Q HW 1:1 Asking Personal Questions Overview: Exchanging Personal information The Deaf Culture population is relatively small in numbers, and Deaf people tend to reply on other members of the culture to feel connected and supported. Deaf people feel a special bond with other Deaf people because they share common educational backgrounds, and experiences in interacting with the larger hearing society in their family, school, work and social lives. For these reasons, Deaf people. value knowing and making connections with other members of the Deaf culture and community. Because personal connections and relationships are important, Deaf people wants to know other members of the Deaf community, how they are connected to Deaf culture and the Deaf community, where they went to school, and what their backgrounds, jobs, and personal life circumstances are. Getting to know other members of the Deaf culture and community on a personal level is important. Therefore, asking about and telling about personal life circumstances is considered an appropriate topic of conversation. As a learning of ASL, you may initially be uncomfortable with the personal nature of some questions you are asked; for example, questions related to marital status and your family. This is a difference in cultural perspectives and values between mainstream American culture and Deaf cultures. It is important to recognize this cultural difference in perspective and not take offense if you are asked some questions that you considered personal in nature. No offense is intended. If a Deaf person you are becoming acquainted with asks you personal questions, you are seeing first hand the expression of a cultural value important to Deaf people. When you are feeling comfortable enough to share information about yourself on a personal level, you will be demonstrating your understanding and acceptance of this aspect of Deaf culture. You are learning ASL because you will or currently have some relationship to Deaf people. Understanding these values and how they are expressed within Deaf culture is an important part of learning and developing ASL communication skills. DawnSignPress, (2010), ASL at Work Meeting Others When Deaf people meet each other for the first time, the information exchanged is used to establish each other community ties. The information exchanged included: First name, sign name if have one, Where they are from, which school for the deaf they attended and the years they entered and graduated, and if they attended Gallaudet University. When Deaf people are meeting hearing people for first time are interested in finding out their connection to Deaf Community. They may be asked to share the following information: Their first name, if hearing person, if they have a deaf relatives, if they are taking a sign language class, where they are taking the ASL class, who is their teacher and why they are learning American Sign Language. Deaf is used to refer to the social and cultural identification of the person. DEAF is Deaf people's name for themselves. The sign may be used to comment on hearing ability. "I am hearing person," or " I am hearing." From Where? Versus Where Live Now? When Deaf people meet other for the first time, they usually ask each other for their names and question, "where are you from?" The expected answer is the place where the Deaf person grew up and the place the new acquaintance considers "home." For example, if a Deaf person was born and grew up in New York City and as an adult has lived for many years in Chicago, the answer would be something like the following: I was born and grew up in New York City. I went to school at Lexington School for the Deaf. Now I live in Chicago. Asking in ASL, "Where are you from," therefore, is comparable to asking where you were born, where did you grew up, and what place do you consider home. Deaf people want to know where other Deaf people are from and their connection to the Deaf world. Asking, "Where do you live?" is a question about where the person lives now. Using the previous example, the answer would be the following: I live in Chicago, but I grew up in New York City. I went to school at Lexington School for the Deaf. If Deaf people know that you are a hearing person and learning ASL, they will generally not ask you the question. "Where are you from?' Because you are a hearing person, where you were born and grew up is not important to determining your connection to the Deaf world. They may ask you " where do you live? and it is appropriate for you to answer this question in the same way that you would answer it in English; for example, " I live in Rochester, New York." Deaf people also like to know whether people they meet are D/deaf or hearing. Fluent hearing ASL signer may sometime not be immediately identified as hearing because their signing may appear native-like. They are encouraged to identified as a hearing person. In this case, a Deaf person may ask a fairly fluent hearing signer, "Where are you from?' Recognizing this question as a question that is trying to establish connections among Deaf people, the hearing signer would response something like " I am hearing. I grew up in Rochester, New York." The Deaf person may then ask a fluent hearing ASL signer questions like, " How did you learn ASL?" " Wow, you are good at signing in ASL". "Are your parents Deaf?" These questions are directed at discovering the hearing signer's connection to the Deaf world. If you are learning ASL, you can expect to get question like " Where are you learning ASL?" or "How did you learn ASL?' and "Who is your ASL Teacher?" Deaf people will want to establish how and why you are learning ASL. They will want to know whether you have Deaf parents, relatives, neighbors or have other personal or professional reasons for learning ASL. It is important to understand these culturally determined patterns of questions when being introduced and how to respond appropriately. Vocabulary: WHERE YOU FROM? WHERE YOU