- Hearing
Hayley Wong’s lifelong passion for teaching children who are deaf, and her Chinese Australian background, are at the heart of her desire to help culturally, and linguistically diverse (CALD) families with a newborn who is deaf or hard of hearing.
Hayley was born in Australia to parents from Hong Kong, whose native tongue was Cantonese, but she spoke English at home.
When her own children were born, she wanted them to not only learn Cantonese but also absorb their Chinese cultural heritage.
— PhD student Hayley WongThe whole second generation of learning languages has always been fascinating to me, so that combined with my passion for teaching children with hearing loss (motivated me) to give back and do something different
That ‘something different’ is a PhD project at Macquarie University to develop ways CALD families can better navigate the stressful pathway from newborn screening to early intervention (EI) services for their child who is deaf or hard of hearing.
Her PhD supervisors include Prof Greg Leigh, who heads up our research and professional education arm, NextSense Institute. The Institute offers postgraduate study through our Master of Disability Studies program and continuing professional education.
Hayley, who has worked as a teacher of the deaf and an EI clinician, is one of two recipients of an Elisabeth Murdoch Scholarship, which provides Master and PhD students financial support while undertaking study or research in the field of hearing loss and deafness.
The other recipient is Tegan Howell, who was awarded an Elisabeth Murdoch Scholarship in 2023 to complete her Master of Philosophy. She has received a second scholarship to complete her PhD, continuing her work in early communication for children who are deaf and hard of hearing.
Tegan is examining the facilitators, barriers and the uptake of communication for children who are deaf, with a particular focus on Auslan.
The scholarship was established in 1988 with a $100,000 donation from Dame Elisabeth Murdoch, one of Victoria’s most celebrated philanthropists, to combat a shortage of Teachers of the Deaf.
Today, NextSense is the trustee. It awards the scholarship every two years.
Early childhood, educational, and health professionals can apply for a scholarship to:
- undertake studies in the field of hearing loss and deafness; or
- conduct research in fields that add to the evidence base for family-centred early intervention services in support of children who are deaf.
The value of the scholarship is based on the needs of the applicant up to a maximum value of $5,000 per year for a master’s course and $30,000 for PhD research in two tranches.
Hayley explains that children with hearing loss from CALD backgrounds, who are identified through newborn hearing screening programs, can face barriers to accessing EI services.
“This can have a major impact on their language and other developmental outcomes,” she says.
Hayley’s own experience helping CALD families motivated her to explore ways to smooth the pathway from newborn screening.
While initial in-hospital support for CALD families with newborns who are deaf or hard of hearing is less of an issue, the pathway to EI services after their baby leaves hospital contains many hurdles.
“They're coming to us, but they have no idea what they're doing here,” Hayley says.
“There are all these things that we must deal with before we can get to therapy.
— Hayley Wong, PhD studentSo that's that space, in between, where they're getting lost, they're getting confused and everything's jumbled and we don't know whose responsibility it is or how best to support them.
Dr Sue Silveira, Course Director of the Master of Disability Studies at the NextSense Institute, says Hayley’s research is critical because about one in five Australians speak a language other than English at home.
— Dr Sue Silveira, Course Director of the Master of Disability Studies at the NextSense InstituteIt's really important that we respond to our contemporary society, and of course, CALD people are a large part of that.
If early intervention services aren’t culturally and linguistically accessible, a significant proportion of children with hearing or communication needs will miss out, she says.
Other countries have very different models of disability support (such as hospital-based living in Japan), so CALD families may have different expectations and beliefs.
Sue says Hayley’s research will provide guidance on how we better translate early intervention into culturally meaningful terms and design supports that are culturally appropriate, not just linguistically translated.
“Many families come from doctor‑centric models - ‘you’re the doctor, you’ll fix it’,” Sue explains.
“Whereas effective early intervention in Australia relies on family engagement, not just professional expertise.
“Research like Hayley’s will to help families make that shift in a respectful way.”