FIVE OF THE BEST WAYS TO LEARN AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE

Let’s face it. Learning a foreign language isn’t exactly easy to do. To successfully become fluent in, say, German, one must not only learn the vocabulary, but study the grammar, the culture, and the history of the language as well. The same thing goes for American Sign Language (ASL), the language used by many, many deaf people and others—including the Deaf Culture, CODAs (Children of Deaf Adults), teachers, interpreters, and more. If you’re reading this, thinking, “Duh,” then you may be surprised just how many would-be signers/students don’t know this.

I remember a time my husband, Kenny, introduced me to a person who was looking to become a certified sign language interpreter. After Kenny introduced me to him, the student started waving his hands in the air and occasionally slapping himself in the face or grabbing his groin like Michael Jackson. Whether he screeched when he did this is anyone’s guess. I didn’t ask and Kenny didn’t tell. Thank you, God. But Kenny did help the disturbed guy translate what the perverse movements meant: “I don’t really need a lot of help. As you can see, I’m pretty good at it already. Whoo-hoo (there went the groin again)!” My last reaction was to laugh so hard I spit in his face. Once I calmed down a bit, I was able to ask him a few questions to help me know where he was in his studies.

I started signing and talking at the same time (using Contact Sign) so he could understand me:

ME: So, uh…where have you studied in the past?

HIM: Actually, I haven’t really needed to do anything formal. As you can see, I pick things up fairly fast and easily (smacking himself on the cheek and blinking his eyes as if he were about to have a seizure).

ME: Oh…kay. Hmm. Do you know any Deaf people whom you can practice with?

HIM: Not really. I’ve seen a few in the grocery store and I think there’s one at my church. I honestly haven’t talked to any except you. I want to be fluent before I have to go face-to-face with one.

ME: Why’s that?

HIM: Well, they’re kinda scary. I mean, not you, but the others I’ve seen. They don’t even talk. I mean, who doesn’t talk? Isn’t that like a requirement when you’re out in public?

I stopped the questions about that time. I didn’t really want to ask him anything else. I was already convinced he needed a lot more than ASL classes. Perhaps some antipsychotic medication and an imaginary dragon to play with would help.

So, I didn’t get very far with that guy. Even inviting him to one of my Sign Language classes was met with an interesting retort “You mean sit around with people who don’t know anything about deaf people? Wouldn’t that just be a waste of my time?” No reply from me was necessary.

Now, experiences like this one are not as rare as you might think. In fact, I would say that at least 1/3 of the people in the world who want to learn ASL think it’s nothing more than pantomime and funny faces. I must object and make it clear that learning ASL is not any easier than any other foreign language out there. And if you want to interpret, you must be fluent and certified with the state (or nationally certified if you are wiling to go the extra mile). I decided to let all of you know five of the best ways to learn this language—ASL or Contact Sign—and I hope you’ll take to my suggestions willingly.

5. Study ASL users online. The first thing you should do when you are thinking of learning this beautiful and challenging language is to do some online searching. Go to www.Google.com or www.YouTube.com and type into the search line: American Sign Language. You will find more people using ASL than ever imagined. Be careful though. Some might say ASL, but actually be using Signed English—something you don’t want to confuse it with.

You can also find several sites to help you learn vocabulary:

            http://www.aslpro.com/cgi-bin/aslpro/aslpro.cgi

            http://www.signingsavvy.com/

            http://commtechlab.msu.edu/sites/aslweb/browser.htm

Or practice your receptive fingerspelling (a must-learn part of the language):

            http://asl.ms/

4. Take a community sign language class. If you ask around, looking for an area sign language class, there will usually be something that can help. Just be sure to ask the person in charge if they are indeed teaching ASL or just Sign Language or Signed English. There’s nothing wrong with started out with Contact Sign as long as you know what you’re doing. CSL  is basically ASL vocabulary in English word order. Many students start out with CSL, learning conceptually correct ASL vocabulary, but start learning the grammar and sentence structure later.

3. Enroll in a college interpreter’s program. This step is definitely the way to go if you’re serious about wanting to become a certified interpreter (and if you want to make money as an interpreter, you’ll need to be certified). Just be sure to study the programs goals and attitudes about both ASL and Deaf Culture. Not all interpreters program are as helpful as you might think. Just because it’s there doesn’t mean it’s what you’re looking for. And please be sure that the classes are taught by Deaf teachers with experience (your best bet) or Certified ASL interpreters. Also keep in mind that a deaf teacher doesn’t guarantee fluency in ASL. There are millions of deafies out there who became deaf as an adult and really don’t know anything about the things you need to learn.

2. Find a mentor. Ahhh…If only every student could do this! You’ll have to put in some effort to find the right person for you, but it’ll be worth your time. You’ll want to call around to local interpreting agencies, ASL programs and the deaf community to find someone. Make sure they are skilled and are OK with you hanging out with them and observing their work or watching them chat with a skilled signer.

