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Hearing speech in large classroom

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Edited

Back with two recurring questions, one of which caused real problems yesterday.

(1) On the Phonak app, which settings would you suggest I adjust to ensure I can pick up voices, especially softer ones, in a classroom. So there isn’t noise, and I’ve tried creating a few of my own programs on the app, but yesterday, both the program I was using and the Automatic program made some voices softer or muffled and took longer to pick up. Is this a matter of decreasing “noise reduction” so that in a quiet environment, the don’t filter out as much?

(2) Compared to Automatic, the streaming setting lets in more background noise. It has made me appreciate how much Auto filters out ambient noise, but I’m curious why streaming lets more in and whether to adjust both.

Sorry for the elementary questions. Time to find a video guide to the Phonak App Adjustment buttons and equalizer.

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Edited

This is a difficult question to answer. Please treat my replies as suggestions only, as I haven’t been in your situation as a teacher:

i) For scenario 1 above I would create a custom program, and hence not use Autosense, with the following settings:

  • Speech Focus - Wide
  • Noise Reduction - off or low
  • Dynamic - increase soft sounds
  • Equalizer preset - Clarity
  • Volume + 1 or 2 (or to the required volume desired/required)

Obviously if your classroom set up changes, say, you put the students in small groups, then I would switch back to Autosense, especially if they are talking and you need to filter noise. However, I would speak to your audiologist and see if you can get advice about the settings for soft noise reduction/speech enhancer in Target. This would require a trip to your audiologist to adjust those settings.

In answer to your 2nd question, I think by default the auto program lets in enough of the streaming signal so that’s its audible and leaves the mics open so you can hear some of the surrounding noise. So by default it’s balanced. However, this can be adjusted in Target, so one can further attenuate the hearing aid mics so you hear none of the surround noise. There is a field where your audiologist can do this.

In reply to @glucas

Maybe put that focus narrow. When I taught, I kept the focus narrow. You just have to make sure you look directly at the student. Worse case I would move towards them while keeping the focus on them. The newer Phonak’s speech in loud noise does the same.

The other solution could be assistive devices like a table mic, or more discreet maybe, a roger mic. The table mic apparently the best performance in terms of boosting the signal to noise ration. I personally have used roger in a classroom setting as a student in French class and have found it a boost in terms of listening to the teacher and other class mates.

In reply to @marnold

Thanks. I’ve found this to have some latency so I miss the first few words a student says or can’t figure out where in the room a voice is. So I’m going to try your suggestion of wider focus among the setting adjustments. Thank you!

@glucas Thank you so much! I tried the settings you suggested, and even with the volume at one or two below the midpoint, I could hear all the voices. So much better than the calm, speech in noise, or other settings I tried. I’ll try moving from wide to narrower as @marnold suggests and see if that’s better or worse. But huge thanks. A true game changer for me.

In reply to @jmar

@jmar

I’m really happy you asked and had such good response. I build schools and the answers you received helped me a lot.

I taught skiing for 35 years. Day. Night. Private and group lessons. I had a terrible time sometimes. I told the young kids I was deaf. If they didn’t hold their hands up I didn’t respond. Class of 10 on the ski hill.

Worked.

DaveL

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