How to measure listening checks and hearing technology goals

Federal rules require each public agency to make sure that hearing aids worn in school by deaf and hard of hearing students are functioning properly. The same rule covers the external parts of surgically implanted devices such as cochlear implant processors. It does not make the school responsible for the implant's programming, post-surgical care or replacement.^[1] The rule does not say how to check. That is left to the district and the IEP team.

Data answer two questions. Is the equipment working, so the student has access all day? And is the student learning to manage their own devices, so they will not need an adult forever? Those are different questions, and the most common data mistake is mixing them on one sheet.

What you need before you start

• The device list: which hearing aids, implant processors, remote microphone, and any classroom sound system. Get it from the educational audiologist.
• A listening stethoscope for hearing aids, a battery tester, spare batteries, and a drying kit.
• The Ling sounds: m, oo, ee, ah, sh and s. The Ling six sound check covers the speech range from low to high pitch.
• A trained adult for each day, with a backup. The audiologist or teacher of the deaf trains them.
• Two sheets: an equipment log and a skill data sheet, such as the task analysis data sheet.

Step 1: Decide what the daily check covers

Write the check as a short routine. A typical morning check for hearing aids:

1. Look at the aid, earmold and tubing for cracks, wax or moisture.
2. Test the battery, or check the charge.
3. Listen through the stethoscope for clear, steady sound with no static.
4. Put the aid on the student and run the Ling sounds at about 3 feet, with the mouth covered.
5. Check the remote microphone connection.

For an implant processor, the visual check and Ling sounds stay, and the listening step is replaced by the processor's status lights or check tool. The audiologist decides the exact routine. Put a copy in the IEP or the communication plan so every adult does the same check.

Step 2: Set up the equipment log

The log is one line per device per day. Keep it short enough to fill in within a minute.

Record the Ling result per ear when possible. A student who misses s and sh in one ear only is giving you a clue about that device.

Step 3: Decide when to call for help

Write the rule on the log. For example: if a device fails and a battery change does not fix it, call the parent and email the audiologist the same day. If the same device fails 3 times in 2 weeks, the audiologist reviews it. Without a rule, a broken device can sit in a backpack for a week.

Step 4: Write the student skill goal separately

The student's own skill belongs in an IEP goal, measured on its own sheet. Use task analysis for routines such as a self-check, and opportunities for reporting problems. Templates on the hearing technology goals page include:

• Do a daily self-check of hearing devices
• Respond to Ling sounds in the morning check
• Troubleshoot a hearing aid with a checklist
• Tell an adult a hearing device is off

Score each step of the self-check as independent, prompted or not done. The adult still finishes any step the student misses, because the equipment must work regardless of the student's skill.

Step 5: Summarize weekly

Each Friday, count two things:

• Equipment: days all devices worked on arrival, out of school days. List problems by type.
• Student skill: percent of self-check steps done independently, as a median of the week's checks.

Graph both. The IEP progress monitoring guide explains how often to review a trend. Share the equipment summary with the audiologist monthly.

Worked example from start to finish

Maya is a fictional third grader with a moderate hearing loss in both ears. She wears two behind-the-ear hearing aids and uses a remote microphone in class. Her IEP lists a daily device check by the classroom para and a goal for her own self-check.

September equipment log. Over 20 school days, all devices worked on arrival on 14 days, or 70% of days. The 6 problem days broke down like this:

On 2 of the dead-battery days, the aid looked fine and the stethoscope check was passed in a hurry. Maya then missed s in the left ear on the Ling check, and the left battery tested low. The Ling check caught a problem the quick visual check missed.

Action. The teacher of the deaf and the family agreed on two changes: batteries change every Monday at home, and spares stay in Maya's desk. The audiologist added a drying kit for the tubing.

October equipment log. Over 21 school days, all devices worked on arrival on 19 days, or about 90% of days. Both problems were caught by the morning check and fixed within 10 minutes.

Maya's skill goal. The self-check task analysis had 8 steps. Her baseline was a median of 3 of 8 steps independent across 5 September checks. Her goal: "Using a picture checklist, Maya will complete the 8-step self-check of her hearing aids with 7 of 8 steps independent on 4 of 5 consecutive school days." After 6 weeks of daily practice, her weekly medians were 3, 4, 4, 5, 6 and 7 of 8. She met the criterion in week 7.

What the data showed. The equipment problem was batteries, not the aids. The skill data showed steady growth, so the team moved to the next goal: troubleshooting a weak aid with a checklist.

Common mistakes

Weak: One checkbox labeled "hearing aids checked." Better: A line per device with result, problem and action, so patterns show.

Weak: Mixing equipment status and student skill on one sheet. Better: An equipment log for access and a separate task analysis for the goal.

Weak: Running the Ling sounds with the face visible. Better: Cover the mouth or stand to the side so the check measures hearing, not speechreading.

Weak: "Maya does her hearing aid check 80% of the time." Better: "Maya completed a median of 7 of 8 self-check steps independently across 5 checks this week."

Weak: Logging failures but no action or follow-up. Better: A written rule for when to call the parent and the audiologist, with the date each call was made.

Weak: Only one trained adult. Better: Two trained adults, so the check still happens when the para is absent.

Templates and tools

• Hearing technology goals for self-check, troubleshooting and device care goals.
• Auditory skills goals for listening goals that depend on working devices.
• Task analysis data sheet for the self-check routine.
• Opportunity data sheet for reporting device problems.
• Goal checker to test a draft goal for a clear criterion.

For teaching the student what the devices do and why, see IEP goals for understanding your audiogram. For listening goals by level, see the auditory skills hierarchy. For the full set of goals, see IEP goals for deaf and hard of hearing students, and for who owns each section, the low-incidence disabilities guide. ASHA's guidance on hearing loss in children describes hearing technology and why it must be working for listening to develop.^[2]

Frequently asked questions

Use it in IEP Atlas

• Hearing technology goals (access skills)
• Auditory skills goals (access skills)
• IEP goals for hearing loss
• Hearing aid in the IEP glossary
• Task analysis data sheet
• IEP goal checker

Related guides

• Low-incidence disabilities in the IEP: vision, hearing, deaf-blindness and physical needs
• IEP goals for understanding your audiogram
• IEP goals for deaf and hard of hearing students
• Auditory skills hierarchy for IEP goals

Sources

1. 34 CFR §300.113: Routine checking of hearing aids and external components of surgically implanted medical devices, Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School
2. Hearing Loss in Children, ASHA

Written and checked by the IEP Atlas editorial team under our editorial policy. This guide describes general practice and federal rules. It is not legal advice; your state may add requirements, and the IEP team makes the decisions for each student.