This paper presents results of an investigation into the relationship between Kenyan Sign Language (KSL) and English literacy skills. It is derived from research undertaken towards an MEd degree awarded by The University of Western Australia in 2011. The study employed a correlational survey strategy. Sixty upper primary deaf students from four…

Expressive language is an important skill to develop in children with intellectual disabilities. It not only aids in decreasing the likelihood of challenging behaviors from occurring but also aids in increasing the individuals independence and assistance in them becoming successful members of society. No previous studies have examined the…

In this paper, I use a holographic metaphor to explain the identification of overlapping sign language communities in Panama. By visualizing Panama's complex signing communities as emitting community "hotspots" through social drama on multiple stages, I employ ethnographic methods to explore overlapping contours of Panama's sign language…

This project investigated the use of alternate methods of classroom interaction and communication to foster collaborative learning in diverse classrooms. Deaf, hard-of-hearing (DHH), and hearing students taking a graduate course in teacher education participated in lab sessions where interactions occurred via articulated speech and/or sign…

During the pre- and post-implant habilitation process, mothers of children using cochlear implants may be coached by clinicians to use appropriate communicative strategies during play according to the family's choice of communication approach. The present study compared observations made by experienced and inexperienced individuals in the analysis…

Deaf education professionals are regularly challenged by the linguistic and cultural diversity of deaf youth. The present article focuses on how young deaf people residing in France who are migrants or the children of migrants define themselves, and how parents and professionals perceive their linguistic and cultural diversity. The theoretical…

This article focuses on the syntactic level of the grammar of Saudi Arabian Sign Language by exploring some word orders that occur in personal narratives in the language. Word order is one of the main ways in which languages indicate the main syntactic roles of subjects, verbs, and objects; others are verbal agreement and nominal case morphology.…

In this paper, we compare responses of deaf signers and hearing non-signers engaged in a categorization task of signs and non-linguistic human actions. We examine the time it takes to make such categorizations under conditions of 180 degrees stimulus inversion and as a function of repetition priming, in an effort to understand whether the…

The point of departure of this article is the cluster of three pre-theoretical presuppositions (P) governing modern research on sign languages: (1) that a stream of signing consists of signs (S) and transitions (T), (2) that only Ss are linguistically relevant units, and (3) that there is a qualitative (e.g., phonetic) difference between Ss and…

Although many rural Deaf and Hard of Hearing students attend public schools most of the day and use the services of educational interpreters to gain access to the school environment, little information exists on what interpreters are doing in rural school systems in the absence of credentialing requirements. The researcher used ethnographic…

Using an autoethnographic approach, this dissertation explores the path taken by a person who serves a unique population of individuals--people who not only have more than one disability, but in addition, are unable to communicate using verbal (spoken) speech. Starting with a recap of the history of the use and subsequent oppression of American…

This article reports on a correlational study of language and home factors and their role in fostering the development of alphabetic knowledge among a national sample of 3-, 4-, and 5-year-old deaf children. A structural equation model was constructed and tested in an examination of the combined impacts of student age, finger-spelling ability, and…

When learning a third language (L3), learners, according to researchers, generally rely on a variety of resources, such as their L1 (first language), L2 (second language), and/or their current knowledge of the L3. Although studies have identified a number of factors that may influence a learner's choice of the source of transfer, these works were…

The purpose of the study was to uncover and describe psycholinguistic and sociocognitive factors facilitating effective reading by signing adults who are profoundly deaf and do not use hearing technology. The sample comprised four groups, each consisting of 15 adults, for a total of 60 participants. The four groups were "deaf…

The sharing of American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) cultures and lifeways provides opportunities for helping young children form deep connections to their community, which, in turn, aids in the development of their early language and literacy skills. This issue brief--based on interviews with eight Tribal Maternal, Infant, Early Childhood Home…