Performance of a group of deaf and hard-of-hearing students and a comparison group of hearing students on a series of problem-solving tasks.

The purpose of this study was to compare the performance of a group of school-age deaf and hard-of-hearing students and a matched group of hearing students on a series of problem-solving tasks. The results indicated that the hearing group performed better than the deaf and hard-of-hearing group. As they got older, both groups made incremental gains in problem-solving ability, and the gap between the deaf and hard-of-hearing group and the hearing group narrowed. Possible reasons for the results are discussed and suggestions for intervention and future research are presented.