The use of sign language is suggested as a way to stimulate and educate the right brain, thereby cultivating student creativity. Sign language's benefits are that it forces the hearing person to think differently, can add clarity to oral communication, and could be applied to help children with learning disabilities. (JDD)

Two groups (N=65 each) of congenitally deaf teenagers divided according to hearing/deaf parents were assessed for three measures of communicative fluency and two measures of English grammar/structure. High correlations were found between reading and the English grammar measures. Fluency in American Sign Language was not correlated with reading for…

The primary language hypothesis of short-term memory coding was challenged by an experiment with eight normally hearing college students and a review of the literature about deaf subjects. Whether or not deaf signers recode printed words into sign depends on a variety of task and subject factors. (SLD)

A review of research and theory on the structure of signed and spoken languages explores the relationship between the two language types and how the study of signed languages can inform researchers about the human capacity for language. (29 references) (CB)

Psycholinguistic and neurological examination of the use of duality of patterning as a primary criterion for determining if a system is a (signed or spoken) language revealed the existence of duality in processes that facilitate language acquisition. (27 references) (Author/CB)

Explores the process of language acquisition, including such aspects as pre-language, speaking and signing, and cultural influences, focusing on the resulting language acquisition differences and needs of children whose language ability and medium do not correspond with those of their family. (CB)

Reviews work on the acquisition of complex verbs in American Sign Language (ASL), delineating three lines of research showing how children acquire ASL and discussing possible reasons for the particular fashion in which different children (native learners, non-native learners, and native learners with parents who are non-native learners) acquire…

Focuses on original poetic composition in American Sign Language (ASL). The development of a documented body of poetry in ASL and of a framework for poetic usage has demonstrated that the limitations of gestural sign systems are inherent in the cultural development of the deaf and has affirmed the legitimacy of the deaf community and its language.…

Discusses the notions and language of spatial relations of various cultures, particularly those of deaf students. (MKR)

Buoyed by the success of an informal, unexpected "pilot study" using sign language and Spanish and a challenge from a university colleague, a Florida middle-school teacher expanded the use of second languages in her classes. An ensuing study involving 115 eighth graders showed a positive change in students' attitudes toward foreign…

A special set of skills is essential for interpreting for mainstreamed deaf preschool students. Eleven issues in clarifying the job of the preschool interpreter are discussed, such as whether hearing children should learn to sign and how to encourage communication among hearing and deaf children. (JDD)

This study focused on the intergenerational modes used in 15 family triads: hearing child, deaf parent, hearing grandparent. Results raise questions about the effect of mismatched language modes on intergenerational relationships in deaf-parented families. (19 references) (VWL)

The founder of BRIDGES, a program to connect deaf culture and hearing culture, describes her experiences as a hearing woman learning and teaching about the deaf community. She particularly addresses the ways in which the deaf community and culture are ignored by education and health professionals. (SK)

Discusses factors that have delayed the development of basic research on both sign language and the deaf community in South Africa and presents findings of a study conducted to determine effective sign language communication between deaf and hearing signers in South Africa, the SimCom project. (14 references) (GLR)

This article discusses the use of sign language to facilitate language development of children with developmental disabilities mainstreamed into the early childhood setting. It discusses the benefits of using sign language, presents a rationale for its use, and provides instructional guidelines and resources. (JDD)