ASL 1140C- American Sign Language I - 2395
ACADEMIC DEPARTMENT:
Dean: Mr. Joe Leopold Academic Chair: Dr. Shirley Oakley
Office Location: LA 101A Office Location: LA 101C
Office Number: (727)791-5904 Office Number: (727)791-2570
mailto:
Course type: / classroom and lab
Prerequisites: / N/A
Course description: / This course is an introduction to American Sign Language (ASL) as used in the Deaf Community and includes an overview of ASL grammatical features and structures. Emphasis will be placed upon building novice level of sign
lexicon and communication through engaging in discussion and negotiating meaning related to personal preferences, family, familiar topics, needs and feelings. Students will gain awareness of Deaf Culture through connections within the Deaf Community and will investigate the similarities and differences between languages and culture within the Deaf Community. Students will have directed practice with live and recorded ASL on a variety of topics, emphasizing the development of a novice level of receptive and expressive conversational practice. Lecture - 47 contact hours.
Lab - 30 contact hours.
Office location: / LA 165
Office hours: / On Campus / Virtual Hours
Monday/Wednesday: 9:00-9:15; 10:45-3:00 (Clearwater);
Tuesday (Tarpon): 9:00-9:15/10:45-11:15
Tuesday (Clearwater): 11:45-1:00; 2:45-3:00
Thursday (Clearwater): 11:45-3:30 /
Monday -Thursday: 5:45-6:45 am
Friday: 7:30-8:30
Phone: / 727-791-2746
Disabilities info: / From Student and Educational Services
http://www.spcollege.edu/addendum/#accommodations
Academic and Student Affairs: / From Student and Educational Services
Reasonable accommodations are available to students who:
· are otherwise qualified for admission to the College
· identify themselves to appropriate College personnel
· Provide acceptable and qualifying documentation to the College.
It is the student's responsibility to provide notice of the nature of the disability to the College and to assist in identifying appropriate and effective accommodation. Students must personally identify the need, provide supporting diagnostic test results and professional evaluations, participate in planning services, and give adequate notice in requesting accommodation. A Counselor/Learning Specialist in the Office of Services for Students with Disabilities (OSSD) is assigned to oversee services on each SPC campus. To call, visit, or e-mail a Counselor/
Learning Specialist,seethe list below.
Contact Information by Campus
http://www.spcollege.edu/dr/
Class meeting schedule: / Monday/Wednesday: 9:15 am-10:45 pm
LA 109
Textbooks: / Required:
1. Signing Naturally Level I chapters 1-6 by Lentz, Mikos and Smith
ISBN: 1581212100
2. Deaf Again by Mark Drolsbaugh
Hand Wave Publication
ISBN: 9780965746069
3. GoReact by Speakworks
Recommended Text or Other Reading Material:
Library: http://www.spcollege.edu/central/libonline/.
Other materials/
Media
Protocol: / For this class you must have access to a webcam. Use the ASL Lab.
Protocol for Production of MediaMake sure yousign the following information on each video project.
Your First and Last NameThe DateThe Project Title
When producing visual/gestural material the student must be aware of procedures that willenhancethe production:
Backgrounds
· Colorof Clothesshould be asolidcolor that contrasts with a student’s skin color.
· Light skinned students wear darker solid color tops.
· Darker skinned students wear lighter solid color tops.
· Tops should have sleeves; no tank tops, low cut or sleeveless
tops permitted.
· Tops should not have distractions:buttons, emblems, and graphics.
· Backgrounds should be a solid color and be distraction free.
Distractions
· Hair should be out of the face.Do not wear a hat or chew gum.
· Jewelry should not be distracting: dangling earrings, shiny necklace, sparkly pins
· Midriff and/or shoulders should not be exposed
Not following protocol will result in points being deducted from the final grade of the material produced. Exercises from the Student Textbookswill be assigned each week.You will be prepared to demonstrate their receptive and expressive sign skills during the class.
Video Assignments:You will be expected to submit digital assignments for grading.This work will be recorded through GoREACT.Be sure to set up and save your password as soon as you receive my invitation to the class.Webcams are available in the ASL Lab.Personal webcams are acceptable provided media protocol is followed.
Course goals and objectives: / Everyday communication is the centerpiece of every lesson. Topics revolve around sharing information about our environment and us. Grammar is introduced in context, with an emphasis on developing question and answering skills. You learn conversational strategies to help you maintain a conversation. Interaction activities allow you to rehearse what you’ve learned.
