I'm working on my PhD with the University of Birmingham (School of Psychology) by distance learning. Formally trained as an English teacher of Deaf students (ages 11-18), I'm interested in how language attitudes shape learning and academic achievement for Deaf and Hard of hearing adolescents. My research project also looks at how language attitudes and academic achievement correlate with their home language environments (signed or spoken). I'm hoping that the data will contribute to the ongoing discussion within Deaf Education/Deaf Studies about narrowing the achievement gap between students who are Deaf/Hard of hearing and those who have normal hearing.