The Butterfly Cage

by Rachel Zemach

Joy, heartache, and Teaching while Deaf in a California public school This book is tender, funny, surprising, and disruptive. You'll be a fly on the wall in a Deaf classroom in a public school, watching a Deaf teacher struggle with staff, administration, and aides who sabotage the teachers at every turn. You’ll also see the children struggle with a principal who removes their textbooks, a vindictive, power-hungry speech therapist, and a system that leaves them defenseless against it. You'll also meet a language-hungry boy who will capture your heart and run away with it and the political, fiercely intelligent elite members of the Deaf community who rally to change legislation after his life takes a shocking turn. Learn from these true stories of individual students and their quirky, fallible teacher, what the deepest feelings and dilemmas of Deaf and hard of hearing people are, and why 90% of our students around the country are being unnecessarily set up for failure.

Genres: Nonfiction, Memoir

435 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 25, 2023

About the author

Rachel became Deaf at age ten, in an accident. As a teenager, she was thrilled to discover the charged, idiosyncratic Deaf world and the lavishly expressive and comprehensive, 3-D language of American Sign Language.

Later, while raising two children and running a mosaic tile business, she got a Deaf education teaching credential, and began teaching a Deaf class in a public school "mainstream program" near her home. It turned out to be an exhilarating, but shocking career.

After ten years of teaching there, and three teaching in a world-famous all-Deaf school, she decided to write a memoir of this experience, in order to educate others, improve the lot of Deaf children and try to start a national dialogue about mainstream Deaf education.

In The Butterfly Cage, readers will meet individual students, watch raucous, entertaining and often surprising class discussions, and see Rachel’s personal journey as her identity undergoes a dramatic shift. Even those with no previous knowledge of this topic will come away with an intimate understanding of the issues most pertinent to Deaf people, of all ages.

Zemach lives with her husband, whose signing is not great, which may be why he calls her his hamburger instead of his wife.

Reviews

[Nancy Pyzel]

What surprised me most is how big the impact of language deprivation is on a child - it is literally life-changing. It alters the way the brain's neural pathways form.

As the adoptive mom of a child who suffered neglect as a baby, I know first hand the long-term effects of baby brains not getting enough stimulation. It hurt my heart to read about intelligent, engaged children who were so far behind in school because they were deprived of something so fundamentally necessary as language.

A cute, funny story makes you feel all warm and fuzzy, then WHAM! The reality of being Deaf in a biased system assaults your sense of fairness and decency. It left me feeling sad and angry, but also hopeful. The world needs more writers, and teachers like Rachel.

[Mona Mehas · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'll start by saying I'm a hearing person. Rachel Zemach has given us a scathing look at the state of Deaf education in public school, at least in California. I shudder to think of the kids left behind as she describes in this book. The way Rachel was treated as a teacher, an adult, a human being is reprehensible. Sometimes I wanted to jump inside the pages and scream at her principle or slap the woman silly! As a retired public school teacher in Indianapolis, I had no idea Deaf kids were ever treated so poorly or Deaf teachers. We have a school for the deaf here in town; maybe that's why there weren't deaf kids mainstreamed where I taught. I remember once, many years ago, a 7th grader was in my class for a minute. She wore a contraption and I wore a microphone. It was awkward for both of us because I could tell she wasn't getting what she needed. When I looked at her, she seemed clueless. Like I said, she was there for a minute, maybe a couple days.
I found myself laughing, cursing, or sometimes crying while reading this memoir. If you are interested in kids, or education, or people in general, read this book. If you want to learn about the richness of a woman's love for the children she teaches, read this book. If you know anyone who is Deaf, please, read Rachel Zemach's memoir, The Butterfly Cage.

[Chris · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am absolutely blown away by the beauty, poignancy, and depth of Rachel Zemach’s memoir, The Butterfly Cage! Reading this emotive book, I felt like I was right there with her in her classrooms as she described her joy of teaching! This memoir is not only moving, but it is also thorough and analytical as it enlightens readers about pervasive audism in Deaf Education. Readers are invited to wake up to the frustrations someone who is Deaf/deaf/HOH has, as people refuse to make communicative accommodations, such as using sign language or writing, and how this may even more likely occur if the Deaf person happens to speak.

[Joy Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful memoir from a Deaf teacher of Deaf children fighting systems of audism in the California Public Schools. A perfect read for those teachers who know that students need to have friends and teachers with shared lived experiences.

