Page1 of 10 Department of American Sign Language and Deaf Studies PST 301-01 American Sign Language I (3 credits) Instructor First and Last Name Contact Email Address POLICIES/PROCEDURES Dropping the Course 100% refund Three weeks prior to the start of class Last Day to Drop Date Last Day to Add Date Semester and Year Date Time Classroom Formal Course Description This course introduces the basics of American Sign Language (ASL). This course is designed for students with no or minimal sign language skills to develop basic skills in use of ASL and knowledge of deaf culture. Emphasis is upon acquisition of comprehension, production and interactional skills using basic grammatical features. ASL will be taught within contexts and related to general surroundings and everyday life experiences. Prerequisite: None ASL 2 Program s Mission Statement Gallaudet University s ASL 2 Program is dedicated to providing an exemplary array of comprehensive and interactive curricula for individuals interested in learning American Sign Language (ASL) as a second language or foreign language. Using direct instruction and immersion in ASL, augmented by written English and visual learning supports, the program s instructors engage learners in acquiring and developing increasing levels of proficiency in expressive and receptive use of the language. They also guide student s exploration of the development of the language, its complexities and relevance in American Deaf Communities.
Page 2 of 10 Gallaudet University s Student Learning Outcomes https://www.gallaudet.edu/general-studies/mission-and-outcomes ASL and Deaf Studies Department s ASL as Second Language (ASL 2 ) Program Outcomes and their relation to Gallaudet University SLOs are: ASL 2 Program Student Learning Outcomes Students will demonstrate the ability to comprehend and express ideas in ASL in person and through digital technologies. Gallaudet University Student Learning Outcomes 1, 3, and 5 (ACTFL 1.1, 1.2, 1.3 and 5.1) Students will demonstrate their knowledge of ASL as it is used in other academic disciplines. (ACTFL 3.1) 1, 2, 4, and 5
Page 3 of 10 Students will demonstrate an understanding of Deaf communities through comparisons of ASL and their own languages and cultures. 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 (ACTFL 2.1, 2.2, 4.1 and 4.2) Students will demonstrate understanding of the benefits of learning ASL and becoming bilingual or multilingual. (ACTFL 3.2) 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 Note: The program outcomes and SLOs are modified from "Learning Outcomes for American Sign Language Skills Levels 1-4" authored by Kim Brown Kurz, Ph.D. and Marty Taylor, Ph.D. which is based on ACTFL's standards for foreign language. ACTFL stands for American Council for Teachers of Foreign Language. PST 301 American Sign Language I s Course Outcomes PST 301 Course SLOs Critical Assessments Assessment Tool(s) and Expected Level ASL Program SLOs Gallaudet University SLOs Comprehend and Pair and small Using assignment-tied 1 and 2 1 and 2 express oneself with group checklists, and ASL basic ASL vocabulary exercises,and/or rubrics for and correct grammar in presentations. comprehension and person and through digital technologies. production skills at basic level. Target level of B or better in assessments. Identify and compare Class Using assignment-tied 3 and 4 1, 2, 3 and 5 the beliefs, values, discussion, class checklist. Target level products and practices exercises and/or of B or better in found within Deaf presentations. assessments. Communities. Converse in person to Inclusion of other Using assignment-tied 1, 2, and 3 1 discuss key concepts in disciplines in the checklists and/or using other disciplines. unit quizzes and/ or class exercises. ASL rubrics for the knowledge of other disciplines at basic level Target level of B or better in assessments.
Page 4 of 10 Compare and contrast students languages and cultures with those of Deaf communities at basic level. Unit quizzes and/or presentations. Using assignment-tied checklists and/or using ASL rubrics for understanding of comparison with other language(s) and culture(s) at basic level. Target level of B or better in assessments. 3 and 4 1, 2, 3 4, and 5 Demonstrate an awareness of grammatical features that make ASL a complex human language at basic level. Unit quizzes, class exercises, presentations, and/or video reflection. Using assignment-tied checklists and/or using ASL rubrics for the understanding of grammatical features in the basic level. Target level of B or better in assessments. 1, 3 and 4 1, 4 and 5 Engage and converse in Attendance of Using assignment-tied 1, 2, 3 and 4 1, 3 and 5 non-classroom small one Deaf event. checklists and/or using groups with Deaf ASL rubrics for Community members. production skills at basic level. Required Course Purchases Smith, C., Lentz E., & Mikos, K. (2008). Signing naturally- Units 1-6. Student workbook and DVD. San Diego, CA: Dawn Sign Press. ISBN: 978-1-58121-210-5 For this course, we will use GoReact. GoReact is a web-based tool for recording your video assignments and for instructor to provide video feedback and instructions. You will find it easy to use and very helpful for this semester. The cost is $19.95 per course. Please wait for the invitation link from your instructor. When you click on the link, you will be prompted to register and pay with your credit/debit card or use your bookstore code purchased from Bison store.
