Kingston University student, India Appleton, 18, spent most of her school years at a special school for deaf children. Here, she talks about her new life among the hearing
‘In September I started at university studying fashion design on a Foundation Art course. It was a massive shock for me as, having being surrounded by deaf students at school, I am now the only deaf person amongst nearly 200 people on my course.‘
It was when India was 18 months old that her parents found out that she was bilaterally profoundly deaf. She got her first hearing aids at three and cochlear implants at the age of six. She says: ‘All of this meant that I had impaired speech and was three years behind my peers, as well as being diagnosed with a processing delay.
‘I then spent a year having speech and language tuition with a one-to-one teacher of the deaf and group therapy after school every day until I started primary school, where I received all this as part of my school day.
‘School life was like a rollercoaster, starting at a primary state school with a hearing-impaired unit in Epsom. This was miles away from home and I had to get taxi to school every day at 7am and only getting home after 4pm. Then I moved to a specialised secondary boarding school for deaf children in Newbury.
For those seven years of boarding school, I was taught by trained professionals in hearing impairment and, only having deaf peers, I pretty much lived life in a deaf bubble.’
So starting university meant that India would need a lot of support when she was offered a place: ‘I had to have a meeting with the university tutor, the local authority liaison officer and an interpreter to discuss my course, my support, deaf awareness and how I was going to cope.
‘I was worried about suddenly being in a hearing environment, surrounded by only hearing people – and lots of them. How I was going to cope with the massive workload, lack of everyday support in was used to, and being the only deaf person?
‘It didn’t start well on my first day with me being nervous, I panicked and accidently got on the wrong bus and the bus driver didn’t understand where I wanted to go.
‘Each day I have interpreters and a notetaker for my lectures and my tutors have had to be briefed on how to teach me and to be deaf aware. For the first three weeks I had full support every day all day, so everyone including my fellow students was aware that I was deaf.
‘I was a bit worried about sticking out and being looked at as different, but it actually made everyone aware. I found being open about my deafness made people understand more – they approach me, ask me questions directly and are actually inquisitive about my deafness. Thankfully everyone is really friendly, and I have made some great friends.
‘Now I only have support on lecture days. I meet my interpreter and notetaker in reception and take them to meet my tutors before the lecture starts so they can brief me and my support on what we are about to learn. During the lecture, the notetaker will sit next to me and my interpreter will stand next to my tutor and sign the lecture to me so I can understand what is being taught.
Trying to watch my interpreter and listen to my tutor is hard work, but on days where I do not have support as they may be off sick, it is very tiring. It’s hard to try and follow my tutor’s lip pattern, work out what my fellow students are saying and understand what I’m being taught.
As well as being a student, I also model for a disabled modelling/acting agency, hopefully inspiring other disabled people. I have met lots of other disabled models and have had some amazing opportunities.
I have only been out with my university mates a couple of times as I find I am spending a lot of my spare time working on my coursework, but when we have been out it has been great fun.
I just have to make sure they are deaf aware by either talking straight into my ear or sitting so I can read their lips clearly, that they talk one at a time, and not too quickly, so I can follow what they are saying. If we go to a bar or nightclub, I can feel the vibration of sound and the beat of the music, so we just dance.