Face To Face: American Sign Language

Hence, if a person takes any other online class they will not be afforded such interaction. Additionally, in order to partake in such a class one does not simply need to buy the typical classic course tools such as a textbook, pencil or pen and a notebook. Rather, this type of course also requires one to purchase or own a headset with a microphone or a webcam. The reason for this is because one uses it to communicate and further access the class’s various visual aids, see the teacher’s face, and observe the instructor’s body language.

Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet was a hearing minister that designed American Sign Language, which is the first language used by deaf and hearing people in the United States and Canada. Two thousand hundred million people are using ASL, and at least five thousand hundred people are using it as their most important way of communication. Throughout a period, Deaf people in America were already using sign language, in the early 1800’s; Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet had become friends with a young Deaf girl named Alice. Gallaudet started to teach the girl a few words, and succeeded at doing so. In 1815, Gallaudet went to Europe in search of methods of teaching the Deaf. He approached a number of program directors, the signs used at the school for the deaf, and the signs began to develop into American Sign Language. American Sign Language in America also has

The submitted final lesson plan for Session 5 contained many of the key elements of the best practices for developing effective online learning. Nonetheless, the development of the lesson plan integrated the learning discoveries based on the idea of applying it to a blended American Sign Language course. The lesson plan utilized the implementation of newly adopted Signing Naturally (Smith, Lentz, & Mikos, 2008) course curriculum, which I integrated into my proposed blended ASL 101 course. Using the knowledge of the importance of consistency, communication, and community the plan demonstrates a variety of online tools found within the Blackboard LMS that supports these three components for an efficient and effective online blended course. From

The reason I am striving to become a sign language interpreter started back in 2002. My church had a dance group that involved dancing and signing at the same time. This was something that really intrigued me at such a young age. So after I joined, I ended up falling in love with ASL. That led me to learning sign language on my own, and soon after I decided to go to George Brown College to enroll in the ASL & Deaf Studies program full-time. It may seem like a very cliché thing to say, or one may think that I need to give a better reason instead of “I love ASL”. But that is the God-honest truth. American Sign Language is incredibly fascinating to me, and I want a career where I am constantly exposed to ASL and to Deaf (and hearing) people using

During the Through Deaf Eyes, I realize that no one should judge one another even if we can hear or deaf because at the end of the day, we are all the same kind which is being a human.. During the film, what blew my mind away is that deaf people say “I can” while the hearing people say “I can’t.” Deaf people are more brave than hearing people and they embrace their pride and do not want to be cure. The American Sign Language is a way to communicate with one another therefore, it is so important for deaf people to communicate. They would have to go through a deaf speech class with teachers helping them from step by step using their hands motion to learn American Sign Language.

Classifiers are handshapes we use in American sign language (ASL) to show the movement, placement, orientation, size, and shape of a noun. Since ASL is a rule-governed language when using classifiers you must first identify the noun, then you can use the classifier to show how the object moves or is placed in relationship to other objects (Aron). American sign language uses eight different kinds of classifiers for specific categories.

What would you do if you were Deaf and living in America during the early 1800’s and before? Think of how hard it would be to learn when the teachers in the classroom would talk out loud and you couldn’t hear what they were saying. It was very difficult for Deaf students who lived before the 1800’s to get any education. Rich people would send their children across the ocean to Europe where they could attend the Braidwood Academy in Great Britain among other great schools for the Deaf. The many who couldn’t afford it just had to live in silence looking on from the outside. One of the problems besides having trouble getting an education, was that many people misunderstood Deafness. Many people believed that because Deaf people couldn’t hear and usually couldn’t speak, that they also couldn’t think intelligently or reason. Some believed that Deafness was a curse for bad behavior. One young Deaf girl by the name of Alice Cogswell helped to change that thwarted thinking. She motivated and inspired Thomas Gallaudet to study education for Deaf people and then later open the 1st school for the Deaf in America.

The use of ASL is extremely important to the deaf community and to Deaf culture. Although fluency is always desired, the willingness to learn and communicate in ASL goes a long way in being accepted. A skilled signer who does not have the right attitude will be seen in a less appealing light than a struggling signer with a true heart for the deaf.

As part of daily life, we communicate and connect ourselves with certain communities. School, jobs, families, sports, extracurricular activities, and many other communities are just a few we come into contact with. Although these may seem to appear the same, there are specific types of communities such as a discourse community. A discourse community is a group of people involved in and communicating about a particular topic, issue, or in a particular field (Webcourses, N.d, Website) that has a share a common set of goals and attempt to achieve these goals (Swales, 1990). According to researcher and educator, John Swales, there are six characteristics that define whether or not a community is considered a discourse community. Following the criteria Swales states is necessary to be a discourse community, I did an in depth research on the American Sign Language community. Through my study, I was able to meet all six characteristics.

Throughout high school, the number one thing I looked forward to everyday was American Sign Language class. There, I was taught not only just the receptive and expressive aspects of the language but also the culture behind it, and the people who made it to be what it is today. Learning about lots of the challenges and discrimination that many deaf and deaf blind people have faced and continue to face almost on a daily basis opened my eyes to issues and abilities of people that I otherwise would have never known about.

Thanks for pointing out that sign language is not universal. Sign language is just as diverse as spoken languages with its own regional dialects for different countries (NAD, n.d.). Wow! For some reason I thought deaf people spoke the same standard sign language. I’ve been enlightened. With that in mind, I see how easy it is for people and sometimes frontline medical professionals to assume that hearing impaired individuals use one language. I think it also speaks to my own cultural challenge. Since I do not have any hearing impaired individuals in my family or close friendships, I am not familiar with the way hearing impaired individuals communicate other than through sign language, which I assumed was universal. I think this is valuable because

American sign language can be a really fun language to learn. But behind the language there is an entire culture with the Deaf community. They have events, their own traditions, and most importantly, rules. What may be polite in our culture may not be in the Deaf community. That’s why I’m here to help you out with some of the do’s and don’ts in Deaf culture.

Taking American Sign Language this semester has taught me a wide variety of things. It has taught me about the deaf culture, signing, using facial expressions, and has enhanced my knowledge of ASL as well as the deaf culture. Overall, I am extremely grateful to have been able to experience a different culture, such as ASL, this semester.

In learning about the deaf culture I have taken on a new understanding about the people it includes. Through readings and the lessons, I have learned that being deaf has both its hardships and its blessings. The beauty of the language alone makes one want to learn all that he or she can about it. In this paper I will discuss the beauty of the language and the misconceptions the hearing world has about deafness.

Do hearing problems run in your family? Maybe or maybe not, but even if hearing problems don’t necessarily run in your family, that doesn’t mean that there is a 100% certainty that your child won’t be born without hearing difficulties. When having a child you should always be aware of many potential health concerns that can arise in the unborn child, and not just hearing problems. With todays’ health care advances, having a child born that is deaf or that has severe hearing problems may bring some challenges, but it does not mean the end of the world. Your baby is still perfect. What this does mean is that you will need to know what different options are available to you to help your baby with their hearing problem so that he/she can live a full, productive and happy life. While teaching any child that they can accomplish all they want out of life if they work hard at it, coping with hearing problems is along those same lines. It is very important you show and teach them nothing can stop them in life from achieving their goals and dreams and that includes having to overcome being deaf. In many cases I believe it can make you a stronger person with a greater drive to succeed. There are a couple of main options. A great deal of the time these tend to all work together to achieve the greatest overall success. There is the cochlear implant, American Sign Language (ASL), reading lips, and lastly if it is an option intense speech therapy.