Darshen and Piishaan (second and fourth from left) with their grandmother Lee Siok Kon (centre). They are flanked by Chong (left) and Venugopal. —Photos: ART CHEN, CHAN TAK KONG/The Star
BEING raised by one or both parents who are deaf is not easy for children who face a host of challenges.
Internationally known as children of deaf adults (Coda), they often end up with the burden of being child interpreters for their parents.
Some face discrimination and isolation.
Worse still, unlike children who are deaf, they received no government support.
Lim says rarely are the voices and experiences of Coda being investigated.There were 46,127 individuals with hearing impairments registered with the Social Welfare Department in 2024.
However Coda numbers are unknown.
According to Lim Yoke Kwan, who completed her Masters in Special Needs at Nottingham University (Malaysian Campus), Coda have generally been voiceless and their plight unknown.
Her findings are based on her 2013 research entitled Malaysian Hearing Children born of Deaf Parents: Interaction and relationship in the family.
“Though much research focuses on deaf children born to hearing parents, rarely are the voices and experiences of Coda being investigated,” she said.
Lim, who is also president of the Interpreters and Translators Association for Selangor and Kuala Lumpur Deaf Community (JUPEBIM), also said Coda faced cultural differences, miscommunication and social pressure.
Coda families
Jessie says some teachers assume Coda are not academically inclined.Jessie Lee, 16, initially faced challenges trying to communicate with her parents.
“Until I was six, I lived with my godparents and returned to my parents on weekends.
“I have an older brother and he too was raised by my godparents and he returned home when he was in secondary school,” she said.
And just like most deaf parents, Jessie’s parents also faced difficulties communicating with her teachers.
“As a child, report card days are challenging because teachers are unsure how to communicate with my parents.
“My parents would suggest that the teachers write down what they wanted to say,” she said.
Jessie said some teachers also assumed Coda individuals were not academically inclined.
“People generally have this misconception that when our parents are deaf, we are not able to live and learn like others,” she said.
Her mother, Low Li Lan, 51, who works at the Malaysia Federation of the Deaf, taught her sign language.
“I often catch people staring at my parents and I while we communicate in sign language,” she said.
Jessie was among Coda who provided feedback on a report from Malaysian children to the United Nations Committee on Rights of the Child in October 2024.
Coda and other children participated in the survey for the report. — Courtesy photos
The report, compiled by Childline Foundation Malaysia, was submitted by child representatives from Malaysia to the committee in Geneva, Switzerland this Febuary.
“During the survey, some said they felt ashamed of being Coda. They also shied away from mingling with other Coda.
“Some hide the fact their parents are disabled, while others don’t want to learn sign language as they may have their own internal struggles,” said Jessie.
She also pointed out that the deaf in Malaysia communicated with Malaysian Sign Language (Bahasa Isyarat Malaysia – BIM) and those who could speak may not even be fluent in other languages.
So Coda who did not know BIM might not be able to communicate with their own parents, she said.
Jessie’s father, Lee Swee Hock, often chose not to communicate with others because of this difficulty.
Jessie’s ambition is to become a sign language interpreter and to champion child rights.
Darshen Yin Jin, 16, did not learn sign language because he was raised by his grandmother in Kedah, while his younger brother Piishaan Yi Nken, 13, could as he lives with their parents who are both impaired in hearing and speech.
Their mother Sally Chong and father Venugopal Krishnan Kumar, said they wished there were clubs for Coda to learn sign language and for this community to grow with more support.
“Often the Coda children become the interpreters for their parents and it is a burden for them,” said Chong.
(From second left) Marcus and Marco with their parents Bernard and and Sherry.
Brothers Marcus, 14, and Marco Wong, 11, are among Coda who struggle to communicate with their parents as they have not grasped sign language.
Their maternal grandparents are always around to help but the family hopes learning BIM would be more accessible.
The boys’ parents, Sherry Kee and Bernard Wong, usually communicate with their sons by writing on paper or texting.
The family loves to travel and attend events but feels that life would be easier if more people knew how to sign.
The children’s messages to the Prime Minister.
Wish for inclusion
Childline Foundation Malaysia spokesperson said the views of 321 Coda, from ages nine and 17 were compiled for the UN report.
“They highlighted their inability to understand certain complex BIM signs since most of them did not attend formal sign language classes,” she said.
She added that Coda children’s grandparents or relatives usually had to step in for teacher-parent day.
Views of the children who participated in the survey.
“They have strong views about the need for inclusion,” she said, with some wishing for more Malaysians to know sign language.
When asked what they would want the Prime Minister or any other authority to do, Wong said one wrote: “Please make BIM an official language for the country.”
