Literacy and signing deaf students: a multi-national scoping review

Abstract

Many literature reviews or other types of reviews (e.g., meta-analyses, scoping reviews) in deaf education research are focused upon primarily or exclusively research that is performed in U.S. contexts or English-speaking contexts only. However, research that is conducted in non-English-speaking, non-U.S. settings that may be more likely to be multilingual, has value for our understanding of how deaf students using multiple languages may develop literacy skills. The objective of this review was to explore the literature on literacy development with deaf learners conducted outside of English-speaking contexts that has been published in English, Portuguese, or Spanish. We identified 13 English-language articles, 9 Portuguese-language articles, and 0 Spanish articles that met inclusion criteria. From these articles, we glean important insights into the reading process, including the teaching of subskills of reading, writing instruction, early literacy experiences, and the potential relationship between signed languages and literacy. We also note the need for multiple, converging sources of evidence and the value of an asset-driven approach to understanding deaf learners.