Total Communication is a philosophy more than a communication method.  It proposes that deaf and hard of hearing children are exposed to all communication modalities which meet their needs.

NOTE: The following statements are the opinion and experience of the EDEN editor and do not represent any other organizations.

In practice, Total Communication is often confused with Simultaneous Communication (signing and speaking at the same time).

A possible way to include the Total Communication philosophy in the real world would be to provide a student with equivalent times of exposure to ASL, Cued Speech, Auditory-Oral training, Speech Therapy, etc.

If your school district program describes itself as Total Communication, be sure to find out the details of how they offer each of the components you feel is appropriate for your child.
A word of caution about Simultaneous Communication:  It has been the experience of the EDEN staff that combining speech and sign nearly always degrades the integrity of both systems, particularly the visual grammar of signing.  If your district program claims otherwise, ask for some documentation of efficacy or research supporting their choice for Simultaneous Communication.