Fitting hearing-impaired students with hearing instruments and placing them in oral-only educational programs have been the two pillars in local auditory rehabilitation programs. This article argues that such a practice is inadequate by delineating the listening tasks and the fundamental auditory abilities involved in speech perception. These abilities are examined against the basic amplification function of the hearing instruments as well as the lack of full control of the outcome as prescribed by the hearing aid fitting methods. Together, the results from the psychoacoustic research presented in this article point to the imminent needs of searching for rehabilitation resources such as auditory and speech/language training provided via computer software that facilitates self-learning. |