Sound check
Explore your own ears. You will find a bony lump behind each ear. This houses the inner ear. Clench your jaw and you will feel movement in your ears. Hum and you will feel your ears vibrate. Both ears should work together to send coherent messages to and from the brain to make sense of sound (Sound is your superpower Davies, C 2024 - please see Fit 2 Learn CIC).
Check your ears work efficiently
Checking your ears work efficiently should not be assumed, but checked regularly and maintained at all ages and stages of life.
Screening
When I check someone’s ears I begin by asking about their general health. This is because sound processing through the outer ear (the parts you can see) is connected to the vagus nerve, the 10th cranial nerve (Harkin 2021). This means that problems with the ears could potentially impact everything connected to that nerve. The vagus nerve is responsible for the regulation of internal organ functions (e.g. heart rate, digestion, respiratory rate) as well as a range of motor skills and sensory sensations.
The ears are often implicated in many health conditions and pathologies such as diabetes, cancer, neurology, dermatology and dental. Furthermore, complications with the ears and hearing are frequently associated with aging, mental health, trauma and learning disabilities.
Sound processing through the middle ear is connected to the eyes, jaw, tongue and facial muscles. It is also linked to the larynx and pharynx especially during speaking and swallowing and the tongue, tonsils and saliva glands are also connected. This has implications for food preferences, picky eating or food refusal and also in mutism, non-verbal and pre-verbal individuals.
Otoscopy
Otoscopy is a clinical procedure used to examine the external auditory (ear) canal, the tympanic membrane (ear drum) and middle ear.
Tympanometry
This is not a test of hearing ‘it is used to check how well the moving parts of the middle ear are working’ (NDCS 2024).
The Sound Teacher can perform these specialised assessments to assist with the screening of the outer and middle ear.
BSA Certificate in Otoscopy and Tympanometry
The Sound Teacher has completed the British Society of Audiology (BSA) Certificate in Otoscopy and Tympanometry. This is a BSA accredited course by Tracy James Audiology. Typical delegates for this training include occupational health workers, assistant or associate audiologists, Teachers of the Deaf, GPs and nurses.
Perform otoscopy reliably and according to BSA recommended procedure
Undertake tympanometry and according to BSA recommended procedure
Carry out checks and understand the requirements for calibration of equipment
Interpret results and findings, recording results
Communicate results and findings to other professionals
There are a variety of tests that can be used to find out how well you, your child or someone you know is able to process sound. Understanding more about the full function of the ears for health and wellbeing, for learning and for life is often a missing piece of the puzzle.
If you or someone you know is struggling with learning and/or life, consider how they are processing sound.
At any age or stage of life, sound matters!
