PDS Students Help Researchers

On 7th May 2025, our PDS students met with Merle Mahon and Ruth Nightingale from University College London (UCL), who are working on the Both EARS (BEARS) research project. BEARS is looking at whether virtual reality (VR) training can help deaf young people with cochlear implants aged 8-16. As part of the project, Merle and Ruth have interviewed young people testing out the VR to find about their everyday listening experiences. 

In their workshop, Merle and Ruth explained what they had found out during their interviews with the young people taking part in the BEARS project. Our students had an interesting discussion about their findings, including whether they agreed or disagreed with what Merle and Ruth had found out!  

Merle and Ruth said: ‘A big thank you to the PDS students and staff. We found the students inspirational, they were really engaged and we learnt so much. They helped make our research more relevant and reinforced how important it is to understand the real-life listening experiences of deaf young people’.    

Comments by our students:

“I found the interview to be truly engaging and the questions asked were well thought out. I am glad that what I had to say will be able to help Ruth and Merle in their fascinating project; I look forward to learning more about it. The interview also served as a reminder that there are other deaf individuals, our age whose experiences were both similar but also different. It reinforced the diversity of being deaf.”  

Naomi 12.2  

“It was really nice to meet Merle and Ruth; the comfortable space they held allowed me to express my experiences as someone who wears hearing aids and I hope it does prove beneficial to the research . It was refreshing and also interesting to also be able to relate to the other deaf students around the UK.”

Hamira 12.2