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)

This study of four moderately to severely aphasic subjects found that success in manual sign training programs is related to severity of aphasia, that aphasic subjects' propositional use of manual signs rarely follows simple acquisition, and that generalization to untrained stimuli or environments does not occur without additional training.…

Comparison of Indian rural and urban sign languages of the deaf found that the urban form transmitted information primarily by means of appeal to a shared linguistic code, and the rural form mainly by appeal to communal nonlinguistic knowledge. Both languages employed effective and appropriate means given their environments. (23 references)…

This study evaluated the sign language skills of 17 adults with mental retardation living in community settings and their habilitation instructors. Results showed staff's sign language competence was only slightly better than that of the residents and was used minimally in interactions with the residents. (Author/DB)

Analysis of the responses of 42 hearing mothers of elementary school age, multihandicapped, deaf children to a questionnaire regarding their attitudes toward sign language found that positive attitudes were associated with high socioeconomic status, more realistic perceptions of the child's condition, a stronger sense of coherence, and families…

Describes the Albuquerque (New Mexico) public school system interpreter service for hearing-impaired students, focusing on costs and benefits, the University of New Mexico's program in sign language interpreting, interpreter evaluation, language policy, and interpreter credentials. (CB)

Observation study of a profoundly deaf person led to the conclusion that finger spelling and universal sign language could link deaf and hearing cultures. The complex and rewarding modality of finger spelling warrants further research as a cross-cultural communication medium. (SK)

Discusses the challenges of learning American Sign Language (ASL) for hearing individuals, including social-dominance patterns and attitude, grammatical differences, cultural differences, and motivation. Posits that learning ASL should be approached with respect and with the knowledge that mastery only occurs over a substantial period of time. (CR)