Multiple Solutions for Classroom Hearing Protection
Posted by Denielle on 9th Mar 2014
Hearing loss among children and young adults is rising as The Children’s Hearing Institute reported and The New York Times shared in the article All That Noise Is Damaging Children’s Hearing. There are a few causes for hearing loss, but based on the report from The Children’s Hearing Institute, one-third of the hearing loss is caused by noise. Hearing loss is no longer just an issue among the elderly people, American Academy of Audiology reported that as many as one child in eight has noise-induced hearing loss.
Today’s high-tech environment gives everyone noisy surroundings. Environmental noise such as car alarms and sirens are items which, we usually have little or no control over. Children’s toys, computer games, or personal listening devices are usually set and played at a volume above the 85 decibels recommended by the American Speech Language Hearing Association. Hearing loss is not only a disability, it can prevent children and adults to engage and expand their full potentials and abilities.
Califone is pleased to continue our collaboration with the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association to encourage teachers and students to lower the volume below the recommended 85 decibels level and reduce listening time. With the mission of safeguarding children and adults’ hearing, Califone offers the following products:
For classroom applications, are the Sound Alert™ Headphone, Sound Alert Jackbox, MP3 Learning Center, and the AV Tutor™ Fundamental Center. The Sound Alert Headphone and the Sound Alert Jackbox visibly signals to students and teachers if the volume is too loud. When the volume exceeds 85 decibels, a bright red warning light turns on, alerting the teacher and students about the unsafe sound level. Our MP3 Learning Center includes one MP3 player with restricted volume playback level set to 85 db with its included four stereo headphones, and a Mini Stereo Jackbox. This learning center allows four students to learn the curriculum or create podcasting together as a small group and is also available singly or with two headphones. The AV Tutor Fundamental Center includes a cartridge-based gaming unit alike module, one stereo headset, and six cartridges to reinforce critical reading skills at 85 db volume playback.
To protect one’s hearing in industrial arts classes, construction sites, or against any other environmental noise, we suggest our Hearing Safe™ Headphones. This line of protective headphones and earplugs are great tools in defending against potentially damaging noisees. The bright yellow Hearing Safe Headphone (HS60) has fuller sized earcups designed to completely cover the ears of adults for maximum protection. The red Hearing Safe Headphone with smaller earcups (HS40) is designed for young students. For classrooms on the noisy side of a school, students can wear these headphones while they are drawing in art class, unraveling a challenging puzzle, or focusing on math calculations so they are not constantly absorbing the loud environmental noise. Young adults who need their ears completely covered in various situations can use our red Hearing Safe Headphone with rounded rectangle shape earcups (HS50). The Hearing Safe Foam Earplugs are light weight and small enough to be easily carried in a pocket, available in three styles to offer hearing protection in a convenient way.