Upon completion of this course, the student will:
Lecture:
1. Students will demonstrate a novice level of proficiency with ASL grammatical features and structures by producing manual and non-manual target, content-specific commands, questions, and statements in ASL, comprehending short expressive and receptive dialogues in ASL as directed by the instructor, improving receptive understanding and expressive skill in basic grammatical patterns in media generated and in signed classroom materials as evaluated by instructor and student.
2. Students will demonstrate a novice level of target vocabulary development through receptive and expressive interaction and participation with course related material by identifying the appropriate sign selection for answers to why, when, where, what and who questions, recognizing variations in sign selections for a response to a question, distinguishing among sociocultural terms related to Deaf culture and to American Sign Language and using conceptually accurate vocabulary in comprehension and production of regulating behaviors (i.e., attention getting and turn-taking).
3. Students will engage in discussion and negotiate meaning related to personal preferences, familiar topics, needs and feelings by demonstrating conversation facilitating behaviors in communication, identifying comprehension and production of regulating behaviors (i.e., attention getting techniques, turn-taking signals, etc.), establishing a novice level of comprehension with live and/or recorded narratives, and reflecting mastery of receptive and expressive skills in simple conversation messages in ASL and through testing.
4. Students will gain awareness of Deaf Culture through connections within the Deaf Community and will investigate similarities and differences between language use and culture within the Deaf Community by attending social functions/events in the Deaf Community and reporting on the communication activities in which
they are engaged, observing and discussing simple patterns of behavior for interacting in various settings, such as in classroom activities and at Deaf Community events, identifying and making use of appropriate communications strategies for greeting and leave-taking, attention getting and use of names (i.e., name signs) in classroom activities, and analyzing the current role of technology use in the Deaf Culture and the impact that has on communication.
Lab:
1. Demonstrate knowledge of ASL and the ability to use theSign Language Interpreter Training Program ASL Lab.
2. Develop a basic level of expertise in the use of media equipment, including webcams.
3. Apply additional laboratory experience as a supplement to reinforce information in Basic ASL.
4. Develop an awareness of non-verbal gestural communication, including mime, pantomime, body language and facial expression understand its application to ASL.
5. Develop an awareness of the use of sign placement and spatial relations in ASL.
6. Develop basic ASL vocabulary through the use of video recording materials.
7. Develop a basic knowledge and understanding of grammatical patterns in ASL through the use of recorded materials.
8. Develop basic sign visual receptive skills for signs in isolation and in simple ASL sentences.
9. Develop a basic ability to understand simple conversational messages in ASL.
10. Develop an awareness of Deaf Culture through exposure to the signed stories, humor, and folklore of the Deaf Community.
DISCIPLINE SPECIFIC INFORMATION:
If you must enter the classroom after class has begun, please do so as quietly as possible. Exercise techniques used in Deaf Culture for interruption. Because American Sign Language is a visual-gestural language, it is best learned in a voiceless environment. You are expected to use only sign/fingerspelling and are discouraged from using your voices in the classroom. Please make use of techniques for getting the meaning across rather than attempting to make us of voice if there is a misunderstanding in meaning. The curriculum and the lessons are designed to help the class and the program meet the five areas of Communication, Cultures, Connections, Comparisons and Communities outlined by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL).
The curriculum parallels what we know about language development and second language learning. We focus on introducing language in context and reinforcing what is learned by engaging you into various interactive activities. A conversational curriculum requires you to be an active learner. You need to come prepared to sign with me and other classmates. Our classes are conducted in ASL from the very first day. You are immersed in the language to maximize your language learning. I will use gestures, signs, drawings, and act out situations to get the point across and your job is to keep trying. This may sound unnerving at first, but trust me, it works!
1) Communication: Exchange information in ASL using short dialogues about everyday life such as describing people and things, making requests and asking for advice, describing places, giving opinions about others, and discussing plans and goals with other students, the instructor, and through video recording activities.
2) Communication: Develop skills in using facial expressions, gestures and specialized handshapes (classifiers) for communication and descriptive purposes.
3) Communication: Maintain a conversation in ASL with native signers using both culturally appropriate content and interpersonal skills, and comprehend basic conversational questions and short discourses.
4) Communication: Develop understanding and use of ASL grammatical principles including (a) Use of space for referents, (b) Directionality for verb signs, (c) Modification of signs for degree, and (d) Communicating about more than one (plurals).
