INCLUSIVE ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING FOR DEAF AND HARD-OF-HEARING STUDENTS

Deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) learners are increasingly educated in mainstream and inclusive classrooms, where English is taught as a foreign language, yet many English-teaching methods still assume that learners can hear. This article reviews international research and Uzbekistan’s current legal framework in order to identify the main barriers that DHH students face in learning English and to outline evidence-informed strategies for inclusive classrooms. Based on a narrative review of peer-reviewed studies, international instruments and national legislation, the article argues that (1) for DHH learners English should be approached primarily as a visual and written language; (2) early and rich access to a first language, signed or spoken, is the foundation on which foreign-language literacy is built; (3) Universal Design for Learning provides a practical framework for removing barriers for the whole class; and (4) the quality of teacher preparation and of collaboration with special-education specialists and interpreters is decisive. The article proposes a set of classroom strategies for listening, speaking, reading, writing, classroom organisation and assessment. It is a conceptual contribution and does not report new experimental data.