Page 5 of 10 Learning Management System Use BlackBoard where you will receive all course handouts, lecture notes, assignments, announcements, etc. Learner Assessment Outcomes, assignments, and assessments are located in the charts at the start of this syllabus Here is an overview of the points assigned to each assessment so that you can gauge the relative weight of each assignment relative to the final grade. Grading Allocation Weight Work Assignments (43) 15% GoReact Assignments (7) 25% Deaf Events (1) 5% Quiz (2) 10% Projects (2) 20% Class Presentation 25% Grading System
Page 6 of 10 On-Campus Credit Hours The course is a 3-credit course, which means that students are expected to do at least 112.5 hours of course-related work or activity during the session. This includes scheduled class-lecture/discussion meeting times as well as time spent completing assigned activities, studying for rests and examinations, preparing video assignments and other course-related tasks. Student workload expectations for 3-credit courses Fall 2017 session course meeting hours per week for lecture/discussion. Total in-class hours Total outside-of-class Total Hours 37.5 75 112.5 Work Assignments According to Signing Naturally Curriculum, assignments vary from analyzing video segments from the DVD, answering comprehension questions, circling the most appropriate answer, translating syntactic comprehension and incorporating cultural practice, to preparing narratives for class. There are over seven hours of signed footage on the DVDs to provide you with needed exercise to improve your comprehension and production skills. There are also homework follow up activities during the semester. Completed workbook assignments will be graded in total of 15% in the final grade. To pass the course, it is imperative for you to complete every workbook assignment before class begins. GoReact Assignments In this course, there is in total of seven GoReact assignments. To be able to receive a grade for your video assignment, submission through GoReact is the only acceptable way. Every GoReact video length varies, however, the maximum of minutes for all videos is three minutes. If GoReact renovates and prevents you from submitting your video assignment on time, please email your instructor, explaining the situation and share you YouTube link. Fingerspell Your Classmates Names [Due before class on date] This assignment is to exercise and demonstrate the ability to spell names using the form and movement of fist handshake letters. You are to create a video spelling all of your classmates names fluently.
Page 7 of 10 One minute [Due before class on date] Mini-dialogue #1 and #2 [Due before class on date] Your Basic Routine With an Ordinary Activity [Due before class on date] This activity focuses on expanding ASL lexicon and put it to daily practice. To meet the satisfaction of completing this assignment, you will need to elaborate what you ve learned in past classes. The following list covers acceptable ways to elaborate: 1) Explain what the lessons cover thus far 2) Tell a story using the topical vocabularies that have been covered in this course 3) Narrate your favorite part of the lesson and explain why Following the dialogues on specific pages provided in your student workbook, you are to sign topical vocabularies and proper ASL grammar covered in the course. if dialogues pose the questions to be answered, please sign the answers only. If the dialogues do not include the questions, please sign the dialogue between signers. The ASL video work is to convey what the person has been doing and what a person does out of ordinary activity over the weekend. Deaf Event Attending one Deaf community event in the vicinity area is mandatory to immerse yourself in an ASL signing environment and utilize vocabulary, grammar and cultural behavior learned in the class. To earn a satisfactory grade, the video should include the following list: 1. A summary of the event 2. Report your findings and/or experience 3. Your reflective thoughts Quizzes and Projects Quizzes retell stories you have learned in the class. Projects are dialogues conducted based on all of the information you have learned in previous units. In both quizzes and projects, comprehension and production skills will be evaluated along with linguistic and historical knowledge of the language. The dates of quizzes and projects are posted in the course outline. The details of each quiz and project are posted under Quizzes and Projects tab in the left column on your Blackboard. The video content will be organized according to the rubrics provided in the Blackboard.
