Course Description

Students will develop expressive and receptive American Sign Language (ASL) skills at an introductory level, participating in one-to-one and group conversations of varying topics.  Students will also learn basic grammatical principals of ASL, and foundational concepts of Deaf culture, with a focus on implications for future careers.

This is a highly interactive course, which is conducted exclusively through voice-off communication.  Students who are not willing to participate accordingly should reconsider their enrollment.

Learning Objectives

By the end of the course, students will...

  • share basic information in ASL through conversations at an introductory level, utilizing feedback from communication partners to monitor comprehension and guide conversation (Standards 1.1, 3.1) within and beyond the classroom (Standards 5.1, 5.2).
  • comprehend messages consisting of personal information and questions, demonstrating comprehension of ASL syntax at an introductory level (Standard 1.2).
  • express oneself in one-to-one and electronic means by preparing and delivering presentations, personal narratives, and recorded messages, as well as identifying and describing linguistic features of ASL at an introductory level (Standard 1.3).
  • identify the beliefs, values, and attitudes consistent with Deaf culture, including practices, perspectives, and products (Standards 2.1, 2.2, 3.2), as well as comparing them to their own (Standard 4.2).
  • engage in one-to-one conversation comparing and contrasting ASL with English in terms of phonology, morphology, syntax, discourse, and grammatical features at an introductory level (Standard 4.1)
  • demonstrate knowledge regarding the etiologies, characteristics, and impacts of hearing and hearing loss on speech and language (Standard IV-C).
  • develop an understanding and respect for multiple perspectives of deafness, including both medical and cultural models (Standard IV-D).

Required Materials

Textbook & Practice DVD:

  • Newell, W., Sanders, C. A., Holcomb, B. R., Holcomb, S. K., Caccamise, F., & Peterson, R. (2010). ASL at Work: Student Text (Book with DVD). San Diego, CA: DawnSignPress. ISBN: 978-1-58121-081-1

*Additional readings and viewings may be posted to the course website or provided in class.