Intermediate American Sign Language (ASL 2150)

Course Description

Prerequisite: ASL 1140

This course is designed to expand students' comprehension and production of American Sign Language with a primary emphasis on dialogue. Focus is on increased vocabulary and conceptual accuracy.  Students will continue to develop expressive and receptive American Sign Language (ASL) skills to an intermediate level, participating in one-to-one and group conversations of varying topics.  Students will increase their knowledge of grammatical principles of ASL and more in-depth concepts of Deaf culture, with a continued focus on implications for future careers.

Learning Objectives

By the end of the course, students will demonstrate the ability to:

  • Communicate through intermediate-level conversations about personal information and shared topics of interest, utilizing feedback from communication partners to monitor comprehension and guide conversation (Standards 1.1, 1.2, 3.1) within and beyond the classroom (Standards 5.1, 5.2)
  • Comprehend and respond to live and recorded messages consisting of personal and descriptive information, directions, commands, and requests, demonstrating comprehension of ASL syntax and questions at an intermediate level (Standard 1.2)
  • Prepare and deliver live and electronic presentations, describing and demonstrating linguistic features of ASL at an intermediate level (Standard 1.3)
  • Explain the beliefs, values, and perspectives of the Deaf community/Deaf culture in comparison to mainstream hearing culture (Standards 2.1, 2.2, 3.2, 4.2)
  • Compare and contrast ASL with English in terms of phonology, morphology, syntax, discourse, and grammatical features at an intermediate level (Standard 4.1)
  • Explain characteristics and impacts of hearing and hearing loss on speech and language at an intermediate level (Standard IV-C)
  • Demonstrate an understanding of, and respect for multiple perspectives of deafness (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.