Page 8 of 10 Class Presentation The class presentation is telling your childhood story in the classroom. This individual presentation should be at least 3 minutes length and no more than 4 minutes. Students are expected to use the proper grammar structure, topical vocabulary, and cultural information acquired throughout the course this semester. Class presentation guideline and rubric provided in the Blackboard under the tab of Class Presentation in the left column. Course Expectations, Policies and Procedures Course Format The course consists of engaging in class discussions and activities and viewing online lectures as well as academically-related videos in ASL. Mandatory Evaluation (Survey) All students enrolled in the American Sign language Professional Studies program are required to complete the course evaluation at the end of the semester in order to receive their official transcript. This will assist us in improving the quality of your course(s). Your instructor will inform you when the survey becomes available in your Blackboard course and you will have one week to complete the online survey before the last day of class. All entries received are 100% anonymous and cannot be used to penalize your final grade for the course. Student Responsibilities Students are expected to actively participate by attending class and completing assigned activities, participate in class discussions, serve in groups, complete answers with reasons, explanations and documentation form a variety of sources. If you are physically present but not engaged in class (listening to devices through earphones, using your phone during class, etc.), you will be asked to leave the classroom and your attendance will be count as one tardy. Classroom Etiquette Basic classroom etiquette includes turning off external electronic devices that may interfere with class participation, arriving on time for class, staying the entire period and avoiding behavior that interferes with the concentration and learning of other students. Attention should be given to the instructor, guest speakers, and fellow students. Expectation for communication in class Since ASL is visual language, use of spoken English or of speaking and signing simultaneously ( sim-com ) is not allowed during class time, including breaks. Monitoring of this will be the responsibility of every student in the room during class and during break. Students using voice or signing/voicing simultaneously will be asked to leave the classroom until the next session with no expectations. This will be counted as unexcused absence.
Page 9 of 10 Attendance You are expected to attend every class. You are expected to arrive on time and stay the entire class period. You will be allowed three absence. After your three absence has been used, you will lose 10 percents from your overall course grade for each class that you miss, regardless of the reason. (If you had five absences and you got 93% for your final grade, you would end up with 73% after losing 20 percents due to two over-thelimit absences.) Two tardy constitute an absence. Peer-Network Each student is responsible for getting access to and understanding what is expected of each assignment. Please form a strong network with your peers. If you miss a class, go to Blackboard for assignments and ask other classmates to learn about what you missed. Assignments All assignments are to be submitted as instructed. Late submissions will not be accepted except communicating within 24 hours in advance. The instructions are to be followed meticulously. Deadlines Assignments are due at the time of submitting before class on specific dates provided on Course Schedule. GoReact assignments, Deaf Event assignment, Quizzes and Projects not being submitted on time will receive a zero. No late submissions will be accepted after the deadlines. Allowance will be made in the event of inclement weather, an unforeseen situation on the instructor s end or communication made in advance by student as according to Assignments section above. Editing ASL works You are required to edit your ASL videos. You are more than welcome to meet with your instructor and/or your teacher aid to get the feedback as often as needed to produce the very best work possible. Example of the academic ASL video is posted on Blackboard. Office hours & appointments Please email your instructor if you like to meet with her/him at a specific time, and your instructor will be sure to make herself/himself available for you. Please keep your appointments with her/him, and if you have to cancel, please communicate by emailing the instructor in advance. Inclement weather or any cancelled classes If the university closes for any reason or if the class is cancelled unexpectedly, please check your Gallaudet email or the announcement of section of Blackboard for further instructions. Student Grievance Procedure
Page 10 of 10 Complaints about course grade must first be resolved through your instructor, the program coordinator, the department chair and then the Provost in the order until a resolution is reached. OSWD Academic Accommodation Policy Students have the responsibility of formally requesting accommodation through the Office for Students with Disabilities (OSWD) at the beginning of the semester. For information on your right under the ADA and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, please see: https://www.gallaudet.edu/office-for-students-with-disabilities Academic Integrity Policy Statement It is the student s responsibility to familiarize themselves and comply with the Gallaudet University Undergraduate/Graduate Academic Integrity Policy, which can be found in the Gallaudet University Undergraduate/Graduate Catalog or on the Gallaudet website at: https://www.gallaudet.edu/academic-catalog/registration-and-policies/graduatepolicies/academic-integrity Tentative Course Schedule Any changes to the course schedule will be announced in class, through email and/or posted in the Blackboard.