g., that it restores “belonging” for them, an essential human experience for everyone. In group dynamic terms, we all benefit from “groups of belonging” to realize our own individual potential and to have meaningful relationships with others. The feeling of belonging is built upon the foundation of good communications.

Here is a sampling of the comments from respondents about their experiences at events where Communication Access Real-time Translation (CART) or some other type of real-time captioning is provided.

“I BELONG! I am no longer an outcast because I can’t hear what is going on.”

“Finally accepted as an equal. Noticed as opposed to ignored or pitied. Able to comment to other participants after the event or presentation. Welcome to provide an opinion from a different perspective.”

“I feel myself relax when I see that there is CART at an event. I know that I have a resource that will enable me to understand what’s going on and I won’t miss anything. It’s a real blessing!”

“Freedom to choose the events you are passionate about rather than only those that are accessible.”

“I used to stay home rather than pretend to be involved in an event or take a course or seminar. With CART, I can attend, understand, and contribute to a discussion with less fear that I’ve missed a crucial point or even have the topic confused. It gives me more confidence that I’m understanding new information.”

“I know that the people who planned the meeting want me to attend & have provided access to help me participate!

“Very simply CART allows me to be part of an event on the same level as everyone else who is present. It provides equality. It allows others to benefit from my input, knowledge, expertise, or point of view.”

“A huge energy-saver, confidence builder, and angst reducer.”

“I feel like I matter and I can make a contribution. I also get the information in an unfiltered manner, not filtered by the interpreter. I feel empowered.”

 

WHAT CAN YOU DO?

The CCAC survey results add further evidence of the importance of real-time captioning. Unfortunately, the reality is that there are not enough qualified providers in the U.S. and Canada, let alone in countries around the world that are just beginning to serve their large populations with hearing loss and deafness in new ways.It should be the norm that real-time captioning is provided at public events, and many private events as well. It should not be there only by special request. In the CCAC we outline “ten categories of life” in which captioning is needed but still lacking. These categories range from conferences to media to the Internet, and from education to health care and beyond.

What can you do to increase the availability of real-time captioning? We at CCAC suggest the following:

1. Tell your government and civic leaders the results of this survey and open a conversation. Continue it until progress is made.
2. Fight against excuses such as lack of funds or ignorance about equal rights. Captioning is our language.
3. Use social media to communicate, and be sure to take your discussions into action for captioning inclusion.
4. CCAC is an open and welcoming community. Join us and use CCAC as a “hub” and a “supportive and mentoring community.” Members discuss these needs online and share new information every day.
5. The more actions we take and the more collaborations we form, the more often captioning will be included.

Please go to the link to view the Table – go to  http://tinyurl.com/bnw74vb

Lauren E. Storck, PhD, is President of the Collaborative for Communication Access via Captioning (CCAC). She created CCAC in late 2009 to help meet the constant need for new advocates and to fill the many gaps in access to captioning that exist internationally. The non-profit organization, all volunteers, has about 750 members whose advocacy efforts are focused solely on captioning. CCAC invites new members and new collaborations. Join from the website. Membership remains free. 

Before founding CCAC, Dr. Storck was on the Clinical Faculty in Psychology at Harvard Medical School from 1987 to 2005, where her special interests included group dynamics, international communications, women’s health and social issues. Her experience there and her post-doctoral study in social gerontology informed her own journey of becoming deafened about 12 years ago. 

New CART Request on CaptionMatch

New request published and distributed to registered CaptionMatch providers.

Log In soon to see Request Number 1434.

Any issues or questions (re using our system, still in “beta”), just send us an email anytime – info@captionmatch.com – a service of the CCAC, all volunteer captioning advocates.

Go to http://CaptionMatch.com – making it easy for anyone anyplace to ASK for Captioning of any sort, anytime.

Captioning and Court Reporting

Maybe one day they’ll invite someone from CCAC or ALDA or HLAA or SayWhatClub too!

Enjoy this video. Court reporters are the building personalities for Captioners!

 

An interesting item in the video is that it’s the telveision captioning itself that captions the video too. Working well.

And when someone mentions Internet captioning – it’s quite importan to note that the new CVAA law only applies to TV on the Internet, not to all the huge amount of media on the Internet other than TV.

Care about captioning inclusion? Join the CCAC. Go to http://ccacaptioning.org

New subtitling technolgy for TV broadcast and the cinema

New subtitling technolgy for TV broadcast and the cinema.

As usual, with thanks to iheartsubtitles (Dawn)!

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ccacaptioning.org

need captions? just ask – captionmatch.com

and for coming week – reminder to VOTE from any location in the world please for CCAC film, “Don’t Leave Me Out!” on this link:

http://www.youtube.com/nonprofitvideoawards?x=us-en_showcase22_5755_65

 

CCAC Film Invites Your Support! Counting on You!

IMPORTANT UPDATE, 2:40 pm, Monday, 25 March:

CCAC FILM NOT SELECTED BY INTERNAL COMMITTEE. NOT IN THE VOTING for “dogooder” competition.

MOVING FORWARD — USE THE FILM, JOIN THE CCAC, AND LET’S CHEER FOR CAPTIONING ADVOCACY!

 

CCAC film, “Don’t Leave Me Out!” has been playing globally since June 2012. 

View, share and enjoy on and from  the CCAC website:  http://ccacaptioning.org/index/leave-out-translated-versions/

 

 

Stand Up for Captioning – Inclusion – Access for All

Lauren

http://ccacaptioning.org

volunteer citizen advocates

p.s. Board members of other organizations invited to email now with questions and suggestions to spread these words. Thanks again.

Why People Don’t Ask: The Case for Captioning!

Happy to announce publication of a new CCAC article today in THE HEARING JOURNAL – see http://journals.lww.com/thehearingjournal/blog/breakingnews/pages/post.aspx?PostID=14

Discussion welcome. The idea behind the short article is to encourage many more people to manage their own hearing loss in ways that work for them, and of course to offer suggestions about the reasons many of us (including the author at times) hesitate to ask for captioning and CART when we really need it.

If you want to use this article in your own blogs and newsletters, please email ccacaptioning@gmail.com to let us know.

We’ll also reference it on the CCAC website (http://ccacaptioning.org).

 

Captioning is too expensive! Have you asked for quotes? No, what’s that?

CCAC and CaptionMatch don’t want you to pull your hair out!  🙂

They don’t know what or how to ask for a quote for CART or Captioning, and assume it’s too expensive. An excuse? Or really they have no idea? No matter what…we probably need to be prepared for some of these replies – they are not fiction!

We’re going to share some of the “typical” replies we get when asking for CART or Captioning.

The first time you are asking, or the first time you are doing it alone, you’ll probably encounter that reply, or some other “gems” we’ll be adding to this discussion.

What to do?

Count to ten….then educate them, advocate for yourself, ask us how.

http://captionmatch.com