[Megz · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m not sure why or how, but this seems to be the year where I am reading and consuming a lot of media by Deaf creators - and I am here for it! The Butterfly Cage is a memoir by a Deaf educator, featuring her experiences teaching first at a public school, and then at a specialised school for the deaf.

You can’t read this book and not get angry at the absurd amount of ableism that Deaf/HoH people have to deal with, but I think it is a necessary rage. The Butterfly Cage is not only necessary and educational, but also engaging and difficult to put down - an excellent combination in a memoir.

Thank you to Netgalley and Paper Angel Press for providing this eARC.

[Lily A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

“The Butterfly Cage” is a brilliant and thoughtful memoir written by Rachel Zemach, a deaf educator, writer, and activist. Here, Author Zemach recounts her remarkable navigation through the intricacies of teaching while Deaf in a California public school. It is a crucial and sometimes disquieting panorama of the patchiness of deaf education in public schools offering necessary advice for educators and families alike.  

She fuses these experiences with her own heartfelt story of sudden deafness at the age of ten, and her ensuing and rather challenging journey toward a deaf identity and taking up a teaching role. With a striking foreword, the text does not tally in its progress but carefully details what it is like as a deaf teacher to strive for her pupils in a system that does not understand their needs and identities and which may end up damaging their potential and psychological well-being.

Her inspiring role in a deaf public school offers a role model that parents wish for their children in a school setting but whom deaf students rarely get in their classrooms. Zemach further details her struggles with the administration, staff, and aides who try to cripple teachers’ efforts at every turn, a scene all too frequent in mainstream schools.

“The Butterfly Cage” is one of those indelible memoirs that you finish reading and feel a little like you have lost an old friend. Readers will learn from the true stories of individual students told in an artful and affecting manner, what the deepest struggles of deaf and hard-of-hearing students are, and why the majority of these students in the country may end up losing their birthright due to a broken system that urgently needs restructuring. Zemach is unflinchingly honest and accomplishes much in this appealing and intelligent tapestry by rallying the society behind her to help these vulnerable group attain their budding capabilities.

That’s what places the book squarely among the best memoirs written out there. Her writing passion has adroitly amplified a thousandfold in the quiet world of the deaf. Her generosity of spirit is bound to encompass every reader who puts their hands on this hard-to-put-down memoir.

Indeed, “The Butterfly Cage” by Rachel Zemach makes a major contribution to our understanding of deafness, the challenges deaf students meet, and a call to legislators and educators alike in creating a conducive environment for them to learn in public schools. It is an oeuvre from a quintessential voice in America.

[Peyton · Rating 5 out of 5]

A necessary read for everyone, especially educators! This book shines a light on the inequalities Deaf students face in classrooms. I absolutely recommend this book to teachers, educators and people who are looking to learn more about the Deaf community.

[Erica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anyone would be captivated by this first-hand description of a Deaf educator teaching Deaf and hard-of-hearing students in an elementary school where they are far outnumbered by hearing administrators, teachers, employees, and students.

First of all, it's fascinating to hear specific descriptions of how deafness affects daily tasks when the environment is set up for hearing people and those hearing people Do Not Listen to the Deaf people to figure out how to accommodate their basic needs. If you are hearing (like I am), it is hard to imagine all of the details - it is eye-opening for Zemach to describe them in vignettes and episodes that are brief, charming (even when describing a disaster!), and lighthearted...for the first several chapters, or the first few years she was teaching.

As the book progresses, Zemach is more and more conscious of the degree to which her challenges have been created or exacerbated intentionally by the administrators or specialists. Zemach gives a cohesive theory of what motivates them - which seems to be easing their own discomfort, finding the quickest solutions, ignoring contradictory information in order to have a simplistic clarity, and expending as little money as possible, usually.

Since it is clear from the outset that Zemach eventually went to work in a school run by Deaf people, I was eagerly anticipating the comparisons we would see at that point, and we do get some of that. However, the transition is not a simple one of her finally rejecting the role of "handicapped" person at a mainstream school and embracing the full scene of the Deaf community - the author experiences other unrelated difficulties with her health that take the narrative sideways a bit.

Because of that veering off, the last section of the book feels different - a hasty attempt to tie things together, shift focus from the instrumental work within one classroom to the motivational work of political and social action.

Personally, I am more comfortable with the role Zemach describes when she is doing her best (or even her worst) teaching - when she is 100% engaged with one or more students and lets them lead the learning just enough to keep them engaged as well.

