1. Introduction to American Sign Language ASL I 1 st 6 weeks Mrs. McClure

2. ASL  Signed in North America and Canada only  It is more like French Sign Language.  Developed by American Deaf people to communicate with each other.

3. 1817  Laurent Clerc and Thomas H. Gallaudet established first school for the Deaf in U.S.  Since 1800’s Deaf people have been discourage from using ASL.

4. Deaf Community  In spring of 1988, student protesters at Gallaudet University (Deaf university) in Washington D.C. sent a loud and clear message to the world: “Prejudice is believing that Deaf people have to be taken care of.”  That year the university (124 years old) picked another hearing president. This angered the Deaf students.

5. Why are they angry?  The students wanted a Deaf president who could communicate using ASL and to represent their Deaf university.  They boycotted classes and blockaded entrances to the college signing “Deaf Power”.

6. Result?  The hearing president resigned and I. King Jordan became the first Deaf president at Gallaudet University.  Students demanded that the hearing world respect their right to govern their own lives. They showed that deafness is not a disability, but rather the quality that unites Deaf people into a cohesive, vibrant community.  ASL is the heart of the Deaf community

7. What do we call “Deaf” people?  In years past, they were called: Deaf and dumb Deaf and dumb Deaf mute Deaf mute Hearing impaired Hearing impaired  They are not any of the above. They are ONLY Deaf.

8. Deaf Myths MYTH: All hearing losses are the same. FACT: The single term “deafness” covers a wide range of hearing losses that have very different effects on a person’s ability to process sound, and thus to understand speech.

9.  MYTH: All Deaf people are mute.  FACT: Some Deaf people speak very well and others do not. It all depends on the kind of hearing losses and at what age they became deaf, etc. Being deaf usually has very little effect on the vocal cords, and very few deaf people are truly mute.

10.  MYTH: People with impaired hearing are “deaf and dumb”.  FACT: The inability to hear affects neither native intelligence nor the physical ability to produce sounds. Being deaf doesn’t make people dumb in the sense of being either stupid or mute. Deaf people find this offensive.

11.  MYTH: All deaf people use hearing aids.  FACT: Some deaf people benefit from hearing aids. Others do not. Many find the hearing aids or ear molds to be annoying for various reasons and choose not to wear them.

12.  MYTH: Hearing aids restore hearing.  FACT: Hearing aids just amplifies sounds. They have no effect on a person’s ability to process that sound. In cases where a hearing loss distorts incoming sounds, a hearing aid can do nothing.

13.  MYTH: All deaf people can read lips.  FACT: Some deaf people are very skilled lip (speech) readers, but many are not. This is because many speech sounds have identical mouth movements. For example: P and B look exactly the same on the lips.

14.  MYTH: All deaf people use sign language.  FACT: Many deaf people prefer to use American Sign Language, others do not. There are several kinds of “signing systems” used by those who attend mainstreamed programs. Still others choose to be oral.

15.  MYTH: Deaf people are not sensitive to noise.  FACT: Some types of hearing losses actually accentuate sensitivity to noise. Loud sounds become garbled and uncomfortable. Hearing aid users often find loud sounds, which are greatly magnified by their aids, very unpleasant.

16.  MYTH: Deaf people are less intelligent.  FACT: Hearing ability is unrelated to intelligence. Speech and speech reading skills, or lack of it, also has nothing to do with intelligence. It is the lack of knowledge, understanding, stereotyping, and oppression; however, that has often limited educational and occupational opportunities for Deaf people.

17.  MYTH: Deaf people are alike in abilities, tastes, ideas, and outlooks.  FACT: Deaf people are as diverse in their abilities, tastes, ideas, habits, and outlooks as any other large group of people.