Sign Language Studies最新文献

Abstract:

In Chile, education of deaf students historically revealed a position of subordination with respect to the hearing population, oppressive dynamics, and reparatory inclusion mechanisms. Therefore, the following questions are to be answered from the individual experiences of deaf adults: What situations experienced at school represent areas of social justice and injustice? And what do Chilean deaf adults expect from education in terms of social justice? The methodological approach corresponds to a biographical-narrative design, with the participation of six deaf adults connected to the educational system. The findings reveal the absence of affection, unequal treatment, and a lack of social esteem in the experiences related in these narratives in regular classrooms. That is, there is no information in the narratives revealing that Honneth's (1997) fundamental principles of reciprocal recognition were respected in their experiences. The narrators also state that deaf individuals should be taught through Chilean Sign Language (LSCh) and other visual strategies. The main conclusions indicate that a cooperative work is necessary to vindicate the spheres of recognition as a social justice approach, especially in favor of the linguistic and cultural rights of the deaf community.

Abstract:

This investigation aimed to explore the feasibility of implementing the strategic and interactive signing instruction (SISI) framework and its potential to enhance the signed composition skills of four deaf students in a first/second-grade classroom. SISI was adapted from the existing strategic and interactive writing instruction (SIWI) framework that centered on utilizing evidence-based approaches to teaching. A mixed-methods approach involving both qualitative and quantitative data was employed. Qualitative analysis revealed six themes regarding the implementation of SISI: (1) composition topics and genres, (2) target skills, (3) explicit instruction, (4) video technology, (5) idea holding, and (6) accommodating younger ages. Broadly, SISI was successfully implemented, and areas for further adaptation were identified. Quantitative data were collected from four students, involving responses to prompts across three genres—narrative, informative, and persuasive. Pre- and posttest scores showed improvements in discourse-specific traits across these genres. While the findings suggest the feasibility and promise of SISI in facilitating the development of signed literacy, further larger-scale studies involving controls are required to fully investigate SISI's efficacy.

Abstract:

Martha's Vineyard Sign Language (MVSL) is an extinct village sign language hypothesized to be a sister of British Sign Language (BSL) and a significant contributor to early American Sign Language (ASL) (Groce 1985). After the last deaf MVSL signer died, signs were elicited from five hearing signers. This study analyzes that data through a series of lexicostatistical comparisons following methodology from Woodward (1978) and Guerra Currie, Meier, and Walters (2002). The results show that a sample of 711 MVSL signs is 67 percent similar to ASL, 74 percent similar to Old ASL (OASL), 56 percent similar to Old French Sign Language (OLSF), and 59 percent similar to BSL. Subsequent etymological analysis suggests that most signs shared by ASL and MVSL originated in Old LSF or ASL, and that signs shared with BSL likely came through ASL to MVSL, not the reverse. This suggests that MVSL did not play a large role in shaping early ASL; however, MVSL data may still be useful in reconstructing OASL.

Abstract:

This is a progress report of a preliminary study that aims to describe antonyms in Ethiopian Sign Language (EthSL). EthSL antonyms were drawn from two types of data. First, data was collected from twelve participants from Addis Ababa and Hosanna. The participants did elicitation tasks, narratives, and consultant observations. Then, two EthSL dictionaries were included as supplementary sources. The overall findings reveal that movement metathesis, location, palm orientation contrasts, and derivational morphology all play a significant role in antonym formation in EthSL. However, handshape is not generally used to mark oppositeness. The antonyms found in this preliminary study can be categorized as gradable antonyms, converse antonyms (also subcategorized as directional, antipodal, and kinship opposition), and reverse antonyms. This study also makes suggestions for the creation of EthSL dictionaries that take into account morphophonological features and semantic relations between signs.

Abstract:

Reiterative code-switching, when one lexical item from one language is produced immediately after a semantically equivalent lexical item in another language, is a frequent phenomenon in studies of language contact. Several spoken language studies suggest that reiteration functions as a form of accommodation, amplification (emphasis), reinforcement, or clarification; however, its function in sign language seems less clear. In this study, we investigate reiterative code-switching produced in semispontaneous conversations while manipulating two important factors: interlocutor and topic. Ten bilinguals of Kufr Qassem Sign Language (KQSL), a local sign language used in central Israel, and Israeli Sign Language (ISL), the national sign language of Israel, participated in a semispontaneous conversation task in three interlocutor conditions, with: (1) another bilingual, (2) a KQSL-dominant signer, and (3) an ISL-dominant signer. They were given "local" (e.g., traditions in Kufr Qassem) and "global" (e.g., travel) topics to discuss. A total of 673 code-switches were found in the data, of which sixty-seven were reiterative. Interlocutor was found to be a significant predictor of the presence of reiterative code-switching, with more reiterations observed when participants interacted with a KQSL-dominant signer or bilingual than with an ISL-dominant signer. These results suggest that reiteration serves an accommodative function. Yet, this does not explain reiterations found in the bilingual-bilingual condition. We show that, in these cases, reiteration plays other roles beyond accommodation, including amplification.

Abstract:

Contributors to this fiftieth anniversary volume of SLS were asked to describe our early involvement at the beginning stages of sign language linguistics. I'll briefly summarize my engagement from 1970 to 1980 before probing a much more interesting question: What lay behind William Stokoe's own leap into this new territory? Remarkably for an outsider to the Deaf community, he later had profound effects on it. This article reexamines Stokoe's own personal development—and the value of a curious and determined man who asks the right questions rather than just accepting assumptions about how Deaf people communicate.