Technology Enables Deaf Writer to Balance Family Life and Successful Career

Karin Matsumori began to lose her hearing in the fourth grade, and, by her junior year in high school, she had lost her hearing completely. She graduated with a degree in design from Tsukuba College of Technology, a unique three-year college in Japan for individuals with hearing and visual impairments. She began her career by working for an organization that promoted employment of people with disabilities, and later for Oriental Land Company—up until her first child was born.

As soon as she had the career of motherhood in hand, she began a career as a freelance writer. Today she is the successful author of "Can You Hear the Sound of Stars?" an autobiography of her experiences as a person with a hearing impairment. In addition to her busy life maintaining her household and child-rearing, she has worked extensively as a writer, college lecturer, and product-planning business consultant. In addition to her talent, drive and ability to juggle both family life and a career, she credits information technology (IT) with allowing her to live the life of her dreams.

PC+E-mail Provides Powerful Solution

From an early age, Matsumori had dreamed of working from home, but that was nearly impossible for a person with hearing impairment who could not use the phone. But, being home with her first child gave her the opportunity to figure out a solution to that problem: PC+E-mail.

"I have found writing easier with e-mail," Matsumori says. With e-mail, thoughts spring forth and flow like a fountain. With faxes, ideas did not flow as efficiently. From the beginning," she says, "I would use the personal computer whenever I could find free time between taking care of my household and children." She developed her skills and applied tenacious energy to getting her work published.

Soon her manuscripts were in demand and her serial articles began to appear in magazines. Matsumori's popularity began to flourish and she was asked to speak on a number of occasions. Meeting people after the events gave her a chance to exchange business cards—with e-mail addresses! She never fails to send e-mail to the persons with whom she exchanges business cards. Networking with others, she realizes, is an important aspect of building her career—and motivating others to achieve their dreams.

Matsumori does not use assistive technology specially designed for people with disabilities. She uses the same information technology used by those who can hear. She just uses it differently. While others may choose to receive information aurally, Matsumori chooses to receive information visually. For example, she can set her Windows XP computer to receive system warnings visually using SoundSentry or to get text or captions in programs with the ShowSounds option.

Most important of all benefits of computer-based communications for people who are deaf, is the use of e-mail. It is difficult for those without hearing impairment to understand the powerful role of e-mail for those who are deaf or hearing impaired, according to Matsumori. In the days when face-to-face meetings and the telephone were the main methods of communication, Matsumori was limited in her options, she says—today e-mail has dramatically leveled the playing field.

The Road from "IT-illiterate" to a Freelance Writer

Matsumori's interest in information technology began in junior high, she says. "I saw the main character of a TV drama using e-mail. It occurred to me that even someone like me, who is unable to make a call, is capable of contacting people most anywhere with such a tool." But, at that time, the personal computer was still expensive, and it seemed unattainable. In addition, Matsumori lived in an area of Japan where the Internet was not yet available.

Her first exposure to information technology was with a standalone personal computer. She touched it for the first time in her information processing class in high school, and then used it mainly as a tool for designing at college. Then she used it for document processing at the subsidiary company where she found her first employment.

Before long, Matsumori, who had studied design in college, got more and more assignments to make presentation materials that were aesthetically appealing. She began using, and became skilled in, Microsoft PowerPoint. Matsumori, now a lecturer of a "Universal Design" course at Kanagawa Institute of Technology, utilizes Windows XP Home edition and PowerPoint 2000 for her current class. "I never dreamed that the skill I acquired in my first job would become so useful today," Matsumori says.

At Oriental Land, she worked for about a year before the company began using personal computers. "I had to run around long distances to directly communicate with the other departments because I was not able to use the telephone. Productivity and communication increased with the introduction of the PC where data sharing became easy. "There was also a stronger sense of working together," Matsumori says.

A Plea to the Current IT Community and Future Vision

Matsumori believes she can make a difference speaking about the difficulties and needs of people who are deaf or have hearing impairment. Two subjects she often discusses are the "Telephone Relay Service" and "PC Interpreter System."

The "Telephone Relay Service" is a service where an operator relays an e-mail message by voice from a person who is deaf or hearing impaired to the recipient. In the U.S., there is a well-established system for telephone relay services. However, in Japan, these services have been discontinued due to curtailed subsidies despite the strong support of the hearing-impaired. Matsumori understands the importance and efficiency of telephone relay services for the hearing and visually impaired. "It is a service that people who are deaf or hearing impaired depend upon—especially in the event of an emergency. I want our society to become one that readily accepts and securely provides these services," Matsumori says.

Another useful tool is the "PC Interpreter System—or speech recognition—the software feature that displays speaker's spoken words on a PC screen by recognizing the sound of the words or by typing the words for people who are deaf or have hearing impairment. Presently, this service is used often as the sign language interpreter in lectures. However, in general, the service is still little understood and its use is limited.

"Even those without impairments can better understand the subject with this sort of service," Matsumori says. "In addition, it's important to note that the number of people with hearing impairment will increase as society ages. So, this service is not only for people with 'special needs.' The PC Interpreter is an effective service for everyone'", Matsumori says.

Benefits Emphasized

Matsumori urges companies to aggressively take advantage of these services in meetings and conferences, because only a small number of companies have created a workplace environment providing interpretation by sign language or PC as needed. As a result, many employees who are deaf or have hearing impairments are often excluded from important meetings. An ideal setting would accommodate the needs of diverse individuals. People should be able to choose from several methods of accessibility and communication media that would allow for their full participation rather than their exclusion.