Her work is inspirational - she has a plan, but she observes how the students respond, and she shifts; coming up with alternatives, following leads, pushing or being pushed as seems most effective at the moment. With almost no support, she navigates a terrain which is exactly as complex and nuanced as any other classroom (any hearing classroom), PLUS the added complexity of a wider age-range than most classrooms, PLUS the added complexity that some kids are aiming to be bilingual (spoken English & ASL), some aim for trilingual (spoken Spanish & English, & ASL), some were taught SEE signs, and some have no language at all, yet.

The stories are more heartwarming than distressing - perhaps because the implication is that what she is describing is more and more RARE at the current time. However, IF her experience continues to be an accurate description of schools that mainstream Deaf students, this book is definitely the antidote.

The last chapter has the author recuperating from her alarming health condition, and re-connecting to her physical self - in vignettes that are less specifically Deaf-related and more generic, and then the final stretch of the book is an Epilogue and Tips that list things people can do, organized by their role in relation to Deaf people. It is a mix of practical/useful and preachy/didactic - but if you made it that far, you are probably happy she's sharing it with you.

[Michael Thal · Rating 5 out of 5]

I taught public school in California for nearly 30 years. From my classroom experience as a teacher and as an administrator, Rachel Zemach’s The Butterfly Cage, is spot on. In her 388 page book, Zemach writers a memoir designed to ignite dialogue about Deaf education in America.

When Rachel was ten years old, she lost her hearing in an accident. AS she grew, she learned American Sign Language (ASL) at the California School for the Deaf, and she blossomed. She earned a degree in Deaf Education and was eventually offered a job at a mainstream elementary school teaching Deaf children in grades K-3.

Through her students, Zemach shows the effects of language deprivation. Most deaf youngsters are born to hearing parents who mostly want their children to be hearing, so unintentionally force their children to learn a language they can’t hear or relate to. A few lucky ones can read meaning off lips, but the best lip-readers can get 30-40% comprehension.

Zemach shows us how public schools are built on a foundation of oralism, where children are taught to communicate by speech. However, when you’re deaf, you’re left out. However, a visual manual language like ASL educates Deaf children to highly function in our society. Those subjected to hours with a speech therapist as they miss important math, English, and History lessons are out of luck.

The author also shows us how audism is practiced in most public schools where deaf children are educated. Audism is discrimination against deaf people. It’s expressed in the attitude of hearing people. They don’t try to communicate with the deaf and have the false assumption deaf people can’t do things. Many hearing people consider deafness a tragedy. They reject the use of sign language, expect deaf individuals to rely on their residual hearing or lip-reading. They also assume the Deaf and hard-of-hearing (HOH) are idiots and lower their standards for them in an educational setting.

All of this and more is shown eloquently in The Butterfly Cage where Zemach relates her experience teaching young deaf children in a public elementary school. The woman’s patience is amazing considering the audism and oralism she has to contend with by other teachers, support staff, and administrators.

Anyone interested in Deaf education, Deaf culture, ASL, or is deaf, HOH, or knows and or works with Deaf people needs to read this book. The Butterfly Cage is an eye-opener and will teach you a few things about empathy.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'll be honest, this book put me on a roller coaster of emotions that I did not expect to have. The Butterfly Cage is a memoir written by Rachel Zemach, writing about her experience as a Teacher of the Deaf in Public Schools of California. Later in her life, she worked for the School for the Deaf.

I am extremely passionate about language deprivation. Since 90% of Deaf children are born to hearing parents, most Deaf children do not learn Sign Language (apart from a few home signs and gestures) until they arrive to Kindergarten, where they may have an ASL Interpreter. This can have detrimental effects for life when it comes to brain, language, and social development. This book shows practical illustrations of real life examples of Deaf children acquiring language in a world of audism and speech therapy.

In her book, Zemach fights against the system for her students. I found myself laughing, crying, inspired, and crushed as I read through this book.

I was especially impressed with Zemach's wordsmithery. She wrote similes and metaphors. She explained ASL signs and Deaf culture to make it understandable for a reader that may not have a lot of background knowledge about these topics. As a fluent signer, I was able to easily know which signs she was referring to based on her descriptions (which is a feat in and of itself, because ASL is a visual language).

I recommend this book, 100%. If you are in any way involved in Deaf education, whether it's interpreting, teaching, speech therapy, or if you're a student yourself, this book will open your eyes to the impact of language deprivation and audism from a Deaf perspective.

[Theresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book details the journey of a Deaf teacher in a mainstream school setting. I have been in Deaf Ed for nearly 30 years - mostly at the school for the Deaf mentioned in this book. I recently began working at a mainstream school and it has been a huge culture shock. I am overwhelmed with the ignorance out there. I am astonished by people who know nothing about Deaf children and people having the power to make decisions that radically impact the lives and futures of Deaf students. I am disgusted with the poor signing skills, continued exposure to SEE sign and people who don’t sign at all. Everything that Rachel describes is accurate. This is happening now and students are still getting the short end of the stick. The language deprivation is real. The academic delays are real. Deaf children deserve better. I hope that Rachel’s book is a stepping stone toward making the changes needed so Deaf children begin to get better access and education.

[Larisa White · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a mainstream, public school and college-level educator of many years, with an M.S.Ed. in science education, and a Ph.D. in educational program evaluation, I have taken many courses over the years -- both as course requirements, and then in the form of continuing education workshops -- to help myself better understand and serve the needs of my students. My goal was always to help each and every student thrive and learn.

One of the best experiences I ever had was taking the F.A.T City Workshop, which explained various learning disabilities, and included a series of activities designed to help us gain a viceral understanding, from the student's point of view, of the challenges posed by various LDs. While Deafness was included in the F.A.T. City list, it was merely mentioned and then glossed over -- and it seems to me now that this was a major gap in my education as a teacher.

In "The Butterfly Cage," Rachel Zemach fills that gap, and then some! Writing from the perspective of both a Deaf student, and long-time Deaf teacher of the Deaf, Rachel enabled me to finally gain some real insight into the severe impediments to learning that we educators create for our Deaf students, by not truly understanding the nature of their experience and nature of their learning needs. (How can anyone ever hope to learn anything, without the use of a first language?!) In reading her book, I laughed at the absurdity of problems we create, cried at the trauma created by our ignorance, and found new determination in the simple solutions that we as educators can implement to help resolve so many of these issues -- all by reading this little gem of a page-turner.

In my professional opinion, "The Butterfly Cage" should be required reading for all educators.

It was a joy to read.

And now, I'm off to learn a little more ASL.

[Kathy MacMillan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVE this book. Honestly, I want to shove it into the hands of hearing people on the street and say, “Read this! Just read this, and maybe, maybe, you’ll start to understand.” Zemach introduces so many important concepts and historical moments that are crucial for understanding the Deaf world – and lends immediacy, context, and humanity to those abstract concepts by grounding them in her own story. She brings her classroom to life before our eyes, showing the wonder and promise of her Deaf students, and the mainstream education system that failed them time and time again. As a teacher/librarian/camp counselor and director who has worked with Deaf kids for many years, I was entranced at how well she shows how much Deaf kids ROCK. Zemach’s writing is lovely, filled with beautiful turns of phrase, elegant descriptions, and, when necessary, unpleasant but very necessary truths.

[Molly Glass · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a gift in more ways than one. Rachel has the rare skill of reaching to multiple audiences at the same time: able to educate the hearing, and able to resonate with the d/Deaf. As a grown Deaf adult who was Deaf since toddlerhood, I cannot count the number of times I felt seen. I had to take breaks a few times, as many stories made me cry and remember my own experiences of coming of age while being in an all hearing family.

If there is one take away to carry from this book (no spoilers) it's this: communication is a human right.

It's impact is so immense I'm planning to buy a copy to donate to my local library. The more people see and learn from the Deaf lens, the better off our future generations of Deaf children will be.

[Cris · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is for everyone who loves a captivating and well-told story. Rachel Zemach shares her experience teaching Deaf students who arrive at school with little to no language and, as a result,
have developed a quirky view of the world. She takes the reader on a rich and emotional journey through the triumphs and setbacks that she and her students face in a school environment with little to no understanding of the needs of Deaf children. Her writing is impactful and humorous. I laughed and cried while reading The Butterfly Cage. Given the subject matter, I thought this book would be dry and academic and only meaningful to those interested in Deaf education. I was wrong. I could not stop reading. You will not be able to put this book down.

[Diana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quite a page turner.

This memoir illustrates startling differences between public school education for Deaf children and the Deaf school. To quote a Deaf Reviewer, "powerful read". I agree that the book is powerful and moving.

