As one of the largest ASL programs in the nation, within one of the larger Deaf communities, we recognize our responsibility to our students, the Deaf community, and our students' future employers (both hearing and Deaf).
The ASL at KSU Program's MISSION STATEMENT
Residing within KSU’s Department of Modern and Classical Language Studies (instead of subsumed under a deficit medical model within a branch of special education or disability studies), the ASL program’s primary goal is presenting American Sign Language as a diglossic language, which is based in a culture and a community, and is in interaction with other world languages.
Through immersion and bilingual-bicultural comparison classes, community interaction, individual and small group research, extra-curricular activities, lab activities, modeling, active learning and use of digital video technology, the ASL program at KSU works to ensure that students gain documented proficiency in ASL, validity within the Deaf community, and networking within the professional community.
Student progress is closely monitored through a multifaceted data-tracking system, to ensure adequate progress and the high level of skills, self-awareness, and ethics needed for direct employment (in fields such as education, advocacy, nonprofit administration, mental health, media, and performing arts), or successful application for further study (in areas such as psychology, anthropology, linguistics, medicine, law, social services, rehabilitation and linguistics).
Welcome to ASL at KSU!
CeceliaRose, an ASL student, learns Salsa dancing from Dr. Ellison, a professor of Spanish, in the hallway between the offices of a French professor and a German professor! COOL!
WHO TAKES ASL CLASSES AT KSU?
Students in our ASL courses come from a variety of programs, adding diversity of perspective and experience to the classes. Some may be ASL majors, some ASL minors. Students may be working towards their licensure in Deaf Education; they may be studying to become licensed ASL teachers or ASL interpreters. There are nursing students and drama students; art and media production majors. There are Hearing and Deaf students, Deaf and Hearing instructors, and Deaf mentor/Hearing peer tutors.
Applicants and students wishing to obtain their Ohio Licensure in Deaf Education apply for their major program through the
Applicants and students wishing to obtain their Ohio Licensure in Educational Interpreting, which is also housed under the
Applicants and students wishing to focus on studying American Sign Language itself, do so through the Department of Modern and Classical Language Studies, in the College of Arts and Sciences. Many ASL majors also decide to minor in Second Language (L2) Pedagogy (education). In addition to their classes in ASL, they explore language learning and techniques related to teaching language, and participate in a student teaching experience. Upon completion of the program, graduates who majored in ASL and minored in L2 education are then eligible for Ohio Licensure in Foreign Language Teaching (ASL - multi-age), enabling them to teach ASL in elementary, middle, and high schools. Other ASL majors develop their skills by pursuing advanced degrees in such areas as cultural anthropology, linguistics, psychology, sociology, disability studies, Deaf studies or drama. People often ask what they can do with a degree in ASL, thinking that the only options are to either become an interpreter or a teacher. If that's a question you might have, you may want to look at another page available on this website. It lists job openings that have become available for ASL majors JUST DURING THE CURRENT SEMESTER (i.e. all older openings have been removed). During most semesters, you'll probably be surprised at the number of positions posted. For the graduating ASL majors in December of 2008, for example, 67% of the students were hired either before graduation or within a week of graduation.
Patrick and TJ at graduation.
At KSU we try to not only supply a quality education, but also to encourage individual strengths and interests. Applicants who come to KSU with prior experience in ASL can arrange for a placement test in order to ascertain where their needs and skill levels would be best accommodated. For more information about taking the placement test, see the page titled "Info for Students." Individual interests can be pursued during the Individual Investigation, Advanced Proficiency class, Linguistics, Deaf Culture and Community and through projects in other classes. Career areas and individual interests may also be explored through the required community service semester projects which are part of ASL 29202, 39201, and 39202. During these projects, students participate in programs and events within the local Deaf community. These placements enable our students to not only practice and increase their ASL skills and cultural awareness, but also to explore various career settings, such as drama or mental health. The community service projects also help students build their portfolio for future employment application. More information about the community service component is available on the page within this website pertaining to "Student Project Contacts" and also on the page titled "Info for Students."