LIVE? Keeping Each other informed Sharing information is the norm in the Deaf community. This is especially important when there is a change in routine or expectations. Deaf people share detailed information about their lives, family and friends. They will share with the group the reason why they are late, leave an event early or did not attend the last activity and explain why. Deaf people have formed a cohesive and supportive community which encourages a greater sense of familiarity. This is one of the differences between the hearing and Deaf culture. To Response Oh- I See is an ASL expression that conveys comprehension, sympathy, and concern, similar to sounds like huh, hmm, oh, aha, and I see. It is often used in conversation. The sign OH-I-SEE can also be used alone to show that you understand or that you are following what is being said. It is not used for an affirmative response; the sign YES is used for that purpose. You use YES to give a positive response to a question, " Requesting Clarification Use DON'T UNDERSTAND to indicate that something just stated was not understood and should be repeated. You sign "AGAIN, DON'T- UNDERSTAND, MISS FINGERSPELL, AGAIN, EXPLAIN MORE PLEASE when you don't understand and want a signer to repeat something that was just signed or fingerspelled. Vocabulary: DON'T UNDERSTAND DON'T-UNDERSTAND (with negation statement) UNDERSTAND NOT AGAIN MISS FINGERSPELL. AGAIN Eye Contact Eye contact is very important when communicating with Deaf people. If a hearing person breaks eye contact because of auditory interruptions, it is important for them to inform the Deaf person why they looked away. If they break eye contact and look at something behind the Deaf person, the Deaf person will turn to look too. If the object or person is not there, it is important to explain to Deaf person why, what was behind them. Breaking eye contact without an explanation is very considered rude. If eye contact is broken, a person cannot be "listening' and the Deaf person will sign signing or look around as you do. For example, if two hearing people are meeting and the telephone rings, both will hear the phone ringing and they can choose to acknowledge and answer the phone call or ignore it. Sometime one of the hearing persons may gesture with person's finger to interrupt the conversation adn say something like, " let me get this call." However, eye contact is important in ASL conversations, if a hearing person is meeting with a Deaf person, a ringing telephone should be ignored until the conversation can be interrupted. If the hearing person decides to interrupt person's conversation with a Deaf person, the hearing person should inform the Deaf person that the telephone is ringing and hearing person wishes to answer it. In this case, the hearing person should use a gesture with person's index finger to indicate "one moment" or "wait a moment" and then communicate that the telephone is ringing and person wishes to answer it. of course, alternatively the hearing person may ignore the telephone, allowing the answering machine to answer the call and continue communicating with the Deaf person. In fact, if the meeting is a scheduled meeting, it may be considered appropriate etiquette to allow an answering machine to respond to telephone calls whether one is meeting with a Deaf or a hearing person. Community and Culture – Frequently Asked Questions Question — What is the difference between a person who is “deaf,” “Deaf,” or “hard of hearing”? The deaf and hard of hearing community is diverse. There are variations in how a person becomes deaf or hard of hearing, level of hearing, age of onset, educational background, communication methods, and cultural identity. How people “label” or identify themselves is personal and may reflect identification with the deaf and hard of hearing community, the degree to which they can hear, or the relative age of onset. For example, some people identify themselves as “late-deafened,” indicating that they became deaf later in life. Other people identify themselves as “deaf-blind,” which usually indicates that they are deaf or hard of hearing and also have some degree of vision loss. Some people believe that the term “people with hearing loss” is inclusive and efficient. However, some people who were born deaf or hard of hearing do not think of themselves as having lost their hearing. Over the years, the most commonly accepted terms have come to be “deaf,” “Deaf,” and “hard of hearing.” “Deaf” and “deaf” According to Carol Padden and Tom Humphries, in Deaf in America: Voices from a Culture (1988): We use the lowercase deaf when referring to the audiological condition of not hearing, and the uppercase Deaf when referring to a particular group of deaf people who share a language – American Sign Language (ASL) – and a culture. The members of this group have inherited their sign language, use it as a primary means of communication among themselves, and hold a set of beliefs about themselves and their connection to the larger society. We distinguish them from, for example, those who find themselves losing their hearing because of illness, trauma or age; although these people share the condition of not hearing, they do not have access to the knowledge, beliefs, and practices that make up the culture of Deaf people. Padden and Humphries comment, “this knowledge of Deaf people is not simply a camaraderie with others who have a similar physical condition, but is, like many other cultures in the traditional sense of the term, historically created and actively transmitted across generations.” The authors also add that Deaf people “have found ways to define and express themselves through their rituals, tales, performances, and everyday social encounters. The richness of their sign language affords them the possibilities of insight, invention, and irony.” The relationship Deaf people have with their sign language is a strong one, and “the mistaken belief that ASL is a set of simple gestures with no