1. Get out there and socialize with the deaf community. I chose to list this one as the #1 way to learn ASL. Surprised? I’m not kidding you. You might be surprised at how many would-be students are terrified to actually hang out with deaf people! They’re too darn intimidated and they want to wait till they’re already good at it. Could it be that people like me go around with “I’ll kill you if you even try” sort of looks at all times? Even if that’s so, you have to force yourself. I mean, come on! If you want to learn ASL—to be an interpreter or for other reasons—wouldn’t you think that you have to get to know the community, too? Like it or not, getting out there is by far the most important step to being a part of the community. Period.

There you have it. Perhaps I’ve listed 1 or 2 that you never considered. I can understand that. Of course, if you have put yourself out in the community, you already completed the #1 rule. So good for you! Keep it up!

Everyone else out there whom are too scared to take a step or two: Just know that there are deaf people out there who know where you live. And if you don’t get your butt in gear and get out there and meet us in person, we’ll have to kill you.

Me intimidating? Never.

“GO AWAY – I ALREADY KNOW WHAT I’M DOING!” ISN’T IGNORANCE BLISS?

She walked into my class. I knew her, because I’ve worked with her before. Over and over again, in fact. Even though she’s got a great amount of enthusiasm, her hands never seemed to work well with her mind. She worked hard and I admired her for that—but hard work just wasn’t seeming to be the answer for this particular student.

Still, she wanted to forge on, and, after a short hiatus, decided to take up one of my classes to get back in the signing swing of things. I was happy to see her—if not a little worried and hesitant.

One of the things I’d noticed before when working with her is that her hands would never make the correct handshape. This was probably caused by her nervousness and definitely caused a problem when she went to sign such things as SOON (which can be signed by tapping a horizontal “F” on the chin a few times) and used a vertical “B” instead (the sign for BITCH)—and other similarly confusing variations.

But there she was—the last person to enter the classroom—looking just as nervous as she had before. Oh, she tried to hide this though. As we began to introduce ourselves, everyone did a good job and allowed Kenny (my hearing husband and interpreter) relay what they were saying. Not her. When it was her turn, she smiled deviously and signed,

“Hi. I’m P-R-I-A-N-C-M…” (KRISTEN). She went on to do her last name, but it wasn’t even recognizable. That was OK for me since I already knew her name. Telling the class a little about herself, however, was quite confusing. I couldn’t understand a word she signed and kept wondering if it would be rude for me to look over at Kenny to get his interpretation when she was “signing” it herself. But when that nightmare was finished, I found myself right smack dab in the middle of another one.

“Who knows their ABC’s?” I asked the class. Three out of 18 raised their hand. “Great! Let’s have the three of you come to the front of the class and show us all how it’s done.” I wanted to encourage those who said they knew them, and show those who did not yet know that it was a conquerable feat. But as the three began to do it, Kristen wasn’t exactly setting a good example. She looked like her hand had fallen asleep and she was trying to wake it up. If she had been one to actually set the bar for the rest of the class, our game of Limbo wouldn’t have gone very far. It was scary, folks. It was clear she had a disorder—not necessarily a physical one, but a disorder in her mind that told her that she actually already knew this stuff.

But how do you approach an eager former and present student and tell them,

“Hey, I know you think you know this stuff, but…uh…you’re not even close. Seriously, if you’d been one of my interpreters here in Michigan, I would have packed my bags and moved to Spain”?

I would never want someone to give it up, but the sad fact was that she thought it important that it appear to her other classmates that she knew more than anyone else. That’s not true though. I know for a fact that her other classmates were so engrossed in learning it for themselves that they wouldn’t have cared either way.

As classes went on, I thought this would stop, since it was clear that we were getting into material way over her head. Yet it didn’t change. She didn’t want to practice in front of the others. She didn’t want to write things down as reminders. Each class period got worse and worse.

It’s a sad example of someone’s pride getting in the way of the possibility of doing something great. Really mastering something. Showing yourself that, yes, you can be successful! But that’s not what happened with Kristen. And it’s truly saddening. If she had only been open to being a “beginner”. Nope. She had to to want to look like she’d hit “advanced” from the start. Trust me, “advanced” will never be the reality for someone who doesn’t open their mind and relax a little. Unless you’re describing their level of ignorance.

WORKING WITH 6TH GRADE—I TEACH THEM AND THEY FEED ME

I like what I do. Teaching people about hearing loss and American Sign Language is a lot of fun for me. Usually I do this through three different avenues: American Sign Language and homeschooling classes, workshops of various kinds, and private or semi-private tutoring. Can’t say I prefer one above the other. The mere fact that there are people willing to pay to hear me speak amazes me to no end. Of course, I’m sure there are three times as many people out there who would pay me shut up, but I haven’t asked for them to contact me with their donation. Yet. The way our finances are, maybe that’s the avenue I should be pursuing. But to find people who’ll pay me to be quiet, I have to make a little noise first—and that’s what I did on Friday.