Students in ASL 29202 worked at DeafNation for their community service project.
If you would like to see the courses for the ASL major, click here: http://www.freewebs.com/thorykksu/aslmajorsequence.htm
COURSEWORK FOR THE ASL MINOR:
If you would like to see a tentative sequence of coursework, click here: http://www.freewebs.com/thorykksu/aslminorsequence.htm
COURSEWORK FOR THE ASL MAJOR WITH FOREIGN LANGUAGE TEACHING LICENSURE K-12 (i.e. teaching ASL licensure):
If you would like to see a tentative sequence of coursework, click here: http://www.freewebs.com/thorykksu/aslmajorwithlicensure.htm
If you have general questions about the major plus the licensing minor, try these two sites:
http://www.freewebs.com/thorykksu/edlicensureinasl.htm
http://www.freewebs.com/thorykksu/flteachingbroch.htm
A FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTION ABOUT ASL
It seems I am asked this question fairly frequently, from students and from various faculty:
"I have tried all of the foreign languages and have had trouble in each of them
….I am a visual learner - so I should do better in a sign class, right?"
I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but the answer is no. ASL is coded in the same language areas of the brain as aural/oral languages. ASL’s phonemes (handshapes, locations, orientations, movements, nonmanuals, and use of space) are coded as symbols, not as pictures, just like sound-based phonemes are coded.
People become confused because they can SEE ASL as people are using it. It’s true that ASL has visual symbols but spoken languages have visual symbols too – they’re called letters. Your brain treats the visual symbols of ASL the same as it would the visual symbols of the other languages. So, if Russian in written form, or Chinese in written form would present you with difficulties, ASL will too.
Lots of people think that because ASL signs LOOK like gestures, it is "visual" in the same sense as pictures. Gestures that "look like" what they stand for or mean are called "iconic" - you can figure out what they refer to, just be looking at them. A lot of people who don't know ASL think that ASL signs are iconic, and that's not true. For the majority of ASL signs, you cannot tell
what they are from just looking at the sign, just like looking at a sequence of written letters together in Russian or English doesn't "look like" whatever concept they stand for. And to make it more complicated, much of the meaning and grammar of ASL isn't coded on the hands - i.e. it isn't the handshape that carries the meaning - it's the direction and the speed and the use of space.
ASL is symbolic and linguistic, and processed by your brain just as written Russian would be. We have the same types of grammar rules as other languages and the same issues with modifying verbs to agree with subjects. Actually, we have MORE rules about that than some aural/oral languages. ASL is a polymorphemic language, which means that in addition to having rules about how to build sentences, there are LOTS of rules about meanings that you
It's been estimated that ASL is about the same difficulty to learn as Russian. So....if you've had problems with other languages, it's probably a good bet that you'll have problems with ASL too....because it is a LANGUAGE. It's not pictures. It's not gestures. It's not mime. It's a symbolic system with rules and abstractions.
ASL AT KSU
ASL at
It's a GREAT time to major in ASL at KSU!
ASL students, with minors in dance or interests in the performing arts, meet in the ASL Lab to discuss performance projects.
Deana and Ashley shared smiles when they compared their September pretests with their December post-tests in Linguistics class.
Learning ASL, or learning MORE about ASL, is definitely not easy, but it can be a fascinating and vibrant adventure! Our classes and curriculum try to be tuned to events and changes within the real world, and we invite you to come, learn, participate, contribute, and explore!
For more information, please feel free to contact
R. Thoryk at rthoryk@kent.edu ,
or for information regarding admission,
please see www.admissions.kent.edu/
Looking forward to seeing you on campus!
Coordinator
American Sign Language Program
Modern & Classical Language Studies
Rm 101E Satterfield Hall
Kent State University
P.O. Box 5190
Kent, Ohio 44242-0001
rthoryk@kent.edu
