Introduction

Driving down Stevenson Blvd in my hometown of Fremont, you cruise right past the playground of the California School for the Deaf (CSD). Every day on the way to elementary school, I peeked out the window at deaf kids swinging on the monkey bars and running around in the grass. I remember knowing they were “different” - yet to me they seemed normal. Because of CSD, Fremont is home to one of the largest Deaf populations in the US.

My first time on CSD’s campus was for my eighth-grade basketball game. It was also my first direct interaction with deaf people. At game’s end, as my teammates lined up and half-heartedly high-fived the sweaty hands of CSD’s victorious team, to each rival I signed the only sign I knew: “Thank you.” I doubt my gesture was understandable, but I felt happy to have broken the ice.

When I arrived for my American Sign Language class at Ohlone College, a deaf professor hadn’t even crossed my mind. How could Professor Amundsen teach me a language without speaking mine? Hesitantly raising my hand, like a game of charades I acted out: “What is the sign for buffalo?” After a few embarrassing attempts drew friendly laughs from the class, Professor Amundsen answered with the sign and a smile.

Last month, while visiting the Center for Early Intervention on Deafness (CEID) in Berkeley, kids zipped around me, shouting with joy, hands flying midair, as they signed excitedly. I immediately know that these were the children I want to work with for my senior capstone project. I love the environment there, and it brings me pure joy to interact with all those lively, hopeful, unheard voices.

Does learning American Sign Language (ASL) for deaf children with cochlear implants and speech impediments/special needs aid in the acquisition of English? This project delves deep into the fields of Linguistics, Psychology, and Education. I will be working with deaf children at CEID. This center practices a policy called “Total Communication,” which teaches students to use both signed and spoken language. Additionally, I will also be volunteering at the Weingarten Children’s Center, which similarly works with deaf children, but only focuses on spoken language learning. The CEID children will be the experimental group while the Weingarten children will be the control group used to compare results. After creating a baseline for both groups, I will create objectives and goals and compare progress in speaking and English skills. Additionally, I will use books and online sources to research the more scientific and psychological reasons behind the benefits, or lack thereof, of hands-on learning and signing.

This topic is worth considering because it has implications for learning, both with deaf and hearing children. Everyone has their own way of learning, and it is important to learn how we can best teach individual children. By learning ASL while learning English, I hypothesize that children can more easily make the connection between words and concepts. In the world of hearing loss, there is a very strict divide. One either chooses the path of sign language and Deaf culture or cochlear implants and speaking. This study will explore the middle grey area and the benefits of learning both ASL and English in hopes of offering a third, more comprehensive option.