Sign language classes booming

From: Cincinnati Post, OH - Nov 14, 2005

Popular in high school, college

By Lisa Cornwell
Associated Press

MASON - Teacher Christie Thieman doesn't mind if her foreign language students talk in class - just as long as they don't make a sound.

Her students at Mason High School are expected to communicate using only the physical motions that make up American Sign Language.

"I want them to understand that ASL is much more than just learning the signs for words," Thieman said. "There are not even signs for some English words. You have to communicate through a range of gestures, facial expressions and body language."

The silent form of communication primarily used by the deaf and hard of hearing has become one of the most popular foreign languages taught to the hearing at high schools and universities around the country - booming in about the last five years.

Some educators and language experts say the growth was sparked partly by sign language's increased visibility in movies, TV series and commercials, and at public events such as conferences, political speeches and church services.

They say students seem increasingly drawn to the elements that set sign language apart from written and spoken languages.

"I'm more of a visual, hands-on type of person, and that makes this more interesting and easier for me than Spanish, which I took for two years but didn't like much," said Craig Smith, 17, a student in one of Thieman's ASL classes.

At least 35 states now recognize ASL as a language for public schools and well over 100 four-year universities accept it for foreign language requirements. Experts say the number of two-year colleges that offer it is even greater.

A survey of state education departments by the Teachers College of Columbia University showed at least 701 public high schools offering sign language classes in 2004, up from 456 in 2000 and 185 in 1995.

"We just started offering ASL in 2003, and already we have students who have to be turned away because we don't have enough classes," said Thieman, who teaches four classes with a total enrollment of 120 students.

Demand is also strong in higher education.

A 2002 survey of foreign language enrollments in U.S. colleges and universities by the Modern Language Association showed ASL increasing by 432 percent, from 11,420 in 1998 to 60,781 in 2002 - more than four times the increase of any of the 15 most commonly taught languages on those campuses.

"It just keeps going like a steamroller," said Sherman Wilcox, chairman of the linguistics department at the University of New Mexico, where about 700 of the 1,000 sign language students this year are in introductory classes.

Alton Brant, associate professor of ASL at Clemson University in South Carolina, takes personal satisfaction in the increasing acceptance of ASL. The hearing son of deaf parents, Brant said he was discouraged from signing as a child when his family went out in public because his parents didn't want to draw attention to themselves.

"Now you see ASL on television and in other public areas, you have closed captioning and more and more agencies and organizations are looking for people who know ASL," Brant said. "It's like a dream come true."

He traces the emergence to publicity created by a 1988 protest at Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C., over the hiring of a non-hearing-impaired president, the growth of advocacy groups for the deaf and changes required of businesses and government by the federal Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.

While some linguists have questioned ASL's classification as a foreign language, its growing acceptance at schools around the country has diluted opposition.

The linguists argued that ASL is not a foreign language, even though it isn't based on English, because it is primarily used in the United States and Canada and differs from sign languages of other countries. ASL proponents respond that a language's place of origin has little to do with its status as a foreign language at most universities.

"Many programs accept American Indian languages, such as Navajo, as fulfilling foreign language requirements, Wilcox said.

ASL teachers say many students want to learn the language so they can better serve the deaf community and gain a skill that may give them a competitive edge in professions such as medicine, social work, counseling and emergency services.

Paula Patrick, foreign language coordinator for Fairfax County Public Schools in Virginia, says the visual aspect of ASL has added to the popularity of the courses.

She said linguistic studies have shown that students who don't do as well in spoken or written languages often excel in visual learning situations such as ASL.

"Students who think that ASL will be a lot easier are often surprised, but it's like other languages in that it requires commitment and hard work," said Patrick, whose district offers ASL at 13 of its high schools.

Britney Alcorn, 17, a Mason High student, initially wanted to learn the language so she could speak to a family friend who is deaf.

"One of the most surprising things to me about ASL is that the grammar is entirely different from English," said Alcorn, who now wants to become an interpreter. "Instead of saying in English, 'I'm going to the store,' you would sign 'store I go.'"

ASL proponents say the lack of enough teachers seems to be the only limitation on its growth.

ABOUT AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE
Who uses: Primarily deaf and hard of hearing people, their friends and families learn American Sign Language, but it's attracting a growing number of hearing students.

Visual element: ASL relies on gestures, facial expressions and body language.

Structure: The silent language has its own grammatical rules, often described as almost the reverse of English.

Hurdle: Demand for ASL courses is outpacing the availability of trained teachers.

Copyright 1995-2005. The Cincinnati Enquirer, a Gannett Co. Inc. newspaper.