Prevalence
The U.S. Department of Education reports 5,971,495 students receiving special education services in the 2003-2004 school year. Of that number, roughly 1.2%, or 71,903 students, received special education services based on a classification of hearing impairments.
Hearing loss is generally described as slight, mild, moderate, severe, or profound, depending upon how well a person can hear the intensities or frequencies most greatly associated with speech.
Generally, only children who cannot hear sounds generating less than 90 decibels (dB) are considered deaf for the purposes of educational placement.
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