My youngest child’s in the 6^th grade. Or at least she is for the next three days until school is out for the year. Last year, when my son was in the same 6^th grade class, Kenny (who acts as my interpreter) and I went to his class to talk a little and I guess, since it’s the end of the school year and the teacher has probably run out of things to talk about, she was desperate enough to invite us back this year to talk as well.

We were scheduled to speak first thing in the morning—right after the school assembly. We went and we talked about everything from decibel levels to hearing loss to how to communicate with the deaf to what to and not to call us. When I was done, they didn’t really have a lot of questions for me. I tried showing them my cool “little ear” (actually, it’s a grotesque birth defect that I used to delight in grossing my classmates out with when I was in elementary school), but they didn’t seem too impressed. I let them try to get my attention by not throwing things in my general direction and they did come up with a few ways. So, class involvement wasn’t a total flop. But then it was time to show them a little ASL.

I showed them their ABCs and 1-2-3s and then we worked on some vocabulary and a couple of sentences. They all seemed to enjoy it. Well….not all. Some seemed rather bored throughout the whole thing. Others were only bored for parts (mainly the lecture part at the beginning). Others resorted in pelting me with the fruit snacks they brought from home for their lunch. But all in all, I’d say it was a success.

I gotta do stuff like that more often. I mainly work with teens and adults, so watching kids have fun with it was fun for me, too. I got to see some smiles. I got to watch smaller hands form the words I taught. And I got some fruit snacks to munch on on my way home.

LEARNING AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE TAKES TIME

As an ASL teacher and as a deaf person in general, I’ve found that almost all of the people I encounter who are wanting to learn American Sign Language go into it with unrealistic expectations. They all expect to take a series of classes and then be able to venture out into the Deaf community and converse in sign with little or no effort. And this goes both ways, meaning they expect to be able to relay their messages in sign language and they expect to be able to comprehend all of the messages relayed to them in the signed response.

For a while I thought that the only reason for this was that people assumed that learning sign language would be easier than learning a new spoken language. Many think of sign as simply drawing pictures in the air. Sure, they’ll admit there’s some things you must know the formal sign for, but that should be easy to pick up, right? It’s a primitive language – ones cavemen used – and, therefore, should be self-explanatory and easier to pick up than, say, German.

A lot of people actually believe that. I think that’s because many people generally view ASL as mime or gesturing being the main point, so, I mean, how hard can it really be? It’s like this grand game of charades. When they then go in and decide they’re going to learn it “formally,” it’s hard for them to realize that they’ve had the wrong idea.

I had thought that the idea of thinking that learning a new language would be easy was only usually applied to learning sign language, but then I asked my husband. He said that it often applied to spoken languages as well. When he decided to learn Spanish so that he could readily interact with the people he encountered at the airport (where he works), he signed up for a community class—excited by the prospect of being able to chat with other Spanish-speaking people when the class was finished. He believed that he would have a basic grasp of the language by the end of the class. And when the class ended and he took what he learned with him to work, he was frustrated that he still struggled to interact with the Spanish-speaking community.

I think it’s human nature. People want to know what they want to know and they want to know it at that very moment. Whether it’s how to speak a language, how to play a sport, or how to work the new computer or television, people (generally speaking) don’t have a whole lot of patience. So, when they get the notion to learn a new language, they don’t expect it to be as difficult as it really is.

One common tendency is to take the new vocabulary words you’ve learned and put them in a sentence using the word order of the language you already know…such as the common method of signing American Sign Language signs in English word order. It’s one factor of language learning that truly is a challenge—learning new grammatical rules and sentence structure.

Another struggle is understanding that there is no one way of expressing something. In English when you want to say something, there are many ways to word it. For example:

“I can’t believe that stupid guy over there is giving me a dirty look!”

“There is an annoying man sitting over there who keeps giving me a dirty look and it’s ticking me off!”

“Why is he glaring at me? It’s bugging me!”

“If that guy doesn’t stop staring at me, I’m going to get very upset!”

You get the idea.

Just as English ideas can be phrased various ways and get the same point across, so, too, can ASL. There is no one specific way things absolutely must be worded. You’re learning a language; you’re not taking a biology class. There is no one answer that is the only right answer. There are nuances that you can only learn through interaction and practice.

Yes, of course you can be taught the vocabulary and grammatical structure. And if you study daily and immerse yourself with other signers (preferably native speakers), you can get a very good grasp of the language in about two years. They say fluency comes around seven to ten years of serious study. But you will always be learning. Always. That goes for any language you learn. Heck, even native English speakers take English courses throughout school, attend workshops on the use of English, and major in English in college. We’re always learning. There is no point where you can say, “OK. Now I know it all.” (Although I do know many people who think they do.)

