{"id":7,"date":"2021-10-28T16:16:48","date_gmt":"2021-10-28T16:16:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/engage.gov.bc.ca\/accessiblebcactstandards\/?page_id=2"},"modified":"2026-03-13T16:52:38","modified_gmt":"2026-03-13T23:52:38","slug":"background","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/engage.gov.bc.ca\/deafandhardofhearing\/background\/","title":{"rendered":"Background"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-engagement-container\"><div class=\"engagement-page\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-engagement-content\"><bcgov-breadcrumb>\n        <a href=\"https:\/\/engage.gov.bc.ca\/deafandhardofhearing\">Home<\/a>\n                          <span>\n        Background\n  <\/span>\n  <div style=\"display: flex\" slot=\"breadcrumb-extra\">\n      <\/div>\n  <\/bcgov-breadcrumb>\n\n\n<h1 class=\"bcgov-engagement-header \">Background<\/h1>\n<div class=\"wp-block-button is-style-bcgov-primary-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/vGEuBfDNl9c\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ASL version<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What is the current situation?&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The early years&nbsp;are&nbsp;the most&nbsp;critical period of language&nbsp;acquisition and&nbsp;development.&nbsp;The&nbsp;ministry&nbsp;wants to understand what&nbsp;services&nbsp;are needed, how they should be delivered,&nbsp;and&nbsp;what matters&nbsp;most&nbsp;to&nbsp;families,&nbsp;professionals\/service providers&nbsp;and&nbsp;Deaf and hard of hearing&nbsp;community&nbsp;representatives. This engagement reflects&nbsp;Ministry of Children and Family Development (MCFD)\u2019s commitment to seek input&nbsp;to inform the&nbsp;early years services and service delivery practices&nbsp;for&nbsp;Deaf and hard of hearing&nbsp;children ages&nbsp;0&nbsp;to&nbsp;5&nbsp;and&nbsp;their families, in B.C.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>All&nbsp;children born in B.C.&nbsp;are&nbsp;eligible&nbsp;for&nbsp;the BC Early Hearing Program (BCEHP)&nbsp;through the universal newborn hearing screening program, which is&nbsp;funded through the Provincial Health Services Authority (PHSA).&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Children identified with hearing differences are referred to Early Intervention Services by BCEHP and others including family doctors, speech and language pathologists, Child Development Centre, etc.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>MCFD funds&nbsp;the&nbsp;Early Intervention Services for&nbsp;Deaf and hard of hearing&nbsp;children and their families in B.C. These services are&nbsp;currently&nbsp;provided through a&nbsp;service&nbsp;agreement between MCFD and BC Family Hearing Resource Society (BCFHRS).&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This engagement is specific to the&nbsp;Early Intervention Services\u2014offered by MCFD&nbsp;through&nbsp;BCFHRS, as&nbsp;outlined&nbsp;above\u2014for children&nbsp;(0&nbsp;to&nbsp;5 years)&nbsp;with a hearing difference and their families.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Throughout this engagement&nbsp;the terms&nbsp;Early Intervention Services and Early Language Services&nbsp;as well&nbsp;as,&nbsp;Deaf and Hard of Hearing&nbsp;children and children with hearing differences, are&nbsp;used interchangeably.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Types of services<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-button is-style-bcgov-primary-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/J68YlVeYBZ8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ASL version<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>The&nbsp;types of&nbsp;services&nbsp;may&nbsp;include&nbsp;(but are not limited to):&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Referral\/Intake<\/strong>&nbsp;(direct service(s) to connect families to services, including sharing information, and helping families get started)&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Planning&nbsp;<\/strong>(direct service(s) with families to&nbsp;identify&nbsp;goals, priorities, and next steps related to their child\u2019s language development)&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Assessment&nbsp;services<\/strong>&nbsp;(service(s) that measure and document a child\u2019s language acquisition and development.&nbsp;Assessment services inform service planning to ensure children are meeting their unique development milestones.)&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Language services<\/strong>&nbsp;(service(s) that support a child\u2019s development in early language (i.e. spoken and\/or signed language) and communication (i.e.&nbsp;turn\u2011taking, early pre\u2011linguistic skills) by providing full access to language and communication skills)&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Parent&nbsp;education<\/strong>&nbsp;(learning opportunities for parents and\/or guardians to provide the information,&nbsp;skills&nbsp;and strategies for families to support and promote language acquisition and development for their child, at home, and within the community.)