Postgraduate student Xiaomeng Xiong at the School of Government and her supervisor Prof. Yan Li jointly published their research output recently on Children & Society, with the title of ‘Dilemma of family education for hearing-impaired children in China: responsibility or evasion? ’. Children & Society is the official journal of the National Children’s Bureau in the UK, the journal is a key resource for practitioners, policy-makers and scholars seeking an understanding of children and young people in contemporary societies and the issues that affect their lives.

This article examines the current situation and dilemmas of family education for hearing-impaired children. Results show that families of hearing- impaired children generally have a tendency to avoid family education responsibilities, as demonstrated by the lack of family roles, low participation in specific family education, absence of communication and care functions and a laissez-faire approach to bringing up their children. This evasive tendency cannot simply be attributed to parental irresponsibility; rather, it is the result of a combination of

four factors and is closely related to insufficient social support. In the short term, a two-pronged approach is needed: strengthening the government's responsibility and rendering assistance for families with hearing-impaired children on the one hand, and establishing reliable links between home and school to provide professional support on the other. In the long run, it is necessary to build up a social support mechanism with social work intervention. This paper puts forward the need for collaboration among multiple parties and a family-centred assistance model to promote a shift from the tendency towards evasion to active assumption of family responsibility.

(DOI link: http://doi.org/10.1111/chso.12909)

The article could be cited as:

Xiong, X., & Li, Y *. (2024). Dilemma of family education for hearing- impaired children in China: Responsibility or evasion? Children & Society, 1–19.