John A. Albertini

Language Learning and Deafness: Language varieties in the deaf population and their acquisition by children and adults

Editors introduction In this chapter, Bochner and Albertini take on the ambitious task of reviewing the central issues in the acquisition of language by deaf individuals in North America. They adopt a self-described “sociolinguistic” perspective by viewing language acquisition by the deaf as occurring under conditions of restricted intake that result in learning patterns resembling those of pidgin and Creole speakers . In order to explore this analogy in depth, the authors first provide an overview of research on the “products” or linguistic output of deaf learners, including written and spoken English, manual English, Pidgin Sign English (PSE), and American Sign Language (ASL). They then consider various aspects of the acquisition process, particularly those related to the interplay between the organism and the environment, the relationship between communication channel and the mind, and the influence of age on intake . Apart from the thoroughness with which Bochner and Albertini treat their topic, what makes this chapter an important contribution to applied linguistics is their insights on the relationship between language acquisition among the Deaf and among other speech communities and the implications they draw from the linguistic evidence for the education of deaf children. The importance of primary language acquisition (whether ASL or signed or spoken English) and of the quality of language input/intake for educational advancement is lent an added urgency by the evidence and arguments put forward by these authors.

Critical Literacy, Whole Language, and the Teaching of Writing to Deaf Students: Who Should Dictate to Whom?

In response to reports of widespread adult illiteracy in the U. S., two positions on educational reform have emerged: a back to the basics movement that stresses enduring truths, and a social constructivist position that highlights the social context of language teaching and use. Each holds different and competing assumptions about language learning and the teaching of writing. in order to uncover the assumptions operating in classrooms for deaf students, two sets of recollections concerning writing activities were analyzed: the autobiographical essays of 87 U.S. deaf college students and the journal entries of 55 college-aged German deaf students. Students from both countries generally recalled writing for two purposes: to report and to practice grammar and mechanics. It is argued here (a) that these activities represent a narrow conception of literacy and inaccurate assumptions about language learning and (b) that the back to the basics movement perpetuates such assumptions, whereas a social constructivist approach does not. Finally, educational, social, and political implications of using whole language approaches, among others, in the teaching of writing to deaf students are considered.

An Investigation of Variables of Instruction and Their Relation to Rate of English Language Learning

An investigation was undertaken to determine the effect of nine instructional variables on rate of English language learning. The dependent variables were gains demonstrated in reading comprehension and written language in 10 weeks of instruction. The independent variables were five teacher variables and four student variables. Data were collected through observation techniques and by objective testing. Analysis of variance was used to investigate relations between gain scores and the independent variables. All of the variables pertaining to teaching intensity and the presentation design used by teachers for delivering English language lessons were found to have a significant effect on rate of written language skill development. Implications for planning English language programs and for preparing language teachers to work with hearing-impaired young adults are offered.

Deaf Students' Knowledge of Subtle Lexical Properties of Transitive and Intransitive English Verbs.

Deaf Learners’ Acquisition of fundamental lexical properties of high-frequency English verbs related to transitivity and intransitivity was examined, including the subtle distinction between unergative and unaccusative verbs. A 140-item sentence acceptability rating scale was used to assess this lexical knowledge in deaf college students at two English proficiency levels, plus a control group of hearing native English speakers. Hypotheses addressed the influence of relative derivational complexity and overall English proficiency on verb acquisition. Though the hearing group showed greater accuracy in sentence acceptability judgments and greater accuracy tied to overall English proficiency, the two deaf groups displayed fairly robust knowledge of targeted verbs’ fundamental transitive and intransitive lexical properties. Nevertheless, verb acquisition remains a formidable challenge. Further research should assess deaf students’ knowledge of these lexical properties in lower-frequency English verbs, including unaccusative verbs prevalent in STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) and other academic discourse.

A Comparison of English Language Skill Improvement between Interdisciplinary and Noninterdisciplinary English Classes.

There were 14 students with good speech and hearing discrimination selected from the class entering NTID in 1979, and a matched control group was selected from data on 1978 students. The experimental group was taught half of each week by a speech pathologist and an audiologist and the other half by an English specialist. The control group was taught by the English specialist using the same highly-structured course materials. The experimental group made significantly greater gains in reading comprehension than the control group.