The program was originally aired as part of the “Audiology 2012: Success for Students With Hearing Loss” online conference (October 17–29, 2012).

Numerous studies have shown that school-age children with minimal/mild hearing loss (MMHL) may experience difficulties in a variety of areas; however, other studies reveal performance levels similar to those of peers with normal-hearing on some measures; while other studies suggest that children with MMHL may "catch-up" in specific areas as they get older. Because findings across studies are not straightforward, children with MMHL may be overlooked and/or the difficulties related to their hearing loss may be minimized, potentially influencing expectations, behaviors, and progress in a number of developmental areas. In this presentation, we'll address the difficulties children with MMHL experience in complex listening environments. We'll also discuss our lab studies that examine the performance of children with MMHL and peers with normal hearing in conditions designed to represent real-world learning environments.

Learning Outcomes
You will be able to:

• identify potential difficulties experienced by children with MMHL
• discuss the impact of MMHL can have on understanding in complex listening environments
• describe new research about managing children with MMHL

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