Bilingual school education with spoken and signed languages in Europe

Abstract

At least since the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities, deaf children worldwide have a right to education not only in the spoken and written language of their country, but also in the national sign language. The pedagogical use of a sign language in European schools for the deaf began in the 1980s and has since evolved significantly. This paper presents a survey of 39 European countries that documents the status of bimodal bilingual education using a spoken and a signed language. Data was collected through an expert survey on the three dimensions policies, practices and cultures of bimodal bilingual education and an analysis of relevant legal documents. The results reveal that bimodal bilingual education is increasingly implemented in deaf education but is not fully established all over Europe. In many countries, bimodal bilingual education is limited to special schools and is rarely offered in inclusive mainstream schools. Implementation processes are similar across Europe: Programmes are primarily initiated by parents, teachers or the deaf community but educational policies lag behind the practices at schools. Legal foundations (e.g. curricula and professionalization for the use of sign languages) guarantee the sustainability and quality of bimodal bilingual education.

Sign Language Literacy in the Sign Language Curriculum

“…Although there is plethora of sign linguistics studies (see updated research in QUER, PFAU, HERRMANN, 2021), there are still negative attitudes from a considerable number of educators and policy makers who do not embrace SL competencies as learning goals for deaf children (KRAUSNEKER et al, 2020). Such attitudes also affect what we consider literacy at schools.…”

Case for Sign Bilingualism in Irish Deaf Education

“…Policymakers will need to consult the wide range of literature on sign bilingual education published in International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism (e.g. Koutsoubou, et al, 2007;McKee, 2008;Cummins, 2009;Grosjean, 2010;Menéndez, 2010;Krausneker, et al, 2020) and inject them into national special education policy and school-based practices. Finally, this paper has not been intended to propose a specific policy document but to increase opportunities for further research into sign bilingual education in Ireland.…”

Alfabetização Na Língua De Sinais No Currículo De Língua De Sinais

“…A alfabetização na LS está ligada ao reconhecimento das LSs como línguas (SNODDON, 2012). Embora exista uma infinidade de estudos em linguística de sinais (veja pesquisa atualizada em QUER, PFAU, HERRMANN, 2021), ainda há atitudes negativas de um número considerável de educadores e formuladores de políticas que não adotam as competências em LS como metas de aprendizagem para crianças surdas (KRAUSNEKER et al, 2020). Tais atitudes também afetam o que consideramos alfabetização nas escolas.…”