internal structure has led to the tragic misconception that the relationship of Deaf people to their sign language is a casual one that can be easily severed and replaced.” (Padden & Humphries) “Hard of Hearing” “Hard-of-hearing” can denote a person with a mild-to-moderate hearing loss. Or it can denote a deaf person who doesn’t have/want any cultural affiliation with the Deaf community. Or both. The HOH dilemma: in some ways hearing, in some ways deaf, in others, neither. Can one be hard-of-hearing and ASL-Deaf? That’s possible, too. Can one be hard-of-hearing and function as hearing? Of course. What about being hard-of-hearing and functioning as a member of both the hearing and Deaf communities? That’s a delicate tightrope-balancing act, but it too is possible. As for the political dimension: HOH people can be allies of the Deaf community. They can choose to join or to ignore it. They can participate in the social, cultural, political, and legal life of the community along with culturally-Deaf or live their lives completely within the parameters of the “Hearing world.” But they may have a more difficult time establishing a satisfying cultural/social identity. Deaf Life, “For Hearing People Only” (October 1997). Individuals can choose an audiological or cultural perspective. It’s all about choices, comfort level, mode of communication, and acceptance. Whatever the decision, the NAD welcomes all Deaf, deaf, hard of hearing, late-deafened, and deaf-blind Americans, and the advocacy work that the NAD does is available to and intended to benefit everyone. Question — What is wrong with the use of these terms “deaf-mute,” “deaf and dumb,” or “hearing-impaired”? Deaf and hard of hearing people have the right to choose what they wish to be called, either as a group or on an individual basis. Overwhelmingly, deaf and hard of hearing people prefer to be called “deaf” or “hard of hearing.” Nearly all organizations of the deaf use the term “deaf and hard of hearing,” and the NAD is no exception. Yet there are many people who persist in using terms other than “deaf” and “hard of hearing.” The alternative terms are often seen in print, heard on radio and television, and picked up in casual conversations all over. Let’s take a look at the three most-used alternative terms. Deaf and Dumb — A relic from the medieval English era, this is the granddaddy of all negative labels pinned on deaf and hard of hearing people. The Greek philosopher, Aristotle, pronounced us “deaf and dumb,” because he felt that deaf people were incapable of being taught, of learning, and of reasoned thinking. To his way of thinking, if a person could not use his/her voice in the same way as hearing people, then there was no way that this person could develop cognitive abilities. (Source: Deaf Heritage, by Jack Gannon, 1980) In later years, “dumb” came to mean “silent.” This definition still persists, because that is how people see deaf people. The term is offensive to deaf and hard of hearing people for a number of reasons. One, deaf and hard of hearing people are by no means “silent” at all. They use sign language, lip-reading, vocalizations, and so on to communicate. Communication is not reserved for hearing people alone, and using one’s voice is not the only way to communicate. Two, “dumb” also has a second meaning: stupid. Deaf and hard of hearing people have encountered plenty of people who subscribe to the philosophy that if you cannot use your voice well, you don’t have much else “upstairs,” and have nothing going for you. Obviously, this is incorrect, ill-informed, and false. Deaf and hard of hearing people have repeatedly proved that they have much to contribute to the society at large. Deaf-Mute – Another offensive term from the 18th-19th century, “mute” also means silent and without voice. This label is technically inaccurate, since deaf and hard of hearing people generally have functioning vocal chords. The challenge lies with the fact that to successfully modulate your voice, you generally need to be able to hear your own voice. Again, because deaf and hard of hearing people use various methods of communication other than or in addition to using their voices, they are not truly mute. True communication occurs when one’s message is understood by others, and they can respond in kind. Hearing-impaired – This term is no longer accepted by most in the community but was at one time preferred, largely because it was viewed as politically correct. To declare oneself or another person as deaf or blind, for example, was considered somewhat bold, rude, or impolite. At that time, it was thought better to use the word “impaired” along with “visually,” “hearing,” “mobility,” and so on. “Hearing-impaired” was a well-meaning term that is not accepted or used by many deaf and hard of hearing people. For many people, the words “deaf” and “hard of hearing” are not negative. Instead, the term “hearing-impaired” is viewed as negative. The term focuses on what people can’t do. It establishes the standard as “hearing” and anything different as “impaired,” or substandard, hindered, or damaged. It implies that something is not as it should be and ought to be fixed if possible. To be fair, this is probably not what people intended to convey by the term “hearing impaired.” Every individual is unique, but there is one thing we all have in common: we all want to be treated with respect. To the best of our own unique abilities, we have families, friends, communities, and lives that are just as fulfilling as anyone else. We may be different, but we are not less. What’s in a name? Plenty! Words and labels can have a profound effect on people. Show your respect for people by refusing to use outdated or offensive terms. When in doubt, ask the individual how they identify themselves. © 2021 National Association of the Deaf. Vocabulary: Deaf profoundly Deaf deaf Hard of Hearing Homework 1:1 p. 5 Strategies for Learning American Sign Language (ASL) ASL 001 M/W 7:00 pm - 9:05 pm