So try to be patient. Don’t expect so much so fast. It’s a language. It’s not a skill like dancing, where you learn how to step ball change and then never need to learn that again. It’s an ongoing venture. But, and this is a big but, it’s a journey that will lead you through many wonderful experiences.

Don’t be hard on yourself if you’re not able to fully converse with a deaf signer after, say, one 10-week class. That’s unrealistic. There’s simply too much to learn to accomplish it all in one course. You might want to have every possible bit of information crammed into every minute of each class in order to feel you’ve gotten your money and time’s worth. But you have to think about this in a mature manner. Use what you learn. Every day. Go where the signers are (and please remember to go where the skilled signers are and not just a bunch of students who are also just learning). Interact in the Deaf Culture. Become involved. There’s no point in learning a new language if you won’t have anyone to share it with. Man, oh, man! How many students I’ve worked with who have said that they don’t want to go to a Deaf event because they’re scared they won’t be able to communicate. But, you have to. It’s scary, but you have to. Besides, why are you learning it anyway if you’re not going to actually use it with people who need it?

So, will you learn American Sign Language in a few months’ time? No, you won’t. Don’t expect that. With you find, in a group of 5 teachers, that they all teach how to say something in exactly the same way? No. There is no one exact way. But will all of your work be worth it in the end? Absolutely. It’s worth it.

But do me one favor: Once you learn it, put it to good use. That’s all I ask.

The Misadventures of Sign Language

THIS IS FOR ALL YOU LATE-DEAFENED ADULTS OUT THERE:

Although there are many things you can leave to chance as a late-deafened adult, one decision is inevitable: Sooner or later you have to choose which communication technique you’re going to use.

Some people think lipreading is the way to go. I, personally tried that route once as a kid and ended up being smacked. It’s amazing how much, “The layers are really fine,” looks like, “That lady is really fat!” After months of classes and studying, I feel it’s safe to say that I cannot lipread. Even now, years later, we have a game where my husband, Kenny, or one of the kids will say something without signing and I have to guess what they’re saying. It provides plenty of comic relief!

Amidst all the communication choices, only one seemed to match my skill level and aptitude, and that was sign language.

I was comfortable with signing. It came naturally to me. I started off with Contact Sign (formerly Pidgin Sign English or PSE) and later switched over to American Sign Language. As an adult, of my three children, only one learned to speak before they learned sign language. Mollie was only three-years-old though, so it came easily to her. My husband? Not so much. But we’ll discuss that later.

Although becoming deaf isn’t funny, if you look close enough, three’s humor in everything. Take my grandmother’s funeral for example. My family never really took the time to learn to sign for me. Anyway, I’m sitting, waiting for the service to begin when my younger sister abruptly sits down next to me, wide-eyed, and slowly signs “I’m Satan!” Well, let me tell you that Satan is one being I do not want at a funeral. She’d actually meant to sign, “I’m paranoid,” referring to her weight, but it was too late. The fear had already set in.

After the eulogy, I was in tears, having lost someone near and dear to my heart. My mother came up to me, embraced me, and then lovingly signed, “It’s OK, Sweetie. Grandma’s with the queen.” Ah! I can see her even now, in the back of a chariot, waving to the crowd in all of her glory.

As I mentioned earlier, it took a little longer for my husband to get out of the habit of improvising or even creating new signs. If it’s just the two of us, I laugh and let it go. But sometimes, well, let’s just say it doesn’t work out.

Picture this; we’re at an important meeting, surrounded by ten other Deaf people, when Kenny decides to chime in. Great, I think. It’ll be nice to see his input into the conversation. So he starts signing and all is going well until he signs (or should I say, means to sign) “That’s perfect! I can make a deposit!” But that’s not what he signed. Oh, no. Not even close. Between his “perfect” being a “P” on his nose (penis) and his “deposit” showing what that “P” does (ejaculate), all I could do was blush and try to keep my eyes on the floor. Everyone else in the room stared at him in disbelief…with a few chuckles to boot. But everyone seemed to have a good sense of humor and it was quickly forgotten as we moved on. I, however, continue to this day to tease him about his imaginative choice of signs.

So, as you can see, sign language is useful, but you’d better beware—there’s always someone watching. Suffice it to say that Kenny’s signing has dramatically improved and he’s very good now. Me? I used sign language to open my own business and to possibly become a Certified Deaf Interpreter.

Will signing make your life easier? Perhaps. Especially if you have friends and family willing to learn, too. Will it solve all of your problems? Nothing can do that. But if you do decide to go the signing route, just be careful to mind your P’s and, uh, bodily functions.