Chitika

Chitika

torsdag 3 september 2009

American Sign Language

By Barb Hicks

The method of communication common among Deaf people is the language of sign or talking with the hands. Just like the spoken word, other regions and countries all over the world have a different method of sign language.

ASL or American Sign Language utilizes the use of hands to communicate words. It is the fourth most used language in America and is utilized by the Deaf to communicate with others.

No one knows exactly how ASL was developed, but it is documented that a French man named Laurent Clerc opened the very first school for the Deaf in the United States. This would explain why ASL and FSL are similar, but knowing one does not necessarily mean you will know the other.

Sign language is based on sight. A person who is deaf uses the most important tool he has to communicate, which is his sight. Through sight, the deaf person can receive information and connect with others by use of the hands with hand shapes and other visual cues such as facial expression and body movements to communicate. To be fluent in sign language takes quite a bit of time and study.

Tone of speech is how we communicate emotion, for a deaf person, utilizing body movements and facial expressions are the methods used. Sign language is quite different from the English language. Just like different regions have different speech, different regions have unique sign language.

Why do deaf people choose sign language first?

A child who is born deaf and has deaf parents learns sign language as a means of communication as that is the language spoken in the home. Parents are the first to introduce children to a language; however, if a child is born deaf and its parents can hear, the parents learn sign language along with the child.

Language skills are developed in the first six months of life; therefore it is imperative that all newborn babies be tested for hearing loss before leaving the hospital. If a diagnosis shows a hearing impairment, parents can then start researching the best option for teaching their child methods of communication.

Learning sign language at an early age, especially before starting school, allows the child to become a more competent communicator.

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