&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Groups\/immersive language opportunities&nbsp;<\/strong>(service(s) that offer group settings or environments where children and families can experience rich language exposure and interaction with peers and adults)&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Service coordination and navigation&nbsp;<\/strong>(i.e.&nbsp;supporting access to services across the province and&nbsp;facilitating&nbsp;coordination, where possible, with other service providers,&nbsp;including&nbsp;Indigenous&nbsp;services,&nbsp;Family Connection Centres&nbsp;and Children Development Centres.)&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Transition to&nbsp;school age services<\/strong>&nbsp;(service(s) that help children and families prepare for the transition into kindergarten or school aged programs.)&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Others<\/strong>&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Next steps<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-button is-style-bcgov-primary-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/1tewXScICpA\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ASL version<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>This engagement is not&nbsp;to&nbsp;revisit past decisions or&nbsp;evaluate&nbsp;current early intervention services.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Data collection is planned for&nbsp;<strong>February&nbsp;and early March&nbsp;2026<\/strong>, with a public summary posted&nbsp;<strong>in&nbsp;2026<\/strong>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The findings of this engagement will&nbsp;inform the development of&nbsp;early language&nbsp;services&nbsp;contracted&nbsp;though MCFD, for&nbsp;Deaf and hard of hearing&nbsp;children ages&nbsp;0 to 5&nbsp;and&nbsp;their families, in B.C.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There are no planned or expected changes to funding, and BC Family Hearing Resource Society&nbsp;will continue to provide services until March 2027.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why is this engagement needed?&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-button is-style-bcgov-primary-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/Un1rlFrLfJ4\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ASL version<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Language is a right<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-button is-style-bcgov-primary-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/WA2CR8TD-Fw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ASL version<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>All children have the right to a&nbsp;meaningful and accessible&nbsp;first language.<sup>1<\/sup>&nbsp;Early language access from birth to age five is critical for children to thrive across all areas of development, including social, emotional, cognitive, and academic growth.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The early years (ages 0&nbsp;to&nbsp;5) represent a critical period for language acquisition, during which children build the foundational language skills necessary for learning, forming relationships, and navigating everyday life.&nbsp;For&nbsp;Deaf and hard of&nbsp;hearing&nbsp;children, language access requires intentional and planned exposure to signed&nbsp;and\/or&nbsp;spoken languages.&nbsp;This approach ensures that children have full access to language(s)&nbsp;from the start&nbsp;and are able to use the language(s)&nbsp;that are the most accessible and effective for them as they grow.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Approach<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-button is-style-bcgov-primary-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/a6CG92i2loM\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ASL version<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Providing&nbsp;the best&nbsp;quality&nbsp;services possible&nbsp;for Deaf and hard of hearing children, youth and their families is a top priority for the MCFD. This includes&nbsp;striving to&nbsp;ensure&nbsp;that&nbsp;services are:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Accessible throughout the province, including rural and remote&nbsp;communities&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Responsive to&nbsp;accessibility needs&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Focused on&nbsp;measurable,&nbsp;outcome-based service delivery&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Engagement history<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-button is-style-bcgov-primary-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/tKu1SGah1no\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ASL version<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>In&nbsp;May&nbsp;2025, a&nbsp;solicitation&nbsp;process&nbsp;for early language services for Deaf and&nbsp;hard of hearing&nbsp;children&nbsp;ages&nbsp;0 to&nbsp;5 highlighted that there are varied perspectives&nbsp;across multiple interest holders&nbsp;on the&nbsp;early&nbsp;years&nbsp;services and service delivery practices&nbsp;for early language services. It became clear that more input was needed to understand the way forward, and the&nbsp;solicitation&nbsp;was cancelled.