Daniel Ling, (March 16, 1926 – August 9, 2003), was a preeminent figure in the development of methods for teaching speech to deaf children. His techniques have gained global recognition and widespread use.
He served as a professor of Graduate Studies in Aural Habilitation at
McGill University
McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Universit ...
from 1973 to 1984. Concurrently, in the early 1980s, Ling ventured into the art of violin-making. Following his tenure at McGill, he held the position of Dean of the Faculty of Applied Health Sciences at the
University of Western Ontario
The University of Western Ontario (UWO), also known as Western University or Western, is a Public university, public research university in London, Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land, surrounded by resident ...
from 1984 to 1991.
Ling's contributions were formally recognized in 1999 when he was made an Officer of the
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit.
To coincide with the ...
. Furthermore, he was granted Canadian armorial bearings in 2001.
In the present day,
cochlear implant
A cochlear implant (CI) is a surgically implanted neuroprosthesis that provides a person who has moderate-to-profound sensorineural hearing loss with sound perception. With the help of therapy, cochlear implants may allow for improved speech und ...
s are enabling deaf children to attain unprecedented proficiency in spoken language. The Ling Six, a significant element of daily monitoring regimen for these implants, serves as a vital tool in assessing their functionality. Comprising the sounds "oo", "ee", "ah", "m", "s", and "sh", the Ling Six test is conducted with the child's back turned. The implant is deemed operational if the child can accurately echo each sound.
References
External links
Biography
Further reading
1. Nicholls, G. (1979). ''Cued Speech and the Reception of Spoken Language.'' Master's Thesis, McGill University, Montreal. Available from Gallaudet University. A summary, co-authored with Dr. Daniel Ling, can be found in the Journal of Speech and Hearing Research, 25, 262–269. Accessible at
2. Nicholls, G. & Ling, D. (1982). The original thesis from 1979 can be accessed online here
1926 births
2003 deaths
Canadian university and college faculty deans
Officers of the Order of Canada
Academic staff of McGill University
Educators of the deaf
Academic staff of the University of Western Ontario
{{Canada-academic-bio-stub