FM Systems: How Can They Help In Your Classroom?

Many Deaf and Hard of Hearing students now use hearing assistive technology such as hearing aids and cochlear implants. However, while these assist in hearing, this does not mean that your student will always be able to hear or listen to you. Students with Hearing Assistive Technology (HATs) often struggle to hear teachers, parents, or others in noisy rooms. This is how FM Systems can help. FM Systems acts as a speaker that, tends to, directly link to your students' HAT to deliver your voice to them as if you were right 

A white cochlear implant laying
on its side on a white background

beside them, even if you are across the classroom. FM Systems assist in diminishing listening fatigue by doing this, as your student no longer has to strain to attempt to focus on your voice. While many FM Systems typically connect directly to your students' HAT, some systems can be placed in the ceiling at certain intervals to create better sound quality for all students in the classroom. This type of system can not only assist students with HATs but also students without HATs to be able to better hear you throughout your lesson. Not only this, but FM Systems can help keep a teacher from straining their voice to talk over any background noises that occur in the classroom. While FM Systems can be a huge help to your students, there are a few teacher errors that can occur with them if not careful. Some teachers may forget to switch off the microphone when the students are doing individual work, causing the student to hear any conversations the teacher may have during this time. There have also been a few horror stories of teachers forgetting to switch off the microphone when they go to the restroom, allowing the students to hear everything done there. Therefore, FM Systems can be highly effective if used carefully and purposefully.

I believe that FM Systems are a good source to help students with HATs not become burnt out on listening fatigue, especially during a long school day. They can also help everyone in a classroom, the teacher, students with HATs, or students without HATs. I have little experience with FM System use in grade school but have had quite a few professors who implemented them into their lectures. Because they did this, everyone in the classroom could hear the professor without straining to focus on listening or second guessing if they heard correctly. Due to this experience, I can first-handedly state that FM Systems are a wonderful addition to any classroom and have many benefits.