The reader catches glimpses of the author's childhood and education as a Deafened person at the age of ten.

This memoir is a chronicle of the author's personal experiences teaching Deaf children in both settings.

Her students were blessed to have her as their teacher.

Laughed and cried while reading the book.

Highly recommended.

[munkchip · Rating 5 out of 5]

As someone who works in education and sees the strides kids can make when appropriately challenged and paired with the right supports, I was SHOCKED by Rachel Zemach’s experience. The deprivation of language and community experienced by the students in schools who prioritized spoken English over the well-being of the children entrusted to them was greatly saddening… and put a real fighting spirit in me! Grateful for the advice and further resources at the end; definitely not a book I could just read and put behind me.

[Kerrie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway.

I don’t actively interact with anyone from the Deaf community but I do find it important to be an advocate and ally whenever possible. This book interested me because I had a lot of struggles with my own child in the public school system. He had different challenges but the attitude and lack of understanding was the same. This was a very emotional and heart breaking book and I’m inspired to do more to help the community after reading it.

[Liberty · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Butterfly Cage by Rachel Zemach completely transformed my understanding of the education system, exposing the deep-rooted corruption and oppression faced by the Deaf community in educational settings. I couldn’t put this book down! Zemach’s powerful call to action urges both Deaf and hearing individuals to stand up against injustice, challenge systemic barriers, and provide genuine support to the Deaf community. Through her advocacy for meaningful engagement, respect for Deaf culture, and accessible language, Zemach’s story of resilience and dedication serves as a profound reminder: no one should have to navigate an inaccessible world alone.

[Sandra Sebastian · Rating 5 out of 5]

What are deaf and Deaf?

We learn how it is to be Deaf and teach Deaf students in a public school. There are descriptions of wonderful progress made when this teacher uses ASL and her very ingenious methods to help the children enjoy learning and feel confident . Also, the frustrations of the teacher who has little support or encouragement, in fact mostly the opposite, from y the administrators. The author is I inspiring!!

[Erin O"Donnell · Rating 5 out of 5]

MUST READ for all Deaf Ed, parents of, and administrators of Deaf education

The Butterfly Cage is nothing short of outstanding writing. It’s a real, raw, and unfortunate commonplace view of life as a Deaf educator in the mainstream as well as the Deaf experience in mainstream classrooms across America. This book brought me to tears over and over. I felt as if I was reading my own life played out. Absolutely must read for all involved with Deaf education on any level.

[Sommer Chambers]

I never rate memoirs but this book was SO GOOD. It’s important that you know this book is recent and that also makes it more heartbreaking. Very informative but the timeline/writing also worked well. I wish everyone would read Deaf memoirs. The author really dives into language deprivation for Deaf students and how much of an issue it still is today. I cried many times while reading this book (Lazlo😭🫶🏼). I also could not believe her husband and children did not sign well. Baffling to me

[Neil · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a free copy via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was heartrending in places.

The book is based on the authors experience of teaching deaf children in a public school.

It does not make pleasant reading at times, with the battle to actually teach deaf children, rather than attempting to force them to speak English.

A hard read but rewarding.

[Rene Low · Rating 5 out of 5]

Extremely well written and remarkably moving, this shot in the arm of audism is important not only for what it says about the oppression of the Deaf community but also for what it explains about oppression everywhere. How it describes the human spirit and what it exposes of ableism is nothing short of extraordinary.

[Dee · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author vividly and accurately describes the joys and heartaches of working with DHH students in a public school system not designed for them. Like many publications in Deaf Ed, she’s not without bias.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for every policy maker, administrator and teacher who has even the slightest interactions with deaf students. Zemach's story should be a required reading in any Teacher of the Deaf program!

[Danielle Fleskes · Rating 4 out of 5]

👁️ All about a Deaf woman’s journey through life- becoming Deaf, working in public education and then finally ending up teaching at a Deaf school continuing her passion. A lot of insight into the oppression and struggles being a Deaf person in a hearing world filled with audism.

[Lindsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anyone who works in education, in any capacity, anywhere, should read this. Anyone with Deaf family, friends, coworkers. The more people read this book, the better chance Deaf kids all over will have to truly be seen and to be given what they need to thrive.

[sierra · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is truly heart wrenching and beautiful. Every person who works with children with hearing loss or has a child with hearing loss should read this book. Rachel writes her memoir with such candor and care. I will be forever touched by her and her students words.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heartbreaking and inspiring.