This research consists of an eye-tracking study examining the efficacy of eye gaze indexing (EGIX) in manipulating viewer eye gaze and enhancing second language (L2) fingerspelling comprehension in American Sign Language (ASL) through a controlled laboratory experiment. The study consisted of two groups and two conditions, EGIX+/EGIX- to test the…

Foreign language classrooms have historically used classroom lecture-based approaches for instruction. However, the flipped pedagogical approach was recently introduced into foreign language and other classrooms. Studies of the flipped classroom approach in spoken L2 classrooms have generally found a positive impact on student learning outcomes,…

Second language (L2) learning has largely occurred in the traditional lecture-based classroom setting. Studies show that the lecture format has an impact on student outcomes and perceptions of classroom learning. Negative impacts include insufficient time for reinforcement activities, reviewing lecture materials, and engaging in conversation…

Although automated spoken language assessment is rapidly growing, such systems have not been widely developed for signed languages. This study provides validity evidence for an automated web application that was developed to assess and give feedback on handshape and hand movement of L2 learners' Swiss German Sign Language signs. The study shows…

In the past years, there has been a significant increase in the number of people learning sign languages. For hearing second language (L2) signers, acquiring a sign language involves acquiring a new language in a different modality. Exploring how L2 sign perception is accomplished and how newly learned categories are created is the aim of the…

This study investigates practices around the bestowal of personal sign names to adult New Zealand Sign Language learners, from both teachers' and students' perspectives. Key findings include that, (1) learners receive similar types of sign names to deaf signers but in different proportions; (2) getting a sign name is regarded as a significant…

At present, English holds a significant importance in numerous countries worldwide, including Thailand where learning English is compulsory for students. For students with hearing impairment, however, due to their physical limitations, English instruction is different from that of other students. Additionally, students with hearing impairment have…

Sign language learners are a heterogenous group who have different motivations for embarking on formal studies. It is apparent at the outset that many learners are uninformed about sign languages and the deaf community. It has been previously noted that societies often lack the understanding that signed languages are valid languages, and have…

Pre-school education is significant in the education of deaf children. The pre-school teacher is a gateway to realising the inclusion of deaf children in schools. In this study we investigated prospective pre-school teachers' opinions and thoughts about sign language in deaf children's education. In this descriptive study we employed the…

The realisation of the linguistic rights of Deaf individuals is, to a considerable extent, dependent upon whether there are majority language speakers who acquire a sign language as an L2 and use their L2 skills. Still, the motivation of hearing persons in learning sign languages as L2s is a largely unmapped area. This study seeks to capture the…

This article reports an exploratory study of teacher candidate perception of learning, using video recording in an American Sign Language (ASL) class. Video recording for practice and reflection is relevant to learning ASL, a visual language. One advantage of recording video for learning ASL with mobile devices instead of computers is the larger…

Social interaction, and the attendant negotiation of meaning, is of prime importance for developing second language (L2) skills. Yet how learners go about building L2 social networks -- and why some have more success than others in doing so -- remains underexplored. This article explores this phenomenon via a 12-month longitudinal case study of…

In an increasingly globalised society, the internationalisation of higher education has become a prime goal for many universities, which seek to promote the development of intercultural competencies and insert their actors in dynamics of academic cooperation, knowledge construction and negotiation of meanings in an environment of respect. What is…

The aim of this study was to investigate deaf and severely hard-of-hearing students' foreign language learning characteristics. In order to provide a better understanding of the challenges this group of learners face, a mixed methods study was designed including a questionnaire survey to provide generalizable results for our context and an…

In the study reported on here we investigated the effects of sign language barriers among Deaf learners in special schools for the Deaf and Blind in the Motheo District in the Free State province of South Africa. Semi-structured focus group interviews were held with 7 teachers (2 males and 5 females) and 10 Grade 8 learners (6 males and 4 females)…