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the fall of 2025, MCFD committed&nbsp;to an&nbsp;engagement&nbsp;process&nbsp;to&nbsp;inform the development of&nbsp;early years services and service delivery practices,&nbsp;contracted though MCFD, for&nbsp;Deaf and hard of hearing&nbsp;children ages&nbsp;0 to 5&nbsp;and their families,&nbsp;in&nbsp;B.C.&nbsp;This process&nbsp;includes seeking&nbsp;input from parents and\/or guardians, representatives of the Deaf and hard of hearing communities, early language and\/or early years professionals&nbsp;and service providers, and other interest holders.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Footnotes<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>This aligns with the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ohchr.org\/en\/instruments-mechanisms\/instruments\/convention-rights-persons-disabilities\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities<\/a>, particularly Article 24 on education in appropriate spoken and signed languages, supported by Articles 7, 21, and 23 regarding children\u2019s rights, communication, and family support.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-engagement-sidebar\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-engagement-call-to-actions undefined cta-left-image\"><div class=\"call-to-action-content\"><span class=\"status-text\">Status:<span class=\"status-bubble status-text-open\">Open<\/span><\/span><h3 class=\"call-to-action-title\">Online survey <br><\/h3>\n<div class=\"wp-block-button is-style-bcgov-primary-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/engage.gov.bc.ca\/deafandhardofhearing\/online-survey-asl-version\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>Take the online survey in ASL<\/strong><\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-button is-style-bcgov-primary-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/feedback.engage.gov.bc.ca\/247588?lang=en\"><strong>Take the online survey in English<\/strong><\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>This&nbsp;survey&nbsp;is for&nbsp;everyone&nbsp;who&nbsp;wants&nbsp;to share&nbsp;input&nbsp;to inform&nbsp;early language services&nbsp;in&nbsp;B.C.&nbsp;but&nbsp;who&nbsp;are not part of an interview or small group meeting,&nbsp;or who want to add more comments in addition to their participation in an interview or meeting.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The&nbsp;survey&nbsp;will be open February&nbsp;9&nbsp;and closes on&nbsp;April 3, 2026 at 4:00pm.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If text-based response is not accessible to you, you can request support completing the survey by&nbsp;emailing&nbsp;<a href=\"mailto:citizenengagement@gov.bc.ca\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">citizenengagement@gov.bc.ca<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-button is-style-bcgov-primary-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/5pAT_bg2Ww8\">ASL Version<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What is the current situation?&nbsp; The early years&nbsp;are&nbsp;the most&nbsp;critical period of language&nbsp;acquisition and&nbsp;development.&nbsp;The&nbsp;ministry&nbsp;wants to understand what&nbsp;services&nbsp;are needed, how they should be delivered,&nbsp;and&nbsp;what matters&nbsp;most&nbsp;to&nbsp;families,&nbsp;professionals\/service providers&nbsp;and&nbsp;Deaf and hard of hearing&nbsp;community&nbsp;representatives. This engagement reflects&nbsp;Ministry of Children and Family Development (MCFD)\u2019s commitment to seek input&nbsp;to inform the&nbsp;early years services and service delivery practices&nbsp;for&nbsp;Deaf and hard of hearing&nbsp;children ages&nbsp;0&nbsp;to&nbsp;5&nbsp;and&nbsp;their families, &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/engage.gov.bc.ca\/deafandhardofhearing\/background\/\" role=\"presentation\" aria-hidden=\"true\" tabindex=\"-1\" >Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":"[]"},"class_list":["post-7","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"lang":false,"translations":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/engage.gov.bc.ca\/deafandhardofhearing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/7","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/engage.gov.bc.ca\/deafandhardofhearing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/engage.gov.bc.ca\/deafandhardofhearing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/engage.gov.bc.ca\/deafandhardofhearing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/engage.gov.bc.ca\/deafandhardofhearing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/engage.gov.bc.ca\/deafandhardofhearing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/7\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1937,"href":"https:\/\/engage.gov.bc.ca\/deafandhardofhearing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/7\/revisions\/1937"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/engage.gov.bc.ca\/deafandhardofhearing\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}