5) Communication: Develop skills in organizing and delivering narratives in ASL including (a) Using the appropriate introduction, body, and conclusion, (b) Grammatical markers for transitions, (c) Role-shifting between two or more characters, and (d) Use of space.
6) Cultural and Connections: Discuss the view that Deaf people are a cultural-linguistic minority group.
7) Comparative: Explore Deaf art and how it expresses the Deaf experience.
8) Comparative: Discuss the rules of social interaction in Deaf culture and compare them with other cultural norms.
9) Comparative: Understand the Deaf community’s participation in society, and dispel misrepresentations and stereotypes about them.
10) Comparative: Examine the historical collision between culture and disability in the Deaf community, including ethical conflicts with the medical model.
11) Comparative: Discuss the intersections which occur within the Deaf community, the universality of the Deaf experience, and the visions of the future.
12) Community: Attend ASL and Deaf events to continue to develop ASL and Deaf behavioral norms outside of the classroom.
Note: Each class begins with a graded warm up activity. Being late or missing class will result in a deduction in your participation grade.
Attendance policy: / The college-wide attendance policy is included in the Syllabus Addendum http://www.spcollege.edu/addendum/. Since learning a language requires interacting as with native users and practicing with others on a regular basis, American Sign Language students will need to attend and participate in all classes to be successful. Attendance will be tracked during each class and students who in excessive of four absences will be dropped from the course due to lack of 60% activity time. For extenuating circumstances, documentation must be presented.
IMPORTANT COLLEGE POLICY REGARDING COURSE DROP-ADD PERIOD AND AUDIT INFORMATION
http://www.spcollege.edu/addendum/#drop
FEDERAL GUIDELINES RELATED TO FINANCIAL AID AND TOTAL WITHDRAWAL FROM THE COLLEGE
http://www.spcollege.edu/addendum/#finaid.
Evaluation process: / Three Unit Tests / 30
Three Performance Projects / 30
FinalExpressive in class / 10
Deaf Again Blog/Test / 10
Contact Hours (10 in lab with tutor/5 in the Deaf Community) / 20
Homework/Participation/Progress / 10
Grading scale: / A = 91-100 B = 81-90 C = 71-80 D = 61-70 F = less than 60
ASL Immersion and No Talking Policy:
The curriculum and workbook are designed with the assumption that you use English as your first language. ASL will be used exclusively in the classroom for two reasons. First, it is culturally inappropriate to use voice in an ASL environment, or to not sign in the presence of any Deaf person. Speaking eliminates the Deaf person, whether intentionally or not, from the communication around them. In the classroom, it is critical that the instructor, Deaf or hearing, maintain a culturally appropriate environment so that you can develop the habit of signing in Deaf-hearing situations. Secondly, you can only become fluent by constantly using ASL. The more you rely on English to understand ASL, the longer you will remain in the limbo of being unable to communicate in ASL. You can’t learn a language by speaking or listening to another language. No language is a direct translation of another, and concept formation is enhanced by full immersion. Students will not learn ASL until they actually commit to using it as a living language. The classroom will become a microcosm of the living world where all meaning is negotiated in ASL.
Since ASL does not yet have its own standardized writing system, written English is used to give instructions, and explain some signs in the student workbook. However, whenever possible I will use pictures and other ways to minimize the use of English in the classroom.
Assignments
Students should expect to spend at least six weekly hours outside of the classroom on homework assignments, Deaf events, study groups, and other ASL related activities to perform well in this class. Based on past experience, there is a strong relationship between a student’s attendance, participation, effort on homework assignments, and getting a good grade in this class.
Written Work/Assignments: All work is due on the date specified on the schedule. It is due at the beginning of the class period. Late work will not be accepted past the next class period of a missed class without a 50% reduction in grade. Written work and assignments should include your name, date assignment is due, and class title. In class assignments may not be made up.
THE LAB component of this class is conducted as an independent study and is based on classroom requirements and activities assigned by the instructor. A lab sheet will be distributed in class. All work with tutors will be recorded on this sheet. These assignments will be completed in the ASL lab and will be checked for completion by the lab assistant. NO Lab assignment will be accepted late and no partial lab assignments will be accepted; however, a student may turn lab work in early if they wish. All work is due on the date listed. A grade of “50%” will be assigned for work not submitted on time. At the time of each test, students need to bring in their book with completed homework assignments to receive homework and lab credit. Don’t forget this!