Mainstreamed Deaf/HH Students' Online Learning in K-12

2021 ◽  
pp. 69-89
Author(s):  
Millicent Malinda Musyoka ◽  
Zanthia Yvette Smith
Keyword(s):  
American Sign Language ◽  
Sign Language ◽  
Online Teaching ◽  
American Sign ◽  
Deaf Students ◽  
Teaching Online ◽  
The Us ◽  
Changing Roles ◽  
K 12

The population of deaf/hard of hearing students attending mainstream K-12 programs continues to increase in both the US and UK, with almost 85% reported in mainstreams. With COVID-19, schools shut-down, and social distancing efforts, K-12 programs turned to online teaching. Online teaching changes both the role of the teacher and the parents. A case that is unique in the new changing roles of online teaching is that of deaf students. Education of D/HH students involves the use of English and American Sign Language (ASL). Most families with D/HH students do lack ASL competency and cannot communicate with D/HH students. This chapter gives into cognizance language barriers and academic performance when discussing mainstreamed D/HH students' online teaching. The author discusses the challenges and proposes possible solutions to improve online teaching for this population.

scholarly journals The unexplored role of handshape similarity in processing numbers on the hands

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 156-171
Author(s):  
Ilaria Berteletti ◽  
SaraBeth J. Sullivan ◽  
Lucas Lancaster
Keyword(s):  
American Sign Language ◽  
Sign Language ◽  
Judgment Task ◽  
American Sign ◽  
Numerical Information ◽  
Finger Counting ◽  
New Directions ◽  
Native Signers ◽  
The Relationship

With two simple experiments we investigate the overlooked influence of handshape similarity for processing numerical information conveyed on the hands. In most finger-counting sequences there is a tight relationship between the number of fingers raised and the numerical value represented. This creates a possible confound where numbers closer to each other are also represented by handshapes that are more similar. By using the American Sign Language (ASL) number signs we are able to dissociate between the two variables orthogonally. First, we test the effect of handshape similarity in a same/different judgment task in a group of hearing non-signers and then test the interference of handshape in a number judgment task in a group of native ASL signers. Our results show an effect of handshape similarity and its interaction with numerical value even in the group of native signers for whom these handshapes are linguistic symbols and not a learning tool for acquiring numerical concepts. Because prior studies have never considered handshape similarity, these results open new directions for understanding the relationship between finger-based counting, internal hand representations and numerical proficiency.

Identity, Ethics, and the Deaf Community

2019 ◽  
pp. 53-71
Author(s):  
Teresa Blankmeyer Burke
Keyword(s):  
American Sign Language ◽  
Sign Language ◽  
Vantage Point ◽  
Deaf Community ◽  
American Sign ◽  
Philosophical Approach ◽  
Deaf Identity ◽  
Language Representation ◽  
Per Se

From the vantage point of philosophy, this chapter discusses identities using a philosophical stance with specific focus on the ethics dimension of what deaf identity means. The author, a deaf philosopher, explores the American Sign Language representation of the word philosophy and briefly describes the role of philosophy per se in exploring the roles of metaphysics and epistemology. She introduces an analytical philosophical approach to the topic of ethics and deaf identities that involves concept clarification, analysis of brief examples, and posing specific kinds of questions that are typical of this discipline. The chapter ends with a plea for academics and community participants to continue exploring explicit identification of beliefs about the nature and meaning of deaf identity.

Language Contact Considering Signed Language

2020 ◽  
pp. 678-693
Author(s):  
David Quinto-Pozos ◽  
Robert Adam
Keyword(s):  
American Sign Language ◽  
Sign Language ◽  
Language Contact ◽  
American English ◽  
American Sign ◽  
Signed Language ◽  
The World

Language contact of various kinds is the norm in Deaf communities throughout the world, and this allows for exploration of the role of the different kinds of modality (be it spoken, signed or written, or a combination of these) and the channel of communication in language contact. Drawing its evidence largely from instances of American Sign Language (ASL) this chapter addresses and illustrates several of these themes: sign-speech contact, sign-writing contact, and sign-sign contact, examining instances of borrowing and bilingualism between some of these modalities, and compares these to contact between hearing users of spoken languages, specifically in this case American English.

A formal analysis of phonological contrast and iconicity in sign language handshapes

2010 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 156-181 ◽  
Author(s):  
Petra Eccarius ◽  
Diane Brentari
Keyword(s):  
American Sign Language ◽  
Sign Language ◽  
Formal Analysis ◽  
Specific Reference ◽  
American Sign ◽  
Phonological Contrast ◽  
Similarities And Differences ◽  
Communication Modalities ◽  
Feature System

This paper discusses the role of iconicity in sign language phonology by utilizing recently developed tools available in the areas of phonological contrast and feature distribution. In particular, we explain the degree to which iconic elements of handshape interact with the feature system of sign language handshapes in different components of the lexicon, by making specific reference to handshape features that specify joint position. We then discuss similarities and differences between signed languages and spoken languages and the implications for a theory of features that might adequately capture phenomena in both communication modalities. Although cross-linguistic data have been collected and analyzed in this regard, we focus on data from American Sign Language in this work.

scholarly journals Development of American Sign Language Guidelines for K-12 Academic Assessments

2016 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 383-393 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer A. Higgins ◽  
Lisa Famularo ◽  
Stephanie W. Cawthon ◽  
Christopher A. Kurz ◽  
Jeanne E. Reis ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
American Sign Language ◽  
Sign Language ◽  
American Sign ◽  
K 12 ◽  
Academic Assessments

What is learnable in manually coded English sign systems?

1992 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 313-340 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brenda Schick ◽  
Mary Pat Moeller
Keyword(s):  
Reading Achievement ◽  
American Sign Language ◽  
Sign Language ◽  
Control Group ◽  
American Sign ◽  
Deaf Students ◽  
Natural Languages ◽  
Sign Systems ◽  
Sign System ◽  
Linguistic Structures

AbstractIt has been suggested that manual sign systems designed to represent English are unlearnable because they are not natural languages. In order to examine this premise, the present study examines reading achievement and expressive English skills of 13 profoundly deaf students, aged 7;1 to 14;8, who were educated using only a manually coded English (MCE) sign system. Linguistic structures selected for analysis were designed to reflect unique characteristics of English, as well as those common to English and American Sign Language, and to obtain a broad picture of English skills. Results showed that the deaf students had expressive English skills comparable to a hearing control group for some features of English that reflected syntactic and lexical skills. They showed substantial deficits in inflectional morphological skills that were not predictive of the complexity of their language. The results reveal which aspects of MCE appear to be learnable and which appear problematic for deaf students.

scholarly journals The Role of Enactment in Learning American Sign Language in Younger and Older Adults

2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
Alison Fenney ◽  
Timothy D. Lee
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
American Sign Language ◽  
Learning And Memory ◽  
Sign Language ◽  
Older Persons ◽  
American Sign ◽  
Age Cohorts ◽  
Motor Information ◽  
The Mind

“Tell me, and I will forget. Show me, and I may remember. Involve me, and I will understand” (Confucius, 450 B.C). Philosophers and scientists alike have pondered the question of the mind-body link for centuries. Recently the role of motor information has been examined more specifically for a role in learning and memory. This paper describes a study using an errorless learning protocol to teach characters to young and older persons in American Sign Language. Participants were assigned to one of two groups: recognition (visually recognizing signs) or enactment (physically creating signs). Number of signs recalled and rate of forgetting were compared between groups and across age cohorts. There were no significant differences, within either the younger or older groups for number of items recalled. There were significant differences between recognition and enactment groups for rate of forgetting, within young and old, suggesting that enactment improves the strength of memory for items learned, regardless of age.

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