The paper traces the place of total communication in the education of deaf children from its beginning in France to the current time. Evidence is presented which shows the efficacy of total communication and the trend toward its adoption by an increasing number of programs. The use of total communication with nondeaf, special education populations and the resulting positive gains are discussed. Finally, a trend toward the use of total communication in programs for nondeaf individuals is shown and a prediction of an increasing adoption is made. (Author/SBH)