Never the Twain Shall Meet: Bell, Gallaudet, and the Communications Debate

Rating:
Summary: A Wonderful Look Into the History of Deaf Education!
Review: Whether you believe education should be ASL only, oral only, SEE, total communication, simultaneous communication, or any derivitive, this book will provide for you a very in-depth and interesting history of Galluadet and Bell and their philosophies.

It seems clear that the author has his personal opinions (as anyone in the field would), but he certainly doesn't force them, or even mention them, to the readers. Presented in a fair and unbiased format, this book tells of the history of the leaders in deaf education at that time and then explains their personal beliefs and presumptions of oralism or manual learning.

This book will get your blood boiling at times, as you read about the thinking of people whose opinion differs from yours, but you'll walk away a more knowledgeable and insightful person. Relatively easy to read (I read it in two days), it also features a few photographs and illustrations of the founders of deaf education in the United States.

A good book for anyone interested in the history, but a must-read for educators. That's just this deafie's opinion. :o)