American Sign Language
YVCC ASL 103 Spring 2009
INSTRUCTOR: Sinay Stenlund
CONTACT: Home Phone: 509.921.6777
Cell phone: 509.499.4033
E-mail: justsinay@yahoo.com
Web site: http://www.justsinay.homestead.com
OFFICE: Library, upstairs SCC
REQUIRED FOR THE CLASS:
Intermediate Conversational Sign Language by Willard J. Madsen
ISBN: 0-913580-79-1
Recommended:
ASL Dictionary
A Basic Course in American Sign Language by Padden, etc.
Course Description and Goals
This is the third in a related series of courses that focus on the use and study of American Sign Language (ASL). Special focus will be placed on increasing sign clarity, fluency, non manual behavior and appropriate sign choices. Course content includes the ways in which signers contruct meaning and messages in ASL, grammatical variation, and discourse stategies over a variety of topics. Artistic expressions of ASL will be explored, including performance signing and ASL poetry.
Course outcomes/objectives:
Upon completion of the course, the student will be able to:
Demonstrate knowledge of specific ASL mouth movements and non manual behavior and their meaning, and apply them appropriately.
Demonstrate ability to maintain more in-depth conversational skills with ASL users possessing a variety of skill levels.
Describe way in which signers construct meaning and messages in ASL.
Demonstrate appropriate use of and comprehension of ASL syntax over a variety of topics, conversations, and discourse styles.
ASL 103 will focus on using the vocabulary learned in ASL 101 and 102. You will learn colloquial American Sign Language and idiomatic expressions used by the Deaf community. The pace will be intensive as we build conversational abilities.
Class meetings are considered “SILENT”. You are required to participate. There will be NO talking unless you are assigned to voice.
You need to find a study partner/group. The level and pace of this class requires it.
Language is only acquired though use. Regular class attendance is to your benefit, as attendance and grades have a direct correlation. It is your responsibility to catch up on any material that was covered if you miss class.
If you find yourself becoming overwhelmed, it is your responsibility to communicate with me. Despite the unusual circumstances of our interaction, I am always willing to help in whatever way I can.
You will need a spiral or loose leaf notebook for keeping a journal of weekly activities. Our activities will be fairly routine in structure, but varied in content. I will periodically call for a check of the journal, so you need to bring it to class every day. I will provide an example at the end of this document.
Weekly assignment (as documented in your journal) will account for 500 pts of your grade. The other half of your grade will be earned by a series of projects designed for your learning and enjoyment!
Projects:
1.You will be asked to choose a song from the extensive examples available online. You can work alone or with a group. For this part of the project, you will translate the ASL translated song into glosses! This will be worth 100 pts. Due 5/4.
2.For the second project, you (and your group) will sign the song, back in ASL. You are welcome to use the same translation that watched before, or if you feel you can improve upon it, you are welcome do to that as well! 100 points. Due 6/1.
EXAMPLE: Watch Keith Wann doing Ice Ice Baby and transcribe his signs into glosses, for the first project. For the second project you will sign it back into ASL!
The signing portion can be done live (easiest) or turned in on video for me to watch alone (the “chicken” method).
3.I will provide you with the material, and you will be asked to record yourself signing. You will watch the video and do a self review as well have a classmate do a peer review for you. You will then turn in the reviews to me, but not the video. You will apply the improvement advise from the reviews and resign the material on the SAME “tape” as the first… then turn in the tape with both versions to me. The first version, along with the peer and self review, are worth 100 points. Due: 5/4. The second version, along with the self review and my review of both videos are worth 100 points. Due: 5/26.
4.You will have the opportunity to earn 100 points by doing a pre-arranged activity, from the following list and is due 5/26, unless performing.
a.Attend a Deaf church, social or function. Report on the event by an oral or written report.
b.Attend two interpreted events and report on your experience, either orally or written.
c.Towards the end of the quarter, perform a song, poem or short story for the class.
Grade Review:Journal of Weekly Events500
A total of 1000 points, with a standard 10% break down will determine your grade. Extra credit may be earned by presenting a performance at the end of the quarter. Each performance can be worth 100 points and must be prearranged with me.
As a word to the wise: While you maybe able to “fake it” though the course work, always remember, you have come this far with the purpose of learning, you have worked hard for two quarters to lay the groundwork for this quarter, when your dedication will pay off in conversational ability.
In order to ever be fluent with a language, you must interact with native users. I understand the difficulty this can present in rural areas; however, I encourage you to make every effort to attend at least one social event with the Deaf community. You must also take every opportunity to communicate with your classmates using proper ASL. I look forward to a challenging and rewarding quarter. As always, please feel free to contact me at any time.
If you need course adaptations or accommodations because of a disability, if you have emergency medical information to share with me, or if you need special arrangements in case we must evacuate the building, please notify me as soon as possible. Anyone with questions about college services for disabled students should contact the Office of Disabled Student Services.
As a student in ASL 103, you are taking a course that is transferable to WA public four year colleges and universities. This course meets the content level and expectations of a comparable university course.
Journal Organization:
Each week you will document your weekly activities by keeping a journal. You can keep a page a day or you can simply have a first page each week that summarizes the week, with more detailed information on following pages.
EXAMPLE:
Monday: worked picture pages with “David.” (have David initial this)
Tuesday: translated ASL to English exercise (translation on next page) and translated and signed English to ASL with David. (translation on next page, David initials this)
Wednesday: Lesson on ASL poetry, lesson summary following
Thursday: Outside Activity: watched Deaf Newspaper.com on 4/5. Summary following. Shared summary with group: David, Dana, Darin and Darla
Friday: met with group to translate D-Pan version of Beautiful
All the translations/ summaries should follow.
Explanation:
Working the picture pages will increase your understanding of conversational behaviors, there are also cultural notes that you will learn from. Have your partner sign off for you on your Portfolio sheet to verify that you completed the work.
The ASL to English translations are similar to the English to ASL exercises that you will also translate. Working them will make the translation easier. Have your partner sign off for you to verify that you completed the work.
Write a short reaction to the video or lesson we had. This doesn’t have to be profound, it can be notes taken while you watch it, or something you thought about later or a report of a conversation or thought you had about the video.
Outside activities can include visits to Deaf related websites, (deafnewspaper.com, nad.org, deafdigest.com, or any of the other great sites) it can be reading an article about deafness, going to an interpreted event, a coffee chat, simply talking to a deaf person. There are so many things you can do with this, please use your imagination and check with me!
You will need to use your voice when you talk to me, of course, so that the camera can switch and so that the other sites can know what you are saying, but for inter-class communications, you should be signing. You can fill out this line, just give yourself points 2 pts per day that you were in class and SIGNING! I will deduct points at my discretion. One weeks that we only have four days, give yourself credit for the day we are not in school anyway.
You will be amazed at how your language increases this quarter, of course, it is all about what you put into it. If you follow my instructions, you will be well on your way to being comfortable in this language. Trust me, I haven’t lied to you yet…. That you know of
