The Master's track in Deafblindness focuses on the specific
problems that people with deafblindness encounter. We look at the
consequences of deafblindness on the development and functioning of
people in order for them to participate in society.
My name is Saskia Damen. I am the
curriculum coordinator of the Master’s track in
Deafblindness, organized by the department of Pedagogical and
Educational Sciences. I am also an assistant professor at the
Faculty of Behavioral and Social Sciences. So I give lectures, I
supervise students and I also conduct research. My research mainly
focuses on deafblindness.
What is deafblindness
exactly?
Deafblindness is
a rare condition. We use the term to mean the combination of vision
impairment and hearing impairment. This means that a person does
not need to be totally deaf and totally blind to be called
deafblind. They could also have partial hearing or be partially
sighted. This group is very diverse; there are people who are born
with deafblindness but also people who become deafblind later in
life and even when they are elderly. In the Master’s track,
we mainly focus on people born with deafblindness.
What is the Master’s track
in Deafblindness about?
The Master’s track in Deafblindness
focuses on the specific problems that people with deafblindness
encounter. We look at the consequences of deafblindness on the
development and functioning of people in order for them to
participate in society. For example, what support do they need and
what kind of specific educational programmes would they benefit
from?
Can you give an example of a
research project in deafblindness that you are working
on?
I am currently
involved in a study on people with Usher syndrome. People with
Usher syndrome are born with auditory disabilities: they are deaf
or have partial hearing. They gradually become blind later in life
because of the disease. This syndrome was only first discovered as
people started to develop visual problems. Nowadays, we have the
possibility of genetic testing. So, in the Netherlands, babies who
are only a few weeks old undergo hearing tests. If they have
hearing disabilities, their parents are offered the opportunity to
have a genetic test to see what the cause of the hearing impairment
is. What we then see is that parents realize that their child will
become deafblind when they are still very young, even while still
babies. This creates a huge need for support for those parents and
for people with Usher syndrome themselves. As part of this study,
we developed a guide for professionals on how to support children
with Usher syndrome, as well as their parents.
How did you end up in this
specific field?
I think I
started to become interested in children with disabilities when I
was quite young and I worked as a volunteer at a summer camp. At
this camp, there were children with disabilities. I was so
fascinated by them and thought this could be a topic for me to
explore. That was a reason for me to follow a degree programme in
Special Education. During my degree, I did an internship in the
field of intellectual disabilities. This is the field that I am
most interested in because I like investigating complex problems. I
also came into contact with people with multiple disabilities, such
as vision and hearing impairments. I was fascinated by that! After
I graduated, I began working at an organization [name?] to gain
some work experience. They managed accommodation for people with
congenital deafblindness. I saw this combination and was fascinated
by it, so chose to focus on this group. As soon as I began working
there as a professional, I immediately started to research the
topic because I was so interested in it. At a certain point, the
Master’s track in Deafblindness was established in Groningen
and I was lucky that my workplace allowed me to enroll for it. I
became acquainted with Professor Marleen Janssen and, later on, I
was able to do a PhD with her as my supervisor. After that, I
started working as an assistant professor.
What can students expect from this
track?
The Master’s
track in Deafblindness is unique. We possess an international group
of lecturers who are very engaged and experienced. We also have an
international student population, so as a student, you will meet
people from all over the world. We really support interaction and
collaboration between the students so they can learn from one
another and learn about different cultural perspectives. Because it
is such a small group, the students get to know each other and the
lecturers very well.
Students are also provided with a lot
of supervision. The majority of the track takes place through
distance learning. The first month begins with lots of lectures in
Groningen. These weeks are very intense. Alongside the lectures,
there are many assignments and students collaborate in groups.
After this month, they each go back to their home country and begin
their internships and thesis projects. Distance supervision is
provided through the University and we make individual appointments
with each student. The students can also pick their own thesis
topics, which is quite unique. This is a very interesting
opportunity, of course, for those who already work in the
professional field, as they are able to do something that is
relevant both to them and the organization they are working
for.
Where do alumni usually end
up?
In a wide variety of
places. Some alumni have actually become directors of schools and
organizations. Others have gone onto jobs relating to educational
psychology, where they are responsible for coordinating
interventions and assessments for students or clients. Many alumni
also end up in jobs supervising others, such as staff who directly
work with people with deafblindness. Or they become consultants and
advise parents and professionals. Positions in communication
coaching, for example as speech or language therapists, are also
very popular.
What is your advice for students
considering following this track?
Let yourself know! Because it is such a
unique and small-scale track, it is important to examine whether it
would suit you well. If you are enthusiastic about the prospect,
please don’t hesitate to contact me and we can discuss the
details of the track and whether it suits you.
