EXTENDING STORY READING FOR DEAF AND HARD-OF-HEARING CHILDREN: ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AS A MEDIATOR OF BILINGUAL LITERACY IN DONNA JO NAPOLI’S HANDS & HEARTS

Autor

  • Ioanna Kaliakatsou PhD in Children’s Literature, Teacher Independent Researcher/Teacher, Ministry of Education, Religious Affairs and Sports, Greece

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.46827/ejse.v12i6.6928

Słowa kluczowe:

deaf and hard-of-hearing children, multimodal picture books, artificial intelligence, inclusive literacy, shared story reading

Abstrakt

Shared story reading represents a fundamental context for children's literacy development; however, deaf and hard-of-hearing children may experience barriers when literacy practices are predominantly organized around spoken language. Contemporary perspectives in Deaf education emphasize bilingual approaches that recognize sign language as a linguistic foundation and written language as an additional pathway for participation and learning. This chapter explores the potential of artificial intelligence (AI) to mediate bilingual literacy through Donna Jo Napoli’s multimodal picture book Hands & Hearts. Drawing on theories of multimodality, Deaf bilingual education, and inclusive literacy, the chapter examines how AI-supported features can extend connections among American Sign Language (ASL), written language, visual representation, and shared story reading. It argues that AI should be understood not as a replacement for human communication or picture books, but as a mediating tool that expands opportunities for accessible, meaningful, and inclusive bilingual literacy experiences for deaf and hard-of-hearing children.

Biogram autora

  • Ioanna Kaliakatsou - PhD in Children’s Literature, Teacher Independent Researcher/Teacher, Ministry of Education, Religious Affairs and Sports, Greece

    Dr. Kaliakatsou Ioanna is an educator and researcher with extensive experience in primary education, early childhood literacy, and inclusive pedagogy. She holds a PhD and a Master's degree in Education and has been actively involved in research and professional development in the fields of literacy, multimodal learning, and children's literature. Her academic interests focus on picture books as multimodal texts, critical visual literacy, inclusive literacy practices, and the role of materiality and sensory engagement in early childhood education. Her work explores how contemporary picture books can create accessible and meaningful learning experiences for diverse groups of children, including autistic learners and children with different communication profiles. Her research also examines the intersections of multimodality, embodied cognition, Universal Design for Learning (UDL), and social inclusion, with particular emphasis on developing pedagogical approaches that promote participation, agency, and equity in early literacy classrooms. She has presented her work at national and international conferences and has contributed to academic publications on children's literature, literacy education, and educational innovation. Alongside her academic work, Dr. Kaliakatsou Ioanna has extensive experience in teacher education and curriculum development and is actively engaged in initiatives that promote inclusive education and community participation. Her current research continues to investigate multisensory picture books, visual meaning-making, and the educational potential of multimodal storytelling in fostering literacy, communication, and social inclusion for all children.

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Pobrania

Opublikowane

2026-08-08

Numer

Tom 12 Nr 6 (2